All About The Math!!

Hello Everyone!!
It's is all about the math tonight!  We had a great time exploring the concept of addition using an interesting pattern. Those of you who have been reading this little blog for a while know I just have to throw in our life sized  100 board for a group lesson every now and then!  Today we had a blast creating a "ginormous" number sentence with a hands on visual to help us!! We started off with 1. We added 2. then, 3, then 4 all the way up to 10 and then went backwards by adding 9, then 8, then 7, then 6, and so on and so on!  I cut out some quick squares of paper in various colors and had the kids lay them out according to the number we were adding.  The kids were working on the number sentence on their whiteboards. At the end, when we finally got to the last +1, we were at 100!!! 
Take a peek!

We were able to have huge conversations with a ton of "math talk" throughout the whole lesson! The kids wanted to put the board and cards in a math tub!!  I said, "Of course!!" :)

There is an individual independent practice activity similar to this whole group lesson in my 100th Day of School unit.

You can get that HERE!! CLICK!!!

Next I want to share a few things I will be putting in math tubs next week.  They are all Valentine related!  So Sweet!!

These are a few of the 8 or so activities you will find in the 30 page unit.  You can pick and choose appropriate things for your little learners.

You can get your sweet little packet HERE!! CLICK!!

OK friends, off to get ready for a huge Gala my honey and I are attending on Saturday...I haven't been to a black tie affair in forever.....OK...never... sooooo...I am just a little excited!!  Got to find the shoes and a little sparkle yet!! :)

Hope you're having a great week!

Till next time,

Joyfully!

Nancy

Thankful for the opportunity to share!

Hello Everyone!
This is a super quick post tonight.  I'm Taking my sweet mom out for her birthday!!  Happy birthday, Mom!!!  My mom and dad were my first teachers.  They taught all five of us kids the value of sharing what we have been blessed with.  They both gave the best of themselves every minute of every day. I'm dedicating this post to them tonight. I am simply sharing a couple of quick units. They will get me joyfully through the coming week with my kids.  One unit is focused on the Native Americans who welcomed the Pilgrims to America so long ago, sharing their knowledge of living in this land.  The other is a set of 5 addition math tub activities with a Thanksgiving feel.

Click HERE for your printable unit (20+ pages)

Click Here for the math addition unit :)

I hope you can use parts of these to help your kids next week.  I appreciate the opportunity to share my love of teaching in a hands on way with you!!

Now off to celebrate the woman who raised me to have a heart for giving. 

Have a joy-filled week!

Nancy

Math Thinking Patterns and CUBES strategy

Hello Everyone!
We have been working hard on word problems in math and using our thinking patterns (Some-Some More, Some- Some Went Away and all the organizers that go along with those) to help us solve. I love that our district supports and encourages us to teach about thinking patterns.  I did not learn this way of solving math problems when I was a kid, and always had trouble with math.  We simply learned to memorize facts. I want my students to have many many more options when working on math!
 Well, I finally got around to making some mini posters as reminders for the kids as they practice trying out thinking patterns and for using the tried and true CUBES strategy as a way of getting through a word problem. C- circle the numbers, U-underline the question, B-box the key words, E- eliminate unneeded information, S- Select thinking pattern and Solve.   Today we got out the life size replicas of CUBES (you know how much I love a life sized math activity!) and the kids got small snap cubes. I decided to make them in certain colors,(Kids gotta have those rainbow colors!) and have the kids follow what the cubes said using that color marker. It really helped in organizing our thinking!  
Here are some pics!

After going through the word problem together, the kids were able to practice using their CUBES and thinking patterns on some other stories. Here are a few pics of some of the Thinking Pattern Mini Posters. the entire packet includes 15 different posters.

And a pic of the CUBES mini poster:

If you think you might be able to use these, I am sharing the printable download.

CLICK HERE for yours!! :)

I hope my kids learn to love math!  I know I am going to do my best to help them!

Til next time!

Thanks for stopping by for a peek!! 

Take a second a leave a comment. Am I on the right track with this whole blogging thing?  Do you want to see something different? Less of some things, more of other things?  I am here to help and share!!

Joyfully!

Nancy

Boot Scootin' Learnin"

Hello Everyone!
So sorry it's been a while since  my last post. I have been busy working on a wedding for my dear friend's son.  It is going to be beautiful!! I almost wish I would have chosen party planning as a career, but then again, I would have missed out on all this teaching fun!!
The end of February and early March are wonderful times in Texas.  We always spend a lot of time learning about our state. I decided to create a unit to go along with our already integrated reading and social studies curriculum. I wanted some math, writing and even some science, so this is what I came up with.  I do plan on adding a bit more, but we want to get started with all the learning next week, so I had to quick publish and get it ready.  

a compound word activity

2 different versions of this game- one a bit more challenging

Grab a bag of beans from your pantry!! :)

As you can see there is a huge variety of activities with a western flare. You can pick and choose from over 80 pages and use what works for you!  If you are at all interested and would like a printable

You can click here for the free download printable unit!

I can't wait to show you how some of the hands on visuals turn out!  

Well, I know this was short, but I've got a ton of decorating to do!!  Love it!!

till next time...

Thanks for taking time to take a peek!! I appreciate you!

Joyfully!

Nancy