Getting the Most Out of Illustrative Mathematics: A Practical Guide to Powerful Problem-Based Learning

Illustrative Mathematics’ proven, rigorous, standards-aligned K-12 curricula are expert-authored and rooted in well-respected pedagogy and methodology, meeting all expectations for focus, coherence, rigor, mathematical practices, and usability. But, what it is most known for is its problem-based model with true real-world connections. 

If you’re using Illustrative Mathematics, you already understand the value of problem-based learning. You know that students build deeper understanding when they reason through challenges, make sense of problems, and share ideas. But just having the curriculum isn’t enough. 

To unlock IM’s full potential and drive real student success, you need to use the problems, structures, and instructional routines the way they were designed: intentionally, consistently, and without shortcuts.

Let’s cut through the noise and focus on what works with a practical, direct look at how to get the most out of Illustrative Mathematics in your classroom, so your students don’t just get through the content - they truly learn mathematics.

Make the Problems Do the Work

The problems in Illustrative Mathematics aren’t simply warm-ups, extra practice, or side conversations. They truly are the instruction. Each problem is intentionally designed to surface important ideas, push student reasoning, and create opportunities for discussion.

As an educator, your job isn’t to explain procedures before students start. It’s to set up the problem clearly, let students wrestle with it, and facilitate a conversation around their reasoning. 

That productive struggle is where the learning happens.

The right process to use is:

• Launch problems by clarifying context, not teaching content.
  
  
• Stick to the problem sequence. It’s designed to build understanding with a specific progression.
  
  
• Let students grapple. Avoid rescuing them too soon. Struggle, paired with support, leads to insight.
  
  
• Use problems as formative assessments. What you observe during problem-solving tells you exactly what students understand, what misconceptions exist, and how to frame your synthesis.

When you lean into the problems, without watering them down, you position students as sense-makers and mathematicians, not answer-getters who just memorize formulas. 

Build a Culture for Mathematical Discourse

Problem-based learning relies on student talk. If your classroom isn’t set up for it, the problems won’t be addressed the way they should be. Students need space to share incomplete thinking, debate ideas, and question one another.

This doesn’t happen by accident. It happens because you deliberately design for it.

To strengthen discourse…

• Normalize risk-taking and revision. Show students it’s safe to be unsure, it’s valuable to revise thinking, and that they don’t need to have all the correct answers.
  
  
• Use consistent routines like “Notice and Wonder,” “Which One Doesn’t Belong?”, and “Think-Pair-Share” to structure conversations.
  
  
• Resist valuing speed over reasoning. It’s not about who’s first, it’s about who makes sense.
  
  
• Highlight multiple strategies, even imperfect ones. Let students see there’s more than one pathway to a solution.
  
  

When students trust that their thinking matters, they engage more deeply, listen more closely, and build stronger mathematical reasoning.

Treat the Lesson Synthesis Like It Matters… Because It Does

The Lesson Synthesis is not a quick recap or a procedural walkthrough. It’s the moment where all the ideas from the lesson get named, connected, and lifted from individual strategies to shared understanding.

Too many classrooms rush through it… Don’t. 

The quality of your synthesis determines whether students leave with a partial grasp of ideas or a clear, transferable understanding.

To lead effective synthesizing discussions:

• Use student work and strategies to drive the conversation.
  
  
• Name the mathematics explicitly. Make connections between different approaches and highlight what they reveal about the underlying concept.
  
  
• Keep students at the center of the conversation. Don’t turn the synthesis into a mini-lecture.
  
  

A strong synthesis ties the problem back to the broader learning goals, prepares students for what’s next, and solidifies key mathematical ideas.

Plan for Student Thinking, Not Just Teacher Procedure

Having the IM curriculum doesn’t replace thoughtful planning. Problem-based teaching demands deeper planning. Not to script what you’ll say, but rather to anticipate how students will respond.

Before each lesson:

• Study the problem sequence and unit narrative. Know how the day’s work connects to the lesson before and what’s coming next.
  
  
• Predict the strategies students will take and the misconceptions they may have. Decide which to highlight, which to press on, and which to address in the synthesis.
  
  
• Plan your questions. Good, open-ended questions that extend thinking don’t come to you mid-lesson. Prepare them.
  
  

When you plan around student thinking, you stay responsive, focused, and better positioned to advance mathematical understanding when the “ah-ha” moment happens. 

Use Supports, Extensions, and Tools Strategically

Illustrative Mathematics includes built-in supports and extensions for a reason. They are there to help you keep all students engaged in the problem-based structure without lowering cognitive demand.

Use them to:

• Scaffold access without pre-teaching. Offer sentence frames, diagrams, or context explanations to get students into the problem.
  
  
• Push students who are ready to extend ideas, not race ahead to new procedures.
  
  
• Maintain the integrity of the problems while meeting varied needs in your classroom.

If you’re working on a digital platform like Kiddom, use it to capture student reasoning, track participation in discussions, and access real-time insights, not to deliver pre-made lectures or procedural practice. Technology should support, not replace, problem-based learning.

Final Thought: Problem-Based Learning Takes Practice, and It’s Worth It

Illustrative Mathematics is an incredibly impactful curriculum when you work it the way it was designed. It asks you to let go of over-scaffolded instruction, trust your students, and lean into the productive struggle that leads to lasting understanding.

This kind of teaching takes practice. It takes patience. It takes intentional classroom culture-building. But when you commit to the full model by letting problems lead, keeping discourse central, and staying responsive to student thinking, you’ll see students develop confidence, reasoning skills, and real mathematical understanding.

You already have the curriculum. Now, make sure you’re getting everything out of it that your students deserve.

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