Yesterday I was talking to a
fourth grade teacher who shared with me a really easy, useful tip to help
students to keep their columns staight when working multiplication or
division problems. She has the students use lined notebook paper. They turn
the notebook paper on its side so the lines are vertical---instant columns
used to line up numbers. I thought this was a great idea. We are multiplying
multidigit numbers using partial products, and one of the most common
mistakes that is made is that students do not line up their numbers
correctly. This is a great solution to this problem.
Becky Noble, Dixie Bee Elem, Grade 3 in Vigo
Celebrating Milestones on Scrolls
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We celebrate each milestone on the
scrolls ( every time a student makes one thousand or an increment of 1000,) by
presenting the student with a Certificate of Achievement, signed by the teacher
and the principal. Then they are listed on the classroom pocket chart of the
"Thousand Club". Each member who has made it to 1000 is represented on the chart
with a piece of colored construction paper with their name on it and a shiny
gold seal. We use different colors for each increment of 1000. The students
really like receiving their certificate and official handshake when they reach
this milestone! Ann Filler
Division Dash
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I have a version of Division Dash that does not require a special calculator
as described in the SRB. Click
HERE. Diana Allen
Math Egg Hunt
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I know
that Easter is over, but this activity can really be used anytime. On the day
before spring break, I hid 50 plastic eggs in my classroom. Each egg contained
some sort of math problem. I tried to include lots of different math
skills----basically a review of everything we have covered this year. Students
were given an answer sheet which was numbered 1-50. Armed with a clipboard,
pencil, piece of scrap paper, and an answer sheet, students went from egg to
egg. The problem inside each egg had a number at the top left corner. The
student worked the problem and then recorded the answer next to the
corresponding number on the answer sheet. Students were given the choice to work
in pairs or alone. When a student had ten correct answers (verified by me) on
his or her sheet, he or she got to get a treat out of the goodie jar. They were
having so much fun, they didn't realize that they were working! Becky Noble,
Dixie Bee Elem, Grade 3 in Vigo
Getting classroom supplies (Click
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Discussion Forum.)
Rosemary Reitz, Darla Frisz, Michele Justus Hobbs,
and Edwina Eberle
Chants (Click
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Discussion Forum.)
Want even more songs and chants?
1. See Karen Leff's songs posted
HERE on the Resources Web Site
2. See Songs, Rhymes and Chants posted
HERE
from our Cohort 3 teacher cadre.
Sheri Reed and Sherri Prast
Cube Drop Experiment
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Hey!
Just a little advice for fourth grade teachers who have been struggling with the
cube drop experiment. The first year I did that experiment I did just what the
book said and I tried using the centimeter cube for the experiment. It didn't
work because the cube bounced every time and it took 1000 drops before the kids
got 50 that counted! We tried doing it on the carpet in the pod the next year,
and that worked no better. The only way they wouldn't bounce was if the kids
were two inches from the grid, and then they could plan where they would drop
it! I finally figured out that we could use modeling clay, rolled up into cubes.
It has just enough stickiness to it that when it drops onto the grid, it sticks
rather than bounce. A few rolled off, but not many. Using the clay doesn't take
anything away from the effectiveness of the lesson and helps you and the kids
keep your sanity!
Julie Pearson,
Orchard Dr. Elem., Grade 4 in Hammond
Fraction Cards
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I just wanted to share or remind everyone
of a tip someone gave me last year, and has been helpful even this year when I'm
in a new grade level. The fraction cards that are in the back of the student
journal are wonderful for all the games and teaching of equivalencies, etc. But,
if you allow the students to tear and cut them out themselves, you might get in
trouble. If the students don't cut exactly on the lines, the cards are useless.
What I did was had the students pull out the pages. I had them laminated, then I
cut them out. I labeled sets, just like I did with the EM card decks, and rubber
banded them together, so that when kids are ready to play the games, they have a
full set that are very durable. Yes, it took me a long time to get the cutting
and labeling, but it was time well spent, and I have fraction card sets for the
next several years, I hope. I think that in the future, I can have the students
take their pages home and they can play fraction games with their families,
because we're all set at school! Diane Ragsdale, West Newton
Elem, Grade 3 in Decatur
Assessment games
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Now that I'm in the second year of EM I'm becoming more adventurous.
