Sweet Valentine Fun

Hello Everyone!
I quickly wanted to share a little sweet fun for you to share with your littles for Valentines (or Friendship) Day. The Spangler Candy Company has those great little gems, Dum Dums, for just this kind of sharing.  I have created a couple of things in the past using Dum Dums, and I couldn't let Valentines Day go without including them!! Here's a little friendship card for you to print and give.

And here's the little printable! CLICK!!!

I also wanted to share my math tubs for next week.  We are working on addition and subtraction to 20. This little unit includes 7 tub activities (29 pages) to help kids realize their potential in this area!! All tubs are Valentine themed with lots of hands on sweet fun!

Here's the link to the printable. CLICK HERE!! :)

Well, that was short and sweet.  I've got to put the finishing touches on our 100th day festivities!! Can't wait!!!  Hope you're having a great week! Talk to you soon!!!

Joyfully!

Nancy

Falling For Place Value

Hello Everyone!!
Quick post today! I think fall might actually be in the air...I do see a few leaves falling, even though the temps are not.  Hope it's cooling down a bit for you all. This season is a favorite for so many people and it so inspirational!  We are beginning a two week unit on place value on Monday, so I created a fun little fall inspired unit.  Place value is such an important objective that all kids should grasp as it leads to deeper thinking about numbers and mathematical principles.  Place value is the basis of our entire number system. A place value system is one in which the position of a digit in a number determines its value. In the standard system, called base ten, each place represents ten times the value of the place to its right. You can think of this as making groups of ten of the smaller unit and combining them to make a new unit.Ten ones make up one of the next larger unit, tens. Ten of those units make up one of the next larger unit, hundreds. Of course this pattern continues for greater values (ten hundreds = one thousand, ten thousands = one ten thousand, etc.), and lesser, decimal values (ten tenths = one one, ten hundredths = one tenth, etc.). 

This little unit will help you introduce and practice place value with your youngest learners. Here are a few pics.

The unit ended up to be about 56 pages long.  Most of the tub activities are print and go, except you will need some small leaf shaped table scatters or confetti, some cups, and a fork or spoon.

CLICK on THIS LINK if you are interested in this free printable unit!

As always, please let me know if you spot any typos or inconsistencies.  Sometimes I get going on these so fast that I don't always do the best editing!  Thanks, friends!!

I'll be back soon to tell you about last week and about something awesome that this old lady got to do!!

Have a great rest of this fall weekend!

Joyfully!

Nancy

Candy Corn Crush!

Hello Everyone!!
Yes! I am posting again after only one day!! I am not sure I've ever posted two days in a row before, but I wanted to share what I am working on in math this week.  I have noticed that my "Candy Corn Connection" unit has been downloaded over 500 times! Well, I have news for you! I've added some new components to the unit and am now calling it "Candy Corn Crush!" Our study this week is on comparing and ordering numbers. We started working today on one of the new components, Candy Corn Caper.  It was inspired by a Kim Sutton Game called Place Value Trails.  I laid out several candy corn shapes along a trail, labeling the first one with a 10 and the last one with a 100. I wrote numbers 0-9 on smaller pieces of paper.  The kids drew 2 numbers and decided what number they could create and write on the trail, knowing that the placement of the number had to show number order.We played until all the candy had a number. There were some numbers created that we couldn't write on the trail.

I put an individual size of this game in math tubs this week, so the kids could continue working on comparing and ordering! (and it's available in my new unit!)

I also wanted to share what we are doing in math tomorrow! It's time for the Candy Corn Cruncher!! Last year I posted about our Pumpkin Muncher that we used to teach the symbols for greater and less than. Well, in honor of the sweet treat, I decided to create a new version of the Muncher. Alas! The Candy Corn Cruncher came to be!  The kids will make mini crunchers tomorrow, but I got the big one ready for our whole class lesson.

I just know the kids are going to "get it" with this fun little addition to our math tool box! Directions for making this little cutie are in the new unit along with numbers to compare and recording pages.

Here are some of the other things you can get in the new unit!

Matching game

If you would like to try these games with your kiddos, simply click HERE!!

It's only 54 pages!  You don't have to print in color. Most pages are black and white, and colored pages will be fine in grayscale as well.

