My Math Block Mini-Series {Part 5}

Welcome to part 5 of this series! If you missed any of the posts in this series, click below to go back:

My Math Block Mini-Series {Part 1}

My Math Block Mini-Series {Part 2}
My Math Block Mini-Series {Part 3}

My Math Block Mini-Series {Part 4}

7. Build the hundreds chart

This is something we started just a few weeks ago. I put up the blank chart and told them that all of the numbers fell off and we need to rebuild it (challenge accepted).

Please ignore the orange thing for now. :)

I have been pulling seemingly random numbers each day for the kids to put on (seemingly because there is a purpose behind each number that I pull). The first few days, I used multiples of 5 and numbers that go one under the other. The kids quickly caught on and knew exactly where the numbers go. The usual routine is I pass out 3-4 numbers to random (good listening) students. One at a time, they stand up at the front and show us the number (I will call on low students last to give them extended time to figure out where the number goes). The other students will look on the chart and eyeball where they think it goes. After 30 seconds to 1 minute, the student with the number places it where he/she thinks it goes and tells why. The other students give up a thumbs up or down if they agree/disagree. Sometimes, I call on multiple students to tell where it goes instead of the helper. That is totally random. After each number is placed, we always discuss patterns and make some predictions. In the few weeks that we have been doing this my students' knowledge of the hundreds chart and numbers in general has skyrocketed! I am very pleased and impressed!

We use the orange window to focus on a number and determine what is 1 more and 1 less. I made it really quickly one day because I forgot to make it ahead of time; it is just laminated cardstock with popsicle sticks taped on the back.

8. Weather

Weather has become a bit more popular since we added a few more things to it. Here is a flashback to September:

And now:

It changed after we studied more about clouds and wind in science. I LOVE to change things up based on new learning and so do the kiddos! One young meteorologist (we always use the proper term) takes the page off the clipboard (which is attached with command strips) and goes outside to check the clouds and the wind; he/she will move the paper clip accordingly. Another meteorologist grabs the "How does it look?" cards and checks the sky. A third meteorologist grabs the "How does it feel?"cards and checks for that.

While the meteorologists are checking, the calendar helper is calling on classmates to make weather predictions. We have recess, P.E. and music right before our math block, so the students recall what it looked/felt like from then. After the meteorologists return and deliver the report, we put all pieces back on the board and read it together.

And that, my friends, ends our calendar time!!! :) It took 5 posts to explain it though our calendar time only 15-20 minutes (longer when they have SO much to say and I hate to turn it off). I'm so glad you stopped by to read about it and I hope you are leaving with some new ideas!

Next up in the series is the remainder of my math block, which is math lesson/stations time. Tune in tomorrow!! :)

My Math Block Mini-Series {Part 4}

So this mini-series is not so mini anymore! (I think I need to change the name!!) The more I type, the more I realize that there is much more to say and explain than originally intended. Thanks for sticking with me! If you missed any of the posts, click below to go back:

My Math Block Mini-Series {Part 1}

My Math Block Mini-Series {Part 2}
My Math Block Mini-Series {Part 3}

I will now continue where we left off! :)

4. Count by days and/or weeks to special days and birthdays (continued)

One additional thing we do at the beginning of the month (when we add special days and birthdays to the calendar) is add birthdays to the birthday cupcake! The birthday kids write their name and the date of their birthday on the cupcake. So if Sally was born on March 4th she would write "Sally 4". I blocked my kids' names, but you get the idea.

The calendar helper then tells us "yesterday was, today is, tomorrow will be" by pointing to the days on the actual calendar, and then changes it here:

While the helper is changing it, the rest of the class turns to a neighbor and says "yesterday was, today is, tomorrow will be". If they finish before the helper does, we turn to a different neighbor to say it. Now, the special thing about the way we say it is we use popsicle sticks with the following words on them to tell us how to say it:

You can imagine how much more engaging it makes this part of calendar! Click on the document above to download your copy.