I have started sending home a weekly game activity for homework by using the CD.
I go to the Alternative Assessment Options under the Assessment spot. I choose a
lesson and then send it home with a parent/student comment sheet, along with any
needed supplies. Last time I received several positive comments from both
parents and students. This is just another way of communicating with the parents
about the math program since we don't send home the Math Journals. Marsha
Bittner, Edgewood Elem, Grade 3 in Anderson
Geometry Simon Says
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My
students and I play Geometry Simon Says. They get such a kick out of it! A line
segment is hands out with two fists. A ray is hands out with one fist and the
other hand just open to kind of make a backwards arrow. A line then is two
backwards arrows. (Since we cannot make arrows with our hands the kids thought
this would work well.) We then add things as we go through our unit. Acute angle
we make an angle with our arms that forms an angle smaller than a right. Right -
one arm straight up, one straight out the the side. Obtuse - one arm straight
out to the side and one out to the side to form an angle bigger than a right.
The class really enjoys coming up with ways to add to the game using geometry
terms. I will say, "Simon says Ray" and they form a ray....when we really get
going I will just say, "Right angle." Anyone who forms a right angle is OUT! I
didn't say SIMON SAYS!
Kirsten Grotemat, Haley Elem, Grade 2 in Fort Wayne
Alternative Assessments
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These are also uploaded on the Resources Page
HERE. Linda Afdahl, Franklin Elem, Grade 2 in Vigo
Everyday Math Games make indoor recess lots of
fun!
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I am a Second Grade teacher in my third year of Everyday
Math. It seems with the cold of the winter months that indoor recess becomes an
everyday affair. We seem to stay in even for the slightest chill. The Everyday
Math games have been a lifesaver for my children. Each year as I introduce a new
game(s) in a unit, I prepare a shallow game tub for that particular game. In the
game tub, I have everything needed to play the game (enough for 4 players---that
would be two games of two players OR 1 game of 4 players)—plenty of copies to
get us by for awhile, dice, cards, dominoes, pencils, etc. I include game mats
that are often copied and inserted inside wipeable transparent sleeves. I copy
the game directions from the “Games” manual or Math Journal, enlarge them for
second grade readers, and put the game rules inside a plastic sleeve and into
the game tub, as well. The game rules are very helpful for children who have
forgotten the rules over time or are disputing a rule OR for the adult that
supervises indoor recess. As time passes, I accumulate a number of games on my
window ledge, which are available during the day when work in any subject area
is completed early, but more so during indoor recess. By the time we get to the
winter months, I have almost 20 games on my shelf. In addition, to the games I
have their scrolling out, other routines we’ve learned and the unit explorations
for the unit we are currently in. I have found that often on our exploration
days students have not been able to have the time they really wanted with some
of the explorations---so they have an opportunity to revisit them. I trade out
explorations for every unit—so my offerings don’t always look the same. There is
always lots to chose from. The children have lots of fun and get lots of extra
practice in the meantime. Often math games win out over a movie or general play
during the recess block. In addition to this, the games are ready for our After
School Math Games Club, which we hold once a week from January-March. Linda Afdahl, Franklin Elem, Grade 2 in Vigo
Informal Assessments/Exit Slips
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I use
exit slips quite a bit and in several of the ways you suggested. My math block
is right before lunch so students hand the slips to me as they leave the room. I
usually make it a quick assessment. I ask them to explain a vocabulary word,
solve a problem (or a couple), explain how to solve a problem, or write a
question they have about the activity we did. When I first started exit slips we
did them every day for about 2 weeks so that we got the routine down. Now I try
to do them 2-4 times a week depending on how things are going. Students know
that items that are on the exit slips will probably show up on our Friday
assessment. It helps to clue them in on the "big idea" for the day. The exit
slips give me a quick assessment and sometimes I'll incorporate a similar
problem into the next days math message if I notice several students struggled.
Hard as it is to believe I have several students who ask if we can do exit slips
almost every day! Monica Condon,
Fishback Creek Public Academy, Grade 5 in Pike
Just the Facts
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We have a schoolwide Fact of the Day.