Teachers- Let me know if you can use math activities like this.  I'll keep pumpin' them out. 

Parents- Please feel free to print and play with your kids!! All the practice they get with comparing and ordering numbers helps!!

Thanks for stopping by for a peek today!  I hope it was worth your time. Don't forget to leave a comment!

Have a great night!!

Joyfully!

Nancy

Math in the Patch

Hello Everyone!
Well, it finally feels like fall around here!! We are welcoming some cooler temps here in Texas. Summer truly seemed to drag on this year.  Don't get me wrong, though. Summer is my fav season and there is not much I like better than enjoying some pool or beach time. But once school starts, it really does need to feel like fall.  So....Time to bring on the pumpkins!!! Nothing like some fun pumpkin style math activities to help kids practice place value, standard and expanded notation and more.  I am always updating, revising, cleaning up, and adding to my old units.  I offered my "Math in the Patch" unit last year, but it has gone through a few changes. Yes! I did fix one or two typos! Grrrr! I hate typos!! I added some fun elements as well!  Here are some pics!

 

I think one of my favorite things I added to the unit is the Number Pumpkin. You will need some orange paint chip strips, some sticks, and leaves. Give kids a 2 digit number and have them write that number in the many forms we have learned about. Labels for the sections are included in the unit. Tape or glue on the stick and the leaf. I can't wait to do this with my firsties.

We did something similar but with candy corn shapes the past few years, but this gives even more opportunity for expressing number sense with five sections.  

If you are interested in any of this 60 page unit...

You can get it if you simply click HERE!! :)

I hope you have a great week!! Thanks for stopping by for a peek! You are welcomed any time!  Stay tuned for more fall fun!

Joyfully!

Nancy

Skipping Into Fall!

Hello Everyone!!
Thanks for stopping by our little window on wonder!  This past week in math we worked hard on skip counting. Having kids understand what skip counting means, why we need to learn about it, and practice it, is an important math concept. Skip counting is counting numbers in groups or bundles. (For example, counting in bundles of two.)There are many examples of such counting in everyday life.

For example; The human body is the best example of skip counting. One person has two hands, two people have four hands and so on. The same is true with other parts of body such as arms, legs, eyes, ears and fingers.

Some more examples of skip counting may include bicycle wheels or car wheels can be used to introduce skip counting by 2's or 4’s.

* By learning skip counting kids start to realize the concept of place value and get ready to learn bigger numbers.

* Basic skip counting is actually times tables. For example, the skip counting by 2's is actually the 2 times table and similarly by learning skip counting by 3's, 4's and 5's, kids master these times tables.

* Skip counting can help kids count coins. The ability to count coins will come much easier to a student who has mastered skip counting already.

When they have a number of nickels, dimes and quarters kids can use skip counting to add these coins.

* By learning skip counting kids develop mental math skills to do simple arithmetic such as addition and subtraction.

* Even and odd numbers are skip counting by 2's so kids can explore bigger even or odd numbers by using skip counting by 2's.

A lot of kids come to first grade knowing how to "recite" counting by 10's, 5's, and 2's, but really don't understand what those numbers represent. So we strive to incorporate manipulating objects into groups and work on seeing the number patterns as they relate to other numbers. 

We used elements of our bodies to see skip counting in a natural way, and used our "bigger than life" 120 board.

We had fun counting by 2's with our eyes and then with our fingers! We created some fun little star shapes!

Making the star shapes led us to a conversation about our American flag. We "skip counted" the stripes and the stars. The timing of this was perfect because for Patriot Day (Sept 11) our entire student body, about 800 kids, created a living flag in honor of our patriotism.

 Our amazing school counselor organized this effort!  What an impact!!

This coming week we will work on skip counting by 2's, 5's, and 10's but starting at different numbers. Can't wait!!

Some of the activities mentioned above are from my skip counting unit.  If you downloaded it last year, I have added more to it, (the feet, hands and eyes, as well as extensions to the tub activities) so please download again.

You can get it free if you CLICK HERE!!! :)

Here are a few of the 34 pages of printables!

Hope this helps put a spin on your skip counting unit!!

2, 4, 6, 8! Who do I appreciate? YOU!!

 Thanks again for stopping by!! 

Joyfully!

Nancy