5. Days in school tally marks, straws, and stickers/odd and even

After we finish up at the actual calendar, we focus our attention to the right side of the board:

We start off by counting how many days we have been in school using straws.

The helper takes out the straws and we count it as the helper places the straws back into the pockets. I give the stack of extra number cards to another student to find the numeral(s) we will need while we are counting. At the end of counting what is already there, we say "and today makes _____" as the helper puts in a new straw. The child with the number cards then places the appropriate numeral(s) in the pocket(s). Then we all say, "One hundred twenty-four is made of 1 hundred, 2 tens, and 4 ones," with it matching whatever number we are discussing. 

Next up is counting the days using tally marks:

(You can probably tell where I made tally marks and the point where the kids started making the tally marks! Ha!)

We bundle every 10 tally marks to reinforce making tens and "counting smart". We also have bundled the 100 tally marks. When we count, we count by 100s, 10s, and then 1s. Sometimes we will count by 10s and 5s or 100s and 5s, etc. At the end of counting, we say "and today makes _____" as the helper puts another tally mark.

Next, we count the days in school using stickers.

We add a new sticker (which are seasonal, of course) at the bottom of the adding tape each day. This not only helps us count the days in school (and practice counting by 2s and 10s) but it also helps us determine odd and even by showing us if each sticker has a partner or not.  We also drew lines to group 10s.

Once we know if the number is odd or even, we chart it like so (back in September):

(and now): 

We coded the chart with red for odd and blue for even. This helped us see odd and even patterns that occur in numbers. It also helped reinforce what makes a pattern. (If you look at 1 and 2, you will see that we even circled the pattern core.) I DID NOT explain to them about odd and even and the last digit in a number. I let them discover that on their own. A few of them noticed very early on, but we did not really discuss it until the majority of students discovered it (and if you have been following me awhile, you know that I am really big on discovery learning). Once they discovered it, we wrote it down and added it to our calendar board for easy reference:

6. Money

I call a different helper up to for this part (just to switch it up and to pick a good listener).

We count what we have and then add another for the day we are on by saying, "and today makes ______" at the end of counting. You may have read about my classroom management system where my student groups are named after coins. Well, my kids came up with the idea that when we are counting, the group that matches whatever coin we point to needs to stand up. So when we point to a dime, the dime table stands up. They also wanted every one to stand when we point to the dollar. I applauded their thinking and agreed to it! :) I am all for moving around and them taking ownership of and giving input for their own learning!

I will conclude the calendar portion with build the hundreds chart and weather tomorrow and will then move on to math lesson/stations time. Thanks for stopping by!

And if you prefer to download the voice sticks from TPT or TN, then click below! See you tomorrow!

My Math Block Mini-Series {Part 3}

Welcome to part 3 of this series! I hope you had a chance to read part 1 and 2. If not, then click below to hop over:

My Math Block Mini-Series {Part 1}

My Math Block Mini-Series {Part 2}

And once again--calendar is easily one of my favorite times of day. Yesterday, I showed you what is on my board. Today, I will explain each part in more detail.

Flashback to September 14:

And this is it from two weeks ago, on the 119th day of school:

Quite the difference!!

Calendar Routine

1. Months of the Year and Days of the Week songs

We start by singing Dr. Jean's "Macarena Months" song (a capella, no time for a CD! ;) ). The calendar  helper points to each month as we sing.

Here is the song and lyrics on a YouTube video:

After we sit at the end of the months song, we begin to sing "Days of the Week", also the Dr. Jean version (to The Addams Family tune). The calendar helper also points to the days of the week as we sing.

Here is a video of a random class singing it:

2. Count to the date, recite the date (MDY)
We start on the 1st of the month and count until we reach the current day, at which point we recite the date ("Today is March 19, 2013). Sometimes we whisper or shout it, but most times we say it normally. You may notice that we do not have a place to write the date out (though we did in September). It is written at another spot in the room, so I am not too worried that we no longer write it during calendar.