If the numbers in the fact are 9 and 4, the first and second grades do 9+4 and
the 3-5th grades do 9x4. The children write the fact on all of their papers all
day long. They write the fact family. They are asked about the fact in the
cafeteria by the principal. The fact is written on every teacher's board, both
inside and outside the classroom. Hopefully this helps a few students to learn
more of their facts. Linda Bruene,
Morton Elementary, Grade 4 in Hammond
Math Buddies. (Click
HERE to see and participate in discussions about this on the IMI
Discussion Forum.) You can see this tip on the
IMI Discussion Forum and share in its discussion. Click on the IMI Forum link above to log in, go to the
Teaching Everyday Mathematics Forum, and then click on the thread with the title
Math Buddies and scroll.
Dana Jeffers and Carolyn Bradley, Rio Grande Elementary in Vigo
Math Messages for an
extra grade
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I
went to the
Wright Group Web Site that John has posted for us in resources and
copied the Math messages onto paper. I copy each of the pages by unit and use
them for the students to paste into a spiral notebook that I cut in two so that
one notebook is now two separate 8 1/2" by 6". We cut the notebooks on the paper
cutter and then used a wire cutter and bent the wires under the spiral intact.
The kids love to use these smaller size books and I hand out the small strips of
paper for each lesson and they glue it into their special math book and solve
the problem on the same page. I use these for an assessment grade once each
grading period and it gives me an idea of how well they are doing on problem
solving and also gives them some accountability for the Math Messages. Karen Leff, St. Joe Central
Elementary, Grade 3 in Fort Wayne
Algebra Election for Grade 5 During
this time before the 2004 election, play the game Algebra Election.
Here are
easier questions for students of different levels. Linda Powell,
Log Reader
Real Life Use of Money (Click
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My
students are struggling with counting money and making change.
I have implemented a "community" program where students can earn play money for
being "good citizens" (NOT FOR GRADES) but attitude, responsibility,
participation, etc. Each week, two new students get to be the "banker" and help
participants "deposit" their earnings and make change as each student must keep
$10 in ones at their desk for daily use. I have already been amazed at depth of
understanding it is creating in counting money and making change.
Each grading period students will then use their money at an auction, bake sale,
ice cream shop or Subway sandwich shop. I will need assistance in making change
for this also.
Tuesday,
Oct 19, 2004
Alicia Madeka,
Kenwood Elem, Grade 3 in Hammond
Number Names (Click
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I've been having a blast using
number names myself whenever I need my students to go to a certain page or do
anything numerically linked. An example would be...instead of saying,"Open your
book to page 24," I say, "Open your book up to one dozen plus one dozen." They
love the challenge of figuring the number out. If the number is big, just write
the number name on the board. Be creative and have fun!
Tuesday, Oct 12, 2004
Alicia Madeka,
Kenwood Elem, Grade 3 in Hammond
Name collection boxes
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I have used name collection boxes
in a fun, hands on way both this year in second grade, and last year in third
grade. I give each student a piece of sidewalk chalk and we all go outside where
each student stands on a section of sidewalk (conveniently a square!!) I write a
different number in the corner of each box and say "go" . Each student writes
one name for that number and moves to a new box when I say "switch" . They love
running for a new box and seeing what their classmate has written. They are not
allowed to write the same name again and I monitor this as well as I can. We do
this several times and then we discuss a few of the boxes. Also, last year at
the end of third grade I made name collection boxes with each student's name in
a box. They passed them around and had to write different, positive names for
that student. It was a fun twist on a familiar math skill! Wed.,
Oct 06, 2004 Sheri
Reed, Riley Elem, Grade 2 in Vigo
"I do calendar time in the morning. I don't like to record that temperature,
because so little of the day is spent at that temp. So, we've been calling time
and temp, checking our thermometer's temp with that, and then moving our
classroom thermometer to reflect the day's high, not the current temperature."
09/13/04 - 09/17/04. Sarah
Hewes, Forest Park Elem, Grade 1 in Fort Wayne
Last updated: May 22, 2005
URL: http://www.indiana.edu/~iucme/elementary/resources/tips.htm
Contact: John LaMaster, IMI Web Technology Coordinator, (260) 481-5430
E-mail: lamaster@ipfw.edu
