Orr Elementary School fourth-grade student Melissa Villela loves math, even though it doesn’t naturally come easy to her. That passion for math, and her relentless determination to succeed, recently placed her as one of only 10 students across the nation to receive a Think Through Math Students LOVE Math award.

Think Through Math (TTM) is a web-based software application that reinforces math skills and applications through rigorous lessons and activities. The Students LOVE Math contest highlights students who have been positively impacted through the program.

“Throughout the month of February, we had a contest called ‘Students LOVE Math,'” Mary Davis, TTM representative, said. “This contest was different than most. It wasn’t based on points or lessons passed. No one cared about donations or avatars. This one was about students and how they have overcome math challenges to succeed in school and really LOVE math.”

Melissa is a bilingual student with little access to the internet or home computer. According to her teacher, Ricardo Alvarez, when she has computer time at school she uses every single minute to work on her math skills by completing TTM lessons. He also adds that Melissa is currently the school’s overall leader by completing 81 lessons.

“Think Through Math has helped Melissa polish her high-level thinking skills and math-related reasoning due to the rigor of the lessons,” Alvarez said. “She has improved her overall math performance by at least 10 percent. I am thrilled she has been chosen as one of the 10 contest winners because she continues to illustrate to her fellow classmates that hard work and determination can help them succeed in anything.”

TTM Students LOVE Math winners each receive a $50 Amazon card, a TTM certificate and shirt and recognition on the website and newsletter.