3. Read the pattern, decide what is next
Before this month, I would make a pattern (AB, AABB, ABBA, ABC, ABCA, ABCCA, etc.) and the students would figure it out as the month went on. We would read the pattern and then make a prediction about the day and the few days following. This month, I switched it up! I wanted the students to take more responsibility in making the pattern. I bought 2 sets of calendar numbers (the reversible ones) for March:

(click on the above pics to head over to Carson-Dellosa)

and made some pattern cards.

(Click to download your own set!)

I cut up the cards and put them in a baggie. On March 1st, my calendar helper drew a card. He drew "ABCDA pattern", so as a class we talked about what that meant and what it would look like. He then chose a card to represent "A" and placed it on the calendar. The next day's helper was responsible for choosing "B", followed by "C", and then "D".  From then on, the helper was just responsible for continuing the pattern with the correct picture and number.

We always read the entire pattern as a whole class before and after placing the day's card on the calendar. The students always enjoy making predictions about what they think is next! (Algebraic thinking, woot woot!)

4. Count by days and/or weeks to special days and birthdays
At the beginning of the month when we place the special days and birthdays on the calendar, we always get a little practice in counting on. We have three birthdays this month, St. Patrick's Day, and spring break. When placing the cards for those on a blank calendar, we always "count smart". That means we use nearby dates that we already know to find other dates. For example, we placed a birthday on the 4th and then wanted to place St. Patrick's Day next. Instead of counting from the 1st, we decided to use the 4th as our starting place and counted on to 17. We then were able to use the 17th to help us find a birthday on the 24th. This is something that I always let the students suggest we do. If the helper doesn't suggest it then there is always a friend that will!

The calendar helper helps us count up to special days. If we have birthdays, the birthday student comes up and helps us count up to it. We started the year off just counting by days, working our way up to being able to count by weeks. It took a few months to get there because I wanted it to be something that the kids came up with (and they eventually did!). They knew 7 days makes one week and began to notice that each time we had two events with one under the other, they were 7 days apart. With a little nudge, they realized that those 7 days made 1 week, so the events were 1 week apart! Yes, I could have explained this to them, but how much more meaningful is it when they think it on their own??? We are now able to count by weeks and days--some of them are even really good at counting by weeks and then counting back days (like if there was an event 2 weeks and 6 days away, they are able to count 3 weeks and then subtract 1 day to get 2 weeks and 6 days)--WOW!

Well, I'm wrapping up for the day--I fear that I will bore/overload you if I continue now, so I will finish the calendar portion tomorrow! :) Here is what is coming in the next post:

5. Days in school tally marks, straws, and stickers/odd and even
6. Money
7. Build the hundreds chart
8. Weather

If you prefer to download the pattern cards from TPT or TN, then click below! See you tomorrow!

My Math Block Mini-Series {Part 2}

Yesterday, I began this mini-series on my math block. (Click here in case you missed the first post.) I gave you an overview of calendar time yesterday; in today's post, I will show you the components on the calendar board.

Ahhhhh, calendar. Again, one of my favorite times of day. As my students have grown and changed, so has our calendar time. This was our calendar area back in September on the 14th day of school:

And here it was two weeks ago, on the 119th day of school:

Quite a difference!! Here is what everything on the board is for (minus the obvious):

The Calendar

I custom-made the days of the week labels on the calendar. I used to use velcro to attach the number cards and it worked just fine. However, this month we started doing something different with the pattern, so I needed some sort of clip that the number cards would easily slide into. I couldn't find any from our local teacher store, so I had to improvise!

And the BEST part is the clips match my color scheme perfectly. And I got to make another pattern. Double rainbow.

