CENTRAL FALLS, R.I. — When Natalia Molina began teaching her second grade students word problems earlier this school year, every lesson ... Many teachers in the youngest grades hand out worksheets ...

A student works a problem in a second grade math class at Place Bridge Academy, May 20, 2025, in Denver. Early experiences with math can shape whether a student decides they're a "math person" or not.

Take this problem, which students might work on in 1st grade: There are some bunnies on the grass. Three bunnies hop over, and then there are five total.

Both Molina, a first-year teacher, and her students had been trained to tackle word problems by zeroing in on key words like “and,” “more” and “total” — a simplistic approach that ...