PHILADELPHIA, PA—On December 10, 2008, School District of Philadelphia Superintendent
Dr. Arlene Ackerman and School Reform Commission Chair Sandra Dungee Glenn presented a Citation from the City of Philadelphia to Ting-Shan Chiu, recognizing him as the #1 FIRST IN MATH® FAMILY LINK™ parent in the nation. The presentation took place during the regular SRC meeting, and was also attended by Northeast Regional Superintendent Lissa Johnson as well as other district representatives.
Back row, l to r: Anne Frank Principal Ellen Cooper; SRC member Dr. James Gallagher; Northeast Regional Superintendent Lissa Johnson; SDP Superintendent Dr. Arlene Ackerman; SRC member Martin Bednarek; SRC Chair Sandra Dungee Glenn and SRC member Dr. Heidi Ramirez. Front row: Ting-Shan Chiu, #1 Family Link Player in the nation, and his son, 4th-grade Anne Frank student Rei Chu hold a First In Math trophy. Rei's mother, brother sister and grandmother (not pictured) also attended the ceremony.
Family Link™ Father is First in Philadelphia!
PHILADELPHIA, PA—Anne Frank Elementary, the first school to pass the one-million sticker milestone in the First In Math® Program in 2007, has another "first" to claim: The #1 FAMILY LINK player in the nation, Ting-Shan Chiu.
Ting-Shan is the father of Anne Frank student Rei Chiu, top player on the school's fourth-grade First In Math team. Through First In Math's new "Family Link" component, Mr. Chiu has been able to play at home and challenge his son. "I don't really try to compete with my son," explains Chiu. "Rei and I just try to earn 80 stickers a day." Father and son have each amassed more than 12,000 stickers, and are only 30 stickers apart. "I like that FIM teaches persistence and logical thinking. It's much better than most computer games because you actually learn something."
Rei and his dad discuss FIM strategy during a visit to Rei's class.
Family Link was initially piloted in the Philadelphia area with great success. "It involves family members in the process of their child's education in a groundbreaking way—allowing a family member to log on and experience the program just like students," according to Barbara Asteak, Suntex Vice President. Student and family member scores are combined for a Family Link total score, providing a mechanism for students and families to spur each other on to greater mathematics achievement.
Father and son both enjoy playing the Ten Wheels bonus game best, but Mr. Chiu has to wait until Rei and his younger brother and sister are in bed before he gets computer time. Anne Frank provides a traveling trophy for the top Family Link players of the week. "Thanks to my dad, we get it every week," beams Rei.
Currently, the Family Link component can be earned by any school with a minimum of five active FIM teams and an average of 10,000+ stickers per team. The national rollout occurred in mid-November of 2008, with more than 150 schools and several thousand teams qualifying.