The Power of Cross-Grade Professional Development in Concept-Based Mathematics

When schools separate professional learning by grade bands or primary and secondary, I think they miss a crucial opportunity. As a consultant, I often receive the request to work with different grade level teachers at different times however, I've seen firsthand how bringing PreK-12 educators together creates a richer understanding of conceptual mathematics that benefits everyone.

Breaking Down the Silos

Traditional professional development often segregates elementary, middle, and high school teachers. This approach, while seemingly logical, reinforces disconnection in mathematical learning progressions.

I remember facilitating a workshop where a third-grade teacher had an illuminating conversation with an eighth-grade teacher. The elementary teacher exclaimed, "So that's why place value work matters so much!" Meanwhile, the middle school teacher gained insight into why some students struggled with distributive property—they never fully grasped the conceptual foundation of place value years earlier. These moments of connection are impossible when we keep teachers separated by grade level.

The Confidence Factor

Teaching mathematics conceptually requires deep subject matter knowledge. Understanding content one or two grade levels beyond what you teach is essential for teacher confidence and effectiveness.

I've worked with countless elementary teachers who initially approached professional learning with anxiety. One teacher confessed she'd been teaching multiplication through rote memorization because she herself had never understood the conceptual underpinnings. After working alongside middle school colleagues who helped deepen her understanding, she transformed her practice. Her newfound confidence allowed her to create rich learning experiences she would have previously avoided.

What often surprises participants in my workshops is the reciprocal nature of this learning. I frequently see middle and high school teachers absorbing powerful lessons about engagement and motivation from their primary and early years colleagues. In fact, early years teachers are the best conceptual mathematics teachers I've ever met. They instinctively understand how to make abstract ideas tangible, how to build understanding through play, and how to foster genuine curiosity. I've watched secondary teachers' eyes widen as they observe kindergarten teachers masterfully develop number sense through storytelling and visualization techniques that could transform math instruction. This cross-pollination of expertise is invaluable—secondary teachers gain fresh approaches to engagement while sharing their deeper content knowledge.

This vertical knowledge builds teacher confidence, helps anticipate student questions, and enables teachers to create appropriate challenge. When teachers truly understand the mathematics—not just the procedures—they teach with conviction and flexibility.

Shared Strategies for Low-Floor, High-Ceiling Tasks

The magic happens when PreK-12 teachers collaborate on designing accessible, extendable mathematical tasks. Last year, I watched a high school teacher and a kindergarten teacher co-create a pattern exploration. The high school teacher brought sophisticated understanding of how patterns build toward algebraic thinking, while the kindergarten teacher contributed expertise in making abstract ideas concrete and engaging for young learners.

The resulting activity worked beautifully across grade levels with appropriate adjustments. Young children explored with manipulatives, middle grades students explored patterns and explicit rules, and high school students connected to functions and rates of change. This organic differentiation emerged from teachers collaborating across traditional boundaries.

Moving Forward Together

I've seen the transformation that happens when teachers break free from grade-level isolation. They develop shared language around mathematical practices, build collective understanding of learning progressions, and support each other in areas of uncertainty. Most importantly, they create engaging and joyful mathematical experiences for students.

For schools considering mathematics professional development, I urge you to resist the typical grade-band separation. The mathematical confidence, pedagogical creativity, and curricular coherence that emerge from cross-grade collaboration benefit everyone—especially our students, who deserve teachers who understand the beautiful continuum of mathematical learning.