ELK GROVE, CA-The 2012 Dr. Lola J. May
Achievement Award has been presented to C.W. Dillard
Elementary teacher Mathew David Morse, who earned more than 49,000
stickers en route to becoming the #1 First In Math Team Leader
Player in the nation for the 2011-2012 school year.
"I attended one of Dr. May's math workshops
when I was in college," says Morse. "She held the attention of
everyone in that huge auditorium, and was actually quite hilarious.
To receive an award named after her is outstanding, and I am very,
very honored."
Mathew David
Morse, #1 FIM Team Leader Player in the nation for 2011-2012, is
pictured here with his mother, Jane Morse, at a Sacramento State
University alumni meeting honoring his father, who was also a
teacher.
Morse recounts that his journey to #1 began
in August, and he played every day until mid-November, when he
needed a short break to recharge his batteries. "In October I had
become frustrated with my unsuccessful efforts to build nine wheels
in the Factors game, so I contacted the customer support people at
FIM, who were great. They told me that while it was difficult, it
could be done. They didn't tell me how, but I took their advice and
continued to try. I worked my you-know-what off trying to figure it
out," laughs Morse.
"As a teacher, I find it is sometimes best
to allow students to forge ahead and figure things out on their
own. That's exactly how FIM works-the parameters are clearly given,
and it is up to the student to actually think, not just recall
facts." Clearly proud to have conquered the Factors challenge,
Morse says that the highest Factors score he ever achieved was a
78. "I mostly scored 68's. I did the games at night while my son
was doing his homework."
"Participating in this First In Math
challenge has been a blast," says Morse. "You can learn a lot about
yourself in these types of situations. I've learned that I have the
same competitive fire I had when I was a youth, but I did this not
only because I am competitive, but because if a student has a
question, I want to be able to answer it having been in their
shoes. We are all life-long learners."
Morse realized that after playing regularly,
he was able to come up with answers faster, as well as remember and
retain some math skills he thought long forgotten. "One night it
came to me in the middle of one of the Skill Set games. I thought
'there is no way I can go faster' - well, I did go faster. I feel
the Skill Set games might be the best part of FIM for helping the
brain stay flexible. They force you to think quicker."
He saved the final three rounds of the Into
the Vortex bonus game for last. "ITV is a hard game. I had to dig
into the past for math knowledge and be extremely patient,"
explains Morse, who says he also enjoyed the rigorous
Area/Perimeter 2D game.
Morse has taught several First in Math
workshops in Sacramento County, and says people genuinely enjoy
learning about it. "I tell teachers that FIM is a program that
actually does what it says it's going to do-benefits young people
by strengthening their math skills. I want what is best for my
kids, and this program is by far the best I have seen in my 25
years of teaching."
Math runs in the family for this dedicated
teacher. His father was also a teacher, and was the first student
to register at Sacramento State University when it opened in 1948.
"Dad was also the first alumni president, the person that came up
with the mascot (Hornet), and he helped write the fight song. Some
folks think of him as Mr. Sacramento State," according to Morse,
who also explains that when his father named him, he took the
subject of math into consideration. "He named me Math-ew. It always
made sense to me, but most people use two Ts instead of one."