Using Imagine Math as the Adaptive Practice Companion (APC) to Illustrative Math

Imagine Math can be used as an Adaptive Practice Companion (APC) alongside Imagine Illustrative Mathematics to provide students with targeted, standards‑aligned practice to reinforce core instruction.

When paired with Illustrative Mathematics, Imagine Math takes on the role of APC to:

• Extend and reinforce learning from Illustrative Math lessons
• Provide differentiated, adaptive practice for all students, based on student performance
• Target mastery of grade-level skills
• Provide feedback and support to guide students through learning
• Expand data and assessment insights for teachers
• Align directly to Illustrative Math units and standards (Grades 3+)

Imagine Math is a supplemental solution and does not replace core Illustrative Mathematics instruction. Instead, the APC model is designed to protect the integrity of problem‑based core instruction while offering additional opportunities for practice and review.

Imagine Math is separated into 2 environments, PreK–2 and 3+. Here's a short description of each environment and how they can work alongside Imagine Illustrative Math to help your students.

Students in Grades PreK–2

Overview

In Imagine Math PreK–2, students engage in:

• Story‑based and play‑centered activities
• Songs, games, and interactive exercises
• Visual and contextualized math vocabulary

Language Support

Imagine Math PreK-2 is fully available for students in both English and Spanish. This includes the audio as well as the written text on the screen.

Content Crosswalk
Visit Content > Teacher Resources and select Pathways in the Category drop-down to access the Illustrative Math Pathways Grades PreK–2 crosswalk.

The last column of the crosswalk lists Imagine Math content associated with each Illustrative Math Unit and section.

As an educator, you have access to all of the lessons, songs, and games in Imagine Math PreK–2 and can use the Lesson Explorer inside the Imagine Math platform to locate which of the correlated activities you'd like to use with your students to support standards-based core Illustrative Mathematics instruction.

Then, you can present the activities on a whiteboard or other device for whole class instruction. Of special note are the songs. For example, one fan favorite is the Hungry Crocodile song which teaches greater than and less than.

In addition to teacher-led instruction, you can also have students log in and work independently on their grade-level pathway. The pathway is a system-generated series of lessons that is automatically assigned to students based on their rostered grade. The original group of lessons is the same for all students in that grade, but, based on how students perform on their assessment, additional precursor lessons may be added to each student's pathway based on their need.

Student Data

Students take a Benchmark assessment shortly after beginning to use Imagine Math. The Benchmark assessment provides a Quantile measure for each student. If you choose to administer at least one other Benchmark in the same school year, then you will be able to measure growth for each student based on the change in their Quantile measure.

The Benchmark also provides a Performance Level for students in Grade K and up.

Implementation Guidance

We recommend students spend 45 minutes per week on Imagine Math, using it to supplement their core instruction. This time should be divided into 2 or 3 smaller segments per week.
 

Students in Grades 3+

Overview

In Imagine Math 3+, students engage in:

• Standards‑aligned problems
• Visual models and representations
• Multiple attempts with embedded feedback

Teachers can assign:

• Grade‑level pathways
• Specific Illustrative-Math–aligned units to close learning gaps

Language Support

Text for Imagine Math 3+ students always displays on-screen in English. However, audio support for each question is available in Spanish. The Live Teachers are also available in Spanish, many of the printable worksheets in Teacher Resources have Spanish versions. The audio support for the glossary is available in English, Spanish, Arabic, Vietnamese, Haitian Creole, and Tagalog. 


Student Content

Imagine Math 3+ is a whiteboard environment that includes several tools such as a glossary of terms and formulas, math modeling tools, and a calculator. 

Illustrative Math students using the APC in Grades 3+ can access tailored practice to be completed independently in Imagine Math. This work is assigned as a series of lessons called a pathway. Pathways aligned to the scope and sequence of Illustrative Math are available at the year-long/full course level as well as by unit. 

At the time of purchase, the district can request that the Illustrative Math-aligned pathways be automatically assigned to students in Imagine Math, or educators may assign them separately, depending on how the district wants to set it up. Confer with your Customer Success Manager (CSM) for implementation guidance.

Live Teachers

An additional benefit of the Imagine Math 3+ program is access to certified Live Teachers that provide 1:1 assistance via a digital platform that includes an interactive, student-accessible whiteboard. Students can work through the Guided Learning portion of their lessons with the Live Teacher if they are having trouble answering the question correctly.

Student Data

Students take a Benchmark assessment when they first begin using Imagine Math. The Benchmark provides a Quantile measure for each student. If you choose to administer at least one other Benchmark in the same school year, then you will be able to measure growth for each student based on the change in their Quantile measure.

The Benchmark also provides a Performance Level for each student.

Implementation Guidance

We suggest assigning pathways to students as additional core-aligned practice to be completed outside the core block, such as during advisory or flex time, or as homework, for at least 60 minutes per week. This protects Illustrative Math's problem-based core instructional model while allowing Imagine Math to function as a self-paced supplement.

Standards Correlations

The following standards correlations documents show the lists of lessons and how they align to the Illustrative Math units of instruction for students using Imagine Math 3+.

• Grades 2–5 
• Grades 6–8 
• Algebra and Geometry