Math, Math, Math!

Life has a way of twisting and turning- and sometimes that means you end up doing things that you never expected. 

Through some very interesting twists of fate, I have become known for teaching math.  I give a lot of credit to that for my training and implementation of Singapore Math.   

Because of my obsession with math, I find that I turn everything into a potential math lesson…
Don’t believe me? Ask my little sister.  She can attest that my obsession with finding math has infiltrated her brain as well—and she lives in Seattle!

I am constantly looking for cool examples of math in the world—everything from shapes (like the new Wheat Thin crackers that are shaped like hexagons!) to groups of tens (like packs of pencils).   Or check out these great hexagons I found on the playground when hanging out with my nephew this summer in Arkansas!

 

(Yes, I know they are really hexagonal prisms)

This year I decided to change my Birthday Board so that we can use our birthdays as data for different things throughout the year.  Here it is, ready for my student’s data!!

(I will try to remember to post a picture when I actually have student birthdays to show!)

I am pretty excited about all of the possibilities!

Guided Reading: A little novelty goes a LONG way!

I will be the first to admit that I LOVE cute… I love when things match… I love using colors to code EVERYTHING…  I love when things just work like magic… but most of all, I love when SIMPLE things increase engagement, and therefore help my students.

I have a pretty fantastic collection of tools I use for Guided Reading groups.  Every class, and even every small group, responds differently to the “tools”.  So some years, I use a variety, and some years I stick with one or two that are best.  You don’t need me to tell you what ever good teacher knows- teaching is all about responding to the needs of my students.

I will go through each and give you some ideas for how I use them.  Most of the items are from the Dollar Store.  (My friend Jean likes to tease me that I am the “Queen of the Dollar Store”- I almost named my blog that, but decided against it at the last second.)

This post will be all about the tools I use during small group sessions, but it’s not really about how to run small reading groups.  I will tackle that topic another day!

Let me start by telling you about my shelves… They were donated by a craft store that was going out of business.  It is really meant to be turned the other way, and was twice as thick, but the back was hollow.  Thankfully, my brother helped me cut off the extra wood from the back, and then I sanded and painted it. These baskets from the dollar store fit PERFECTLY! It was a match made in Heaven!

Basic supplies:

First I have a caddy that holds some basic supplies that I like to have handy.  Things like markers, a stack of index cards, dot stickers, pens, pencils, and sticky notes. (I also have these fun spinners- some are from Lakeshore and some are from Dollar Tree.)

I use a LOT of index cards.  For each book we read, I pick out select vocabulary and write it on cards.  (Sometimes they are sight words, harder decodable words, unfamiliar vocabulary, or just interesting words like homophones, etc.)  It allows me to pre-teach the words. We play different games with them- I will share some of those later! :)

 

I use the markers for many different things-- but especially for writing the focus words from their Leveled Reader on index cards.

I use the colored dot stickers to help my students know what Guided Reading Level they are on… These are fancy pre-printed labels from Scholastic.

These spinners are such an easy, and quick way to engage your students!  Who doesn't love to flick a spinner and answer a question? I know I sure do! :)

Highlighters, sticky notes, pens, pencils, all that fun stuff!

Sight words

These are sight words sets, bound together.  Honestly, I did not make these myself, they were given to me.  I have another set that I made, I will show you later. J  These are great because they are leveled (in order of difficulty- I don't just have the 100 first grade words) and they stay together really well!

Pointers!

Oh, goodness! I could write and write and write about pointers! So many options! So much room for creativity! And, just by giving your student a pointer, you will instantly increase the engagement of your lesson- but don’t forget to set up your behavior expectations before giving them out! J Otherwise, they are just a toy and you will be frustrated!

Any time that you want your students to read- word lists, phrases, books- you can let them use a pointer…  I do not ALWAYS let them use a pointer.  Occasionally I will use it as an incentive- the first group that is ready- or any group that has 100% of their members that completed their homework.  And sometimes it’s just nice to mix it up! 

These first pointers are just wands I got at a party store.   Guess what?! Even the boys like to have a magic wand... sometimes more than the girls! J

These are assorted drink stirs.  I have a variety.  (I never pay full price for them- right now is the perfect time to find them on clearance- look in the summer clearance section). You can also get them fairly inexpensively at party or dollar stores. J

Finger puppets and witch (or monster) fingers are major favorites!  I like these for my lowest students—you know the kids that NEED to point as they read, but just seem to forget?  Magically, just putting something on their finger helps them to remember to point!

They all fit into one of these baskets!

Word Stretchers!

