Traverse City Area Public Schools (TCAPS) board members will consider approving a new elementary math curriculum for the district at their 6pm meeting tonight (Monday).

After an 18-month pilot project to test out different curriculum options, Associate Superintendent Sander Scott and K-12 Mathematics Curriculum Director Jessie Houghton are recommending adopting a Common Core program called Math Expressions. The curriculum uses drawings, conceptual language and real-world examples to help "students make sense of mathematics," according to Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Teacher, student and parent feedback - coupled with student academic performance during the pilot period - supported Math Expressions as a "balanced, coherent and rigorous program that will best serve our community," according to a memo from Scott and Houghton.

It will cost TCAPS just under $820,000 to purchase a six-year package of the curriculum, which includes teacher editions, student workbooks, homework books, and classroom and assessment materials for eleven elementary schools. The purchase also includes a free upgrade to the newest version of the program in 2018-19. If approved, the purchase will be funded out of TCAPS' general fund.