Other Foundations of Math secondary teachers?

Hello,
I am a new teacher.  I am teaching a class called Foundations of Math
for 9th graders who are not ready for algebra.  I have a small class
size of 17 students.  All of my students are ELL and most are having a
hard time with even the basic concepts of math.

My big problem is that the book is terrible and there is no curriculum
outline for this class.  The nice thing is that I have the freedom to
do almost anything.

I will have an entire year with these students and we are on a block
schedule so we spend 95 minutes a day together.   I would love to talk
to other teachers that are in similar situations.  What do you do with
students for this amount of time when there is no preset curriculum?
What sequence do you take the kids through when they aren't strong on
the basics?  How often do you do formal *****sments?  Do you
differentiate instruction or do you provide traditional direct
instruction?

Even though my students are ELL, their English is not bad.  Also, they
all seem to really want to learn.  When I provide them with a
challenging project, they work quietly and vigorously.

Again, it would be nice if there were other teachers in this situation.
 If you are, please say hello.

mathteach@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 
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