A Treasured Life...and Comparing and Ordering Numbers

Hello Everyone!

My sincere apologies for not posting lately...

 I had to take a little time off as our family has experienced a very sad loss. My nephew's little baby girl, Lola, has passed away from Krabbe disease. She was only 13 months old, but brought such joy and light to all who knew her. We have all learned so much about life and love through her.  Krabbe disease (also called globoid cell leukodystrophy) is a degenerative disorder that affects the nervous system. It is caused by the shortage (deficiency) of an enzyme called galactosylceramidase. This enzyme deficiency impairs the growth and maintenance of myelin, the protective covering around certain nerve cells that ensures the rapid transmission of nerve impulses in the brain.  Krabbe disease is part of a group of disorders known as leukodystrophies, which result from the loss of myelin (demyelination). 

Both my nephew and his sweet wife are so devastated, but at the same time are so strong knowing that their little lamb is at rest, and out of pain.  They are also fighting hard to get laws passed in Florida to have screenings done on newborns to detect this disease. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers as they try to pass Lola's Law. Let me know if you want more information, and I will e-mail links to their efforts.

Our Sweet Lola

Life is precious and every moment spent with family is oh so special... Treasure every one of those moments.

Now, taking a big breath, let's move on to some school stuff. When I got back from Florida, we started a unit in math about comparing and ordering numbers up to 120.  Along with using a 120 board and all that we know about place value, we also continued work using number lines including open number lines. I put together a little unit that I added to my already hefty study on ordering and comparing to 120. I am sharing that tonight. This entire 104 page unit is a print and go unit with a spring theme. There are some whole group lessons and some math tub games. Here are a few pics.

Open Number Line Fun!

A fun High Lo game is included in the unit! A favorite of the kids!!

A fun  Number Line Scoot game is included
 in the unit!

These are just a few pics of the over 100 page doc. If any of it looks interesting or helpful to you, you can get it...HERE! JUST CLICK, DOWNLOAD AND GO! FREE!

Well, I have to run.  I'm working on a strip diagram unit that I am very excited about.  Even First graders can understand numbers through strip diagrams!! Til then, I hope you have a wonderful week.  Hug those close to you. Live every day with joy.

...nancy

firstgradewow@gmail.com

Eggs, Eggs, and More Eggs

Hello Everyone!
Springtime is a great time to study life cycles and we are doing just that!  We are learning so much about chickens, frogs and fish. You know I love to integrate, so I had to bring the egg ideas into writing and math.  Here are a couple of things we've done!  I posted earlier that we are working on prepositions.  We loved learning about them through Rosie's Walk. Well, we also brought egg propositions into some mini writing lessons this week.  We brainstormed all the different places we would find eggs. Some kids were thinking more science and some have Easter on the brain!  All responses were fine!

The kids then had the opportunity to create their own written piece. They could use some of the ideas from our anchor or come up with more of their own.  They glued that to a large egg shaped piece of construction paper decorated with tissue paper. ( I cut some circles from tissue and the kids brushed them onto the paper with liquid starch.) The kids loved this process, and they turned out so pretty.  We couldn't wait to hang them up! 

If you want a copy of this quick writing treasure,CLICK HERE! :)

Now on to math!  We are working on comparing and ordering numbers to 120. Earlier this week, I created some quick eggs with random numbers ranging from 20 to 120.  I passed one out to each kiddo.  The objective was to see if they could put themselves in number order from least to greatest by comparing their eggs with those of their friends. They had to remember that not all the numbers were included in the order. 

I loved the math talk I heard while they were figuring out where each kiddo had to stand with their egg numbers. 

We did the ordering several different times, each time challenging ourselves to see how quickly we could get the order set. Our best time was 20 seconds!!! Great job kiddos!!

We extended the math talk a bit more by using Chatter Kids on the i Pads.  If you don't have this app yet, you have to get it! It's easy and really promotes the talk we want to hear!

This time I had the kids pick 2 egg numbers. Take a pic and have one of the numbers explain the comparison between the two numbers. Oh And I let them put a few little additions on the eggs! :)

I am attempting to include a little video of one of the chatter projects. Hope it works for you, because it is so cool!!

I hope it plays for you!  If not, my little cutie told about the place value of her numbered egg (the one with the lips) and then compared it to the other numbered egg. Talking Eggs at its best!! :) We will do some more of this for sure!!!

Anyway, if you would like a printable of the eggs...

CLICK HERE! :)

We will def. use these eggs for other order and comparing activities, so stay tuned!!!

I hope you are having just as good a week as we are!! Is it already Wednesday?? 

Till next time, thanks for taking a peek through our little window!!

Talk to you soon!!

Joyfully!

Nancy 

Critical writing and "Eggs"act numbers

Hello Everyone!
Hope your week is going well. Friday's coming!! And Spring is definitely in full swing! At this time of year we work hard to keep kids engaged in their learning and excited about math, writing, reading, etc.  Yesterday our team met with our wonderful math instructional specialist.  We got on the topic of writing critically during math. I do have to admit that I don't always give the kids time to write about their thinking after lessons in math. It's a time crunch thing, and an engagement thing!
 I posted the other day about math talks, but I have made a renewed effort to bring more writing into math as well.  So, today, I scrapped my initial math plans and pulled a rabbit out of my hat. (Or should I say "pulled a Jelly Bird out of my hat!)  Our mini lesson from Tuesday about comparing and ordering numbers by using hidden numbers was still fresh on our minds.  Today I gave each kiddo his/her own 120 board and about 9 "jelly bird eggs." (We are studying the life cycle of birds, so the connection was obvious!)  Each kiddo had to cover nine numbers on his board in a similar way as what we did earlier in the week.  Then elbow buddies had to tell each other which numbers were covered. Of course they had to tell how they figured out the hidden numbers. After doing it several times, it was time to write about our thinking!  We got a chance to do it in an engaging way for those who needed some extra encouragement.  The kids wrote on an egg shape and then added a little face and nest.  I love their thinking, their risk taking, and their confidence. Here are a couple of pictures!

Great job, kids!!! I love it when spontaneous lessons work out!! This quick lesson showed me the importance of the written component to every day math.  I hope I can keep the enthusiasm and engagement going!!

Thanks for stopping by! 

Joyfully!

Nancy