Weather

Hundreds Chart

Odd and Even/Days in School/Money/Mystery Number/Birthdays

Come back tomorrow and I will describe each component and our routine! :)

My Math Block Mini-Series {Part 1}

So I changed the "Calendar Mini-Series" I teased about to "My Math Block Mini-Series" because there is so much more about math that I want to share! Now, we all know that my favorite subject has and always will be MATH! Teaching 1st grade math has been such a great experience so far, particularly because the students aren't so defeated (drained, damaged, mislead, behind, etc.) when they come to me (as they had been in 4th). In this first part of this mini-series, I will give you a breakdown of our math block and calendar activities. In subsequent parts of this mini-series, I will go over each activity in much more detail.

Number of the Day
Our math block is from 12:40-2:10 every day. My students come back from P.E./Music at that time, so a bathroom break is a must. I have a "Number of the Day" ready to go as soon as they walk in (just a random number I pick between 1 and 100). I display the number by using base-ten blocks or ten-frame cards:

(You MUST go back to this post to get the story behind the hand on the screen!)

The kids take out their math notebooks and dry erase markers and get started as I send one table at a time to the restroom (just right outside our hall door). The NotD papers are kept in a sheet protector that we write directly on with a dry erase marker (best idea EVER). Easy erasing, saves paper, and readily accessible to students!

Here is the paper that we use for NotD (click on it to snag a copy):

I plan on moving to this step next (this is available to download as well):

The following pages are kept behind our NotD page in our notebooks. We use the following pages to help us write those number words we have trouble sounding out:

You can snag a copy by clicking on the picture of the page! The pages we use just go up to 100 so I added an extension page to 120 for my common core friends.

Anyway, after they complete the NotD, they grab a number board and practice counting writing numerals and number words until we have all gone to the bathroom and are ready to go over the number.

I purchased two sets from Really Good Stuff for really cheap! The kids love them and I love how they are an easy time filler. 

Calendar Time

One of my favorite things about 1st grade math is definitely calendar time! What an incredibly POWERFUL time to learn new math concepts, discuss patterns, reinforce learning, and explore numbers! My students are always excited to do it and always come with something new and exciting to say (seriously...I have to cut them off or our calendar time could easily last an hour). The kids are so engaged that they actually run it with very little assistance from me. The main thing I do is facilitate discussions and pick the next helper! I treat calendar time with the same importance as I would an actual math lesson because to me, it is a math lesson. As previously stated, it is such a powerful time because so many skills are covered in such a short period of time. Now, calendar time in March looks quite different than calendar time at the beginning of the year. We have added many new things, taken some things out, and extended several things that already existed. That, I will share with you later. 

NotD and bathroom break takes about 15 minutes. After that, we sing our mystery number song as we put math notebooks away and head to the carpet for calendar. The mystery number song is such a GREAT transition song for us! I saw the idea on Miss Kindergarten and adapted it for my classroom. Our song is pretty much the same, as is the process.

Remember these cute little pointers??

During Mystery Number (or right before) I very casually choose a student as my calendar helper and that student gets to pick a pointer out of the pointer bucket (highlight of their day, let me tell ya). After we finish mystery number, here is our current calendar routine:

1. Months of the Year/Days of the Week songs

2. Count to the date, recite the date (MDY)

3. Read the pattern, decide what is next

4. Count by days and/or weeks to special days and birthdays

5. Days in school tally marks, straws, and stickers/odd and even

6. Money

7. Build the hundreds chart

8. Weather

As you can see, our routine includes quite a bit. In fact, each number has at least a few subcategories! As stated at the beginning of this post, I will go over each activity in more detail in a later post.

Math Lesson

At the conclusion of calendar time, half of my class goes to stations and the other half goes to the mat with me for the day's lesson.

The station kids have a sequence of activities laid out for them so there is no question as to what to do. We switch after 30 or so minutes. We usually conclude the day's math work with Lone Star Math on the Promethean board.

Whew, long post! Well, I hope you enjoyed the post and maybe picked up an idea or two. I hope to prepare post part 2 of this series tonight so it is ready to post tomorrow! Thanks for stopping by! :)

You can also grab copies of the above pages by visiting my shops.

Number Words:

Number of the Day: