'Osmo' isn't your grandparents' math

Getting the right answer makes Ethan League, above, very happy, while next to him, waiting for his turn to use "Osmo," is Tucker Ebert. Lorri Sughroue/McCook Gazette

McCOOK, Neb. -- It's not ice cream. Or candy. Or even the chance to go to Disneyland. No, the reason why students in Jody Dellevoet's first grade class at McCook Elementary are jostling each other in excitement is because they are waiting to do math.

Yes, math.

An apparatus clipped onto an iPad "reads" numbers, letters and symbols kids lay on the table to complete math problems and reading games on the iPad.

First grade teacher at McCook Elementary Jody Dellevoet helps students get ready to start using the new interactive computer game. The game enriches math and reading curriculum and was purchased using a grant from the McCook Education Foundation. Lorri Sughroue/McCook Gazette

The apparatus and corresponding pieces are a learning tool called "Osmo" that Dellevoet purchased with a grant from the McCook Education Foundation.

It's a way to enrich math and reading with technology, Dellevoet said.

"We're looking at different ways to use technology and for kids to get more hands-on experience," Dellevoet said, with students using Chrome books more regularly in second and third grades. "This gives them a break from worksheets and a way to be independent."

So far, it's been a hit among the students, evidenced by several students waiting anxiously for their own turn with "Osmo."

"It makes math fun," explained one first grader.

The games come in three areas -- math, reading and tangram puzzles -- and get progressively harder as the student advances. They can be used alone or with with other students.

Reading games are similar to the "hangman" game where students figure out the right spelling of a word. Math games have matching numbers and correct answers, with tangrams using seven puzzle pieces students move and rotate to match the shape on the screen.

It certainly isn't your grandparent's math. Or even math 10 years ago.

Still, not everything has changed. Dellevoet says students are still required to do worksheets on a regular basis.