Mind Over Math

Mind Over Math

Each morning my classroom starts the day with math exercises. Over the years I have developed a way to deliver broad range activities that cover what I consider to be practical math applications. Time, money, weight and calendar questions are covered on a daily basis. The way the lessons are constructed leaves room for adapting and modifying for different learning modalities and ability levels. The materials needed are minimal and easily gathered. The instruction delivery is a combination of teacher-led, whole class participation, partner or table group work and individual application. And the whole program is portable, too!

As the students enter the classroom, they are issued a template for their first daily math work. Cues for their lessons are displayed (either on a smart/interactive board, white board or a paper display board. The first order of the day is to write their name and the date. The date needs to be noted two ways (e.g. November 3, 2013, 11/03/13).There is a large posted calendar for reference. Next, the time is filled in, first by illustrating a blank clock face, then noting the analog and digital form. As the students work individually and silently, I move through the room and issue small amounts of plastic coins (available online or at teacher supply stores). The students then sort and name the coins (how many pennies, dimes, etc.) and get a coin total. Then they add the value of the coins and note that total two ways (65 cents, or .65 for example).

All this is done independently and without talking. It should take only 5 to 10 minutes. All students can accomplish these tasks with practice, and I can modify the lesson by handing out smaller or greater amounts of coins, according to student ability. When most of the class is nearing completion of these initial activities, I go to the front of the room and welcome the class. I ask for the date, and write it on the board. I ask for the time, and write what the majority agreed was the beginning time. This is an opportunity for students to ‘self-correct’ what they have on their templates. I then write out two word problems, reading out loud as I go. The first will have to do with time or date, such as: What time was it one hour and ten minutes ago? Or: What will the date be in five days? The next will have to do with money, such as, “I you were given two more dimes, how much money would you have? I give the class a few minutes to answer the word problems and complete their beginning activities.

On display I have a skip count ‘rule’ posted (odd numbers starting with 33, for instance) and the next step on the template is to fill in the count on a number line. This is a good last step activity for students who are quick to solve the time/money word problems. For students who are taking longer, they will be given opportunities later in the day to complete their number counting line.

The initial exercises are set aside after 15 or 20 minutes, and we move into table or team activities. The quiet and methodical activities of daily math seem to set a positive tone at the day’s outset. Often I will play classical music during this morning math work.  The students get right to the tasks at hand, and I have time to take roll.

http://www.math-aids.com/

Pumpkin Pi

Math with Produce!

Fall is a fun time to do some hands on math activities. If you are fortunate enough to work close to a farm or produce stand and you can wrangle a field trip - great! Students can choose their own pumkins for math activities. Here's where you can find some ideas:

http://themes.atozteacherstuff.com/230/pumpkins-lesson-plans-activities-printables-and-teaching-ideas/
http://teachingheart.net/apumpkinunit.html
http://math.about.com/od/themeworksheets/ss/pumpkin.htm

There's even homework assignments for pumpkins! http://www.pbs.org/parents/education/math/activities/first-second-grade/pumpkin-math/

Funny Farms

Fall Field Trips!

Go to a farm. Buy pumpkins. Look up pumpkin math activities (http://mathwire.com/themes/themepumpkin.html) or art activities http://www.theimaginationtree.com/2012/10/pumpkin-activities-for-kids-from-its.html
or everything activities http://urbanext.illinois.edu/pumpkins/education.cfm.
Students don't need spending money on a farm, or nice clothes, or good 'sit-still' skills. They can walk and rund run and touch stuff. They can see where food comes from. They can get a little bit dirty and a lot happy. There's always a way to make a farm field trip fit into the standards, so you can relax :)

If you can't get to a farm, make one. Straw bales cost about $6.00. Stores might donate funny looking squash and gourds to your cause. Have the students run around outside picking up leaves. Create a fall backdrop for seasonal lessons. So many students are hungry for nature, for hands on learning, for lessons hidden in play. Let the kids be kids for even 15 minutes a day. I promise the class will run more smoothly with the inclusion of some organic materials in the curriculum! Happy Fall!!

