Mr. Nick Navarrette first learned about Reflex when his daughter and son started using the program at home. “I was intrigued that my daughter wanted to work on mathematics without me forcing her to sit at the kitchen table. I was also excited to see my children engage in academic competition and having fun at the same time.”
In his first year as a Resource teacher in Merced County Office of Education in California, he “took over a K-3 Emotional and Behavioral Disturbance (EBD) classroom. I had twelve students who suffer from EBD. Our children had a difficult time engaging in mathematics using black and white worksheets. Many of our children are visual and/or auditory learners and are competitive in nature.” He adds, “It was very difficult for me to have them engage in a math lesson. The students would become frustrated as they fumbled through using number lines and finger counting that most would tantrum to escape work only after a few problems.”
Remembering how much his own kids had enjoyed Reflex, he decided to try using the program with his students. Once his students got used to Reflex, “that’s when they took off! In an EBD classroom environment I utilize whole group and small group instruction. I adapted my small group instruction to include a Reflex station that allowed my students to engage with the math program for a minimum of twelve minutes. This was done twice a day, everyday. I also encouraged my students to work on it from home.”
He pushed his students to get “the Green Light every day of the school week, and I believe they have become better students for it! I would recommend that students meet their daily Green Light goal for best results.”
Since a big strength of his students is their competitiveness, Mr. Navarrette and his aides invented the “Reflex Race.” Students were placed in first through twelfth place based on number of facts solved. “I would adjust race leaders throughout the week. Once a student was passed by another they would become more focused and would work harder just to get their spot back. I awarded first, second, and third place trophies. My first place student completed almost 20,000 facts, second place completed almost 17,000 math facts, and third place completed almost 11,000 math facts. This incentive pushed my students to the point they would ask to spend time on Reflex during breaks, lunch and free time. This was amazing to me. When I first took over this class, I had a very difficult time to get them to work on math and now they asked to do math!”
“My students have made exponential growth in their math fluency! I went from grudgingly getting four math problems done from individual students to thousands. My twelve Special Education students have solved 100,557 facts in twelve weeks!” He has also saw amazing growth in “self-confidence and, most importantly, academic confidence in mathematics. Now all of my students are able to sit at their desk for 5 minutes and answer 100 math problems–and look forward to the timed test everyday!” This also makes it easier for his students “to learn more complex operations.”
“I have used Reflex reports to really hone in my Individualized Education Programs (IEP). I have used the data collected to help move my students forward on their way to mainstreaming and back into the general education curriculum. I also used the data to show the parents the growth their child has and is making. Many times our parents are inundated with negative reports and presenting this positive data to them is a welcomed change.”
He adds, “There is no other program out there that compares to Reflex. I teach Special Education, and I have not been able to locate a program that effectively and efficiently supports my classroom instruction like Reflex.”
Nick Navarrette is a former police officer. After getting injured on the job, he went back to school to become a Special Education Teacher. He now works at the Merced County Office of Education in California.