Mental Math Freebie

When I started doing math groups two years ago something kept filtering through in all the literature I would read. Kids didn't understand math concepts and could not calculate concepts quickly in their minds. I quickly made some mental math cards. I have beefed them up this year and am sharing some with you.

 These cards cover math vocabulary and multi-step problem solving. They have helped my students a lot. I pull them out and use them during transition times, for math warm up, or even math review. Mine are laminated and on a metal ring.


 In this version I have attached KABOOM cards in case you want to use them to play Kaboom.
 Are you familiar with Kaboom? There are lots of versions floating around out there but my class' favorite is to boys against girls. We sit in a circle on the carpet and I play music. While the music plays the students pass a small basket around the circle. In the basket are a mixture of math cards and a few Kaboom cards. If the music pauses then that student pulls out the card and answers the question. For each correct answer they earn a point for their team. (Boys vs. Girls) If they pull out a Kaboom card then they loose all the points for their team. I usually let the winning team line up for lunch first or something equally mundane exciting for an eight year old!

Hope you can use these in your classrooms.

Fraction Bump Freebie

This will be short and sweet tonight. My kiddos played this game today to review fractions and it was a real hit. We have played bump before but this one seemed to be a bit more fast paced. Hope you can use it in your classroom!

 

Don't Let your Caboose Become Obtuse!!!!

We are on the homestretch before Spring break and their is a lot going on! We just had to hand in report cards, we have NWEA MAP testing this week and next, and the kids have that terrible illness called spring fever. Can you tell I'm ready for a break? Well I was inspired to write this post after a conversation with a sweet little girl at the lunch table today. Our fifth grade is selling chocolate bars for a field trip and I just love chocolate. I was teasing one student and asking why they bought a chocolate bar but forgot to share any with us. Well, one of my little girls said "I'll buy you a candy bar, Mrs. O'Quinn." I chuckled and teased her back saying that if I ate a candy bar my pants might not fit right the next day. Well a third little student heard this and piped up with the saying from our math lesson a few weeks back. "Remember Mrs. O'Quinn, You don't want your caboose to be obtuse!" I was so tickled that she remembered what the word obtuse meant. I hope you can you use that phrase I coined with your kids. It seems to have helped mine.

Hope you find a place for this in your classroom! I love my math wall. What types of things do you have on your math wall?

Geometry and a Freebie

This month we have been studying about shapes in math. I love geometry - it's definitely my favorite thing to teach in math. I wanted to show you a few of the things we have done. I have found so many wonderful free resources and ideas on Pinterest some you have probably seen before, but just in case....

This is a hall display we made learning about slides, flips and turns. The kids love using their hand prints to understand this skill.

This week we did a 3D shape graph. I had found a website a long time ago that I used for recording sheets. Click here to go the website. It's about half way down. I used sour cubes instead of caramel because I knew they'd be more popular. I also used Gobstoppers instead of Whoppers because of a food allergy.

 We ended today with making shapes using gum drops and toothpicks. That's always exciting. Below is one I made. I had to use raisins for the sample because I was afraid I'd run out of gumdrops.

Here is a game I created to review naming basic 3D shapes. Graphics courtesy of DJ Inkers.
 

 

Ahh....almost Friday! :)  

 

Work on Writing and a Freebie

 I've been posting a lot of things we do during our literacy block. Have I mentioned it's my favorite time of the day? I love to teach the kids new strategies and watch the light bulbs come on. What is even more important is that my students do not waste their independent time. That is why I love Daily 5! I decided to post a few things that my students can do for work on writing.

This is a homework pocket. In it there are class books that students can add to during their work on writing time.

Here is a close up. The labels help the kids to see all the book titles and they can quickly choose one to get started with.

The books are bound using a machine we have at school I created the covers using basic Microsoft Word clip art. The front and back sheets are printed on card stock for durability. 

Here is a notebook full of word lists by category. It came from the Carl's Corner. Click the picture to go to her website to download copies of your own topic lists.

When books are filled up we put them in the classroom library. This is by far a favorite bucket. 

My class loves this collaborative journal effort. There are enough journal topics to keep them interested and engaged.

Click below for a copy of some journals you may want to use for Daily 5 in your classroom. 

Graphics courtesy of DJ Inkers.

Check back soon! I have other Work on Writing activities to share and would love to know how you all do work on writing in your room.

 

Classroom Library and Book Buying Addiction

Let me start by saying I love books. My mom always read to me when I was younger and I understood from an early age that books were an important part of learning. That being said I have an addiction to buying books. I do stay away from brand new books and stick to the thrift shops and yard sales.

We had a staff development a few weeks ago about the amount of books we should have in our rooms. It is suggested that you have at least twenty books per students in your classroom.  Since I have twenty-one students that would mean I should have over four hundred books. Ha. I have fifty-four baskets in just my classroom library. That does not include leveled baskets or our partner reading library. How crazy exciting is that? I can't help it. When I go to a store and find a book that makes me think of one of my readers I HAVE TO BUY IT!

My classroom library is organized by genre. I have many different colored baskets but they don't have any real significance.

Click the picture above to go to Beth Newingham's website to get a copy of the genre labels for yourself.

I added some of my own baskets in addition to the ones that she features on her website. Click below to get a copy now.

You can see I love books!

A little about how I organize my books. I mentioned by genre which is huge. On the outside label of each basket there is a sticker with a code on it. Every book in that basket has a matching sticker with code in the front cover. I started that this year and it has made a world of difference. The kids are very responsible about putting the books in the appropriate place.

I had a chance to work with a literacy consultant from the state of Georgia earlier in the year specifically about independent reading and the classroom library. She went through my baskets and helped me realize that I had a great variety but I needed to be sure to include a wide variety of lower leveled books. At our school we use the DRA leveling system. What I found was that I had a great amount of lower leveled books in my leveled library but was not including them as much in my classroom library. Well I went through my leveled baskets and now have DRA levels all the way down to Level 6 in my classroom library. 

As far as the leveling within the library I don't believe that every book has to be leveled. I want to train the kids on how to gauge if a book is just right for them without being told a color or letter to choose. I do have a summer plan to color code outside spines of books by level but not tell the students what the stickers mean. Then, I can spot check books during reading conferences and in book bins to see if students are near the appropriate range. This will be a HUGE project because I have so many books. Encouragement is appreciated. :)

I'll leave you with a few of my kiddos relaxing in the library.

Parent Involvement

Have you ever heard these words? 

"I'd love to work with my child, but I don't know what to do?"

Ahhh.... I have. It's frustrating because we make study sheets and all kinds of parent communication that keep parents informed but there can always be more. 

So, that being said I am sharing with you something we have used in my classroom this year. I spent a lot of time over the summer organizing these pages. I wanted one to go home each month that focused on various reading and math skills using manipulatives that students would have at home. Examples include letter envelopes, telephones, dice, money, etc. The skills go from spelling and writing skills to even reviewing fact and opinion.  

Click below to grab a copy for yourself.