Scaling Up Early Math Programs: Recommendations from a Study on Engaging Families with Early Math

Young children’s exposure to early math concepts is important in their development, in their confidence in math skills, and in their ability to use math later in life. In 2013, the Heising-Simons Foundation embarked on an innovative path to support children’s early math development. The Foundation invited several family engagement providers to develop, test, and integrate research-based early math projects within their existing family engagement programs. The Foundation has since supported two providers—Reach Out and Read (ROR) and the YMCA of Silicon Valley (YMCA)—as they refined their early math projects and scaled them up in new sites. Mathematica conducted an implementation study that examined the scale-up effort during 2018 and 2019. Drawing on the study findings, the brief presents practical recom­mendations for program operators, practitioners, and policymakers to consider as they design, implement, and prepare to scale up an early math intervention.