Perspective

Fall is a great time to incorporate art into the curriculum. One activity I introduce in the fall is still life drawing. As a class we collect an assortment of leaves, branches, seeds and seasonal veggies. These I arrange on a high table or stool in the center of the room. I then issue paper and pens or pencils to the class and instruct them to draw what they see from where they are seated. (I think pens are better than pencils for this, because kids will spend too much time erasing otherwise.) They must fill up the WHOLE PAGE with their drawing. (So many students are ingrained to respect borders on paper - it cramps their style!)  When the sketches are done we all compare pictures and talk about the way we all see EVERYTHING from our own perspective. Same still life - different views.

Online

Most of the schools I have taught at in the last decade have computer labs that enable the whole class to be online at the same time. My students REALLY look forward to computer time; it's the highlight of the week! I allow the kids time to just play. They know great sites for games, such as Fun Brain, Math Games, Yahoo Kids, Safe Kid Games and Club Penguin. There are dozens more. I of course monitor the students to make sure they don't stray into inappropriate territory, but I try to interfere little with their gaming, as it engages, entertains and relaxes them.

In order to play (there's always a catch, right?) they must accomplish some tasks first. At the beginning of the year simply signing on is difficult for a number of my learning disabled students. Once that can be done with ease I give keyboarding challenges to each individual student. For some it might be to type their name and phone number into a word document. For others it might be name, number and address. For more advanced, name number, address and description of their housing. Spelling practice, for words and sentences, is great practice. Later in the year there are research projects centered on the science fair, book reports, personal naratives and fictional writing assignments that are modified for each students learning abilities.

If there is no lab, students can rotate time at the comuters in class. I always have each child do the 'hard' work first (for no more than 15 minutes) and then they get to play. If the children know the parameters of their assignments ahead of Computer Class and feel prepared, there isn't much sulking or balking. The class dynamic helps those who may be struggling, as do mentor students (great activity for Big Buddy class helpers!).

Stretch It.

Dogs bite.

Birds sing.

We write.

These are complete two word sentences, with subjects and predicates. In order to help my students develop their writing skills, I present the class with a sample two, three or four word sentence, and then challenge them to add on descriptors to make the sentence more interesting.

Some dogs bite a lot.

Birds sing pretty songs in the morning.

We write longer and longer sentences in class and add adverbs and adjectives in order to develop an interesting mental picture with our words for our readers.

This model has served me well. It is like a game, and has been well received by various age and ability groups. I can construct a list of choices (such as articles and pronouns) to jump start the writing. Or the class might brainstorm verbs together - even acting them out before writing them on the board. We might draw pictures of places or events in order to lead the descriptive writing. Students can work individually, and using a Thesaurus can help. Pairing students or allowing table groups to work on sentences together is fun. There are numbers of ways to build on this writing task so that it is accessible to all and refreshing each time we tackle the Sentence Stretch Challenge.

This works.

Try it.

Holi-Daze

Holidays. A loaded word.

I have worked on campuses that do celebrate holidays and campuses that don't celebrate holidays. I have put Christmas trees in the classroom, held Easter Egg hunts on the playground, and directed Thanksgiving plays on the auditorium stage - all bound to traditional Christian beliefs. Then again, I have participated in harvest celebrations and run booths for spring flings and decorated for winter festivals that were non-secular and strictly seasonal get-togethers for the school.

I have to say the latter works better for me and my personal beliefs. I enjoy hosting and participating in events that encourage families to meet on campus for the pure purpose of meeting and mingling. There is no emphasis on gifts, religions, belief systems or past practices. Just kids and their parents and families, coming to classrooms, enjoying the students' class projects or art work, maybe some music, and the staff's cooking. Kids still are involved in decorating, baking or dressing up, but there's less chance of offending or alienating families. Having worked my entire career at schools that served a low-income population, I feel it is less stress on the families. And less stress for me, if truth be told. There, I said it. Holidays are too hard to coordinate into curriculum, and teaching is my main focus - way above the bunnies and the skeletons. You may call me 'Ms. Scrooge'.