 Take a slinky, hold it with two hands. As you stretch out the slinky, also stretch out a word. For example “cat” would be “cc-aa-tt”. This is a great, tactile way for students to start phoneme segmentation. These are only used for my lowest students—our Kindergarten teachers are FABULOUS and most of my students come in masterfully segmenting words (i.e. “cat” as “/c/-/a/-/t/”). However I have students that move in each year, and it never fails that one or two don’t have the phonetic skills necessary for First Grade. This is a great (and inexpensive tool) to practice with! (Want to guess where I got them? If you said the Dollar Store- you deserve a gold star!) J

 Mirrors

If you have an ESL population in your area, you are likely well aware of how challenging the short vowel sounds of “e” and “I” are for them to distinguish.  One way I help my students understand is by giving them a mirror.  They watch their mouths as they say the sound in isolation “/e-e-e-e-e-e/” and “/i-i-i-i-i/”.   Then we say cvc words with either /e/ or /i/ and they watch their mouths to see if they can identify which letter spells the sound they hear.  It’s fun for them- because kids are always interested in watching themselves talk- and they really start to think about how they look- and more importantly how it FEELS to say each sound.  After a few practices, we put the mirrors down and just focus on how it feels.  Then we identify the letter by the sound and how our mouth feels.  It’s pretty great!  (I got my mirrors at a craft store- I found 30 mirrors for $4.00 on sale- I keep a few in my Guided Reading supplies.  The rest of the set gets borrowed by other teachers when they are working on self-portraits!)

Frogs and Lizards?

Yes! I’m partial to the frogs (my classroom theme for the first few years that I taught was all frog, so I am slightly partial to the little guys!) but the lizards are fun, too. 

We play a game called “Hop and Read”.  It works best if you have a table of words that you want your students to read.  They literally use their little frog (or lizard) to read the word and then hop on it.  My rule is that you have to read the word before you land on it!  (One of my former colleagues had them read it after they landed on it- it works either way!)

I have some word mats that have word families on them but most of the time we use our 5 weekly sight words. Here’s an example of what the chart might look like (super simple!)

the	me	I	am	as
as	the	me	I	am
am	as	the	me	I
I	am	as	the	me
me	I	am	as	the

If you are interested in word families, my favorite resource is Mrs. Alphabet’s website! http://mrsalphabet.com/ (Look under “classroom” and then “Word Families”).

Sight Word Strips

Sight words are like basic math facts.  You just have to master them!  So I try and give my students LOTS of opportunities for practice—but I like to have a variety of ways so that my students are willing to practice repeatedly. J (Everything is a “game” in my class!)

These are very similar- just using two different word lists.  Here’s how we “play” with these:

Each student in the group is given a list.  At the same time, they read their words out loud.  (I choose a different student to listen to each “round”- they never know when or if I am listening to them. They think I am magic and am listening to all of them- which I am, but I focus on one at a time to check for accuracy.)  When they are done- or almost done- I say “dun, duh-duh-dun-dun” and they say “dun-dun!” and pass their strip to the next person and start again!  No one “wins” this game, but they never seem to notice.  They also know that if they finish the list, they start it again.  (Some of my high kids really like to see if they can read it twice before I signal- my lowest little guys are just as excited when they finish the list!). 

It’s easy to differentiate because the word lists are numbered.  Super easy to make- super fun to play!

Comprehension Sticks

These sticks have different comprehension questions.  Each student draws one and reads it. (Some questions are answered BEFORE reading, some are DURING, and others are AFTER.  With training, they can quickly identify when they will need to answer their question.) 

They are already things you would discuss, but simply allowing your students to choose will automatically increase their engagement level.

Comprehension Lollipops

One of the teachers on my team, Cheryl, made these for us last summer.  They are great! They work the same way as the sticks, but they are even cuter!

Yuck!

Take the sight words you have already learned and write them on cards.  Add in a few cards that say “Yuck!” and mix them into the sight words.  Each student takes a turn, draws a card, and reads it.  If they read it correctly, they keep it.   IF, however, they draw a “Yuck!” card, they have to give back all of their cards!

My lowest group usually spells it after they read it.  (“My word is “the- t-h-e- the”)

My high group has to use the sight word in a sentence (“the- The cat chased a mouse.”)—This helps with homophones! (Like to, too, and two!)

Word Family Sticks

I simply printed word families, cut them out, and covered them with some clear box tape.  Students add a letter (they can write it right on the stick with a low-odor whiteboard marker) to build words.  Usually I have them write a list of all the words they came up with on a whiteboard or recording sheet. 

I also have letter dice- sometimes they roll a letter and see if they make a real word or a nonsense word. (When we do it that way, they record it on a t-chart). I will share more nonsense word games another day!!

(This is a great small group activity that the kids can do independently while you do testing, or a running record, etc.)  Eventually, I turn it into a center.

Word Detectives!

So many things can be done with these little magnifying glasses!  (I got mine at the Dollar Store—I am sure that, by now, you are SHOCKED by that information!) J

·         Find word with __. 

·         Identify the sight word __.

·         Read the sentence.

·         Read the list of words (another great tool you can use with the sight word chart I showed about above!)

Tactile Letters

 

I am a very tactile learner, which translates into me being a very tactile teacher. I am always looking for new and great ways to incorporate learning styles in my teaching. 

These sandpaper letters are perfect for your tactile learners.  They can trace them with their fingers. (I do this with my lowest students- and with any of my students that have fine motor struggles- in First Grade it’s often most-noticeable in handwriting and scissor activities.) 

These are commercially made.  They were a great thing I inherited from my mom. J (Have I mentioned how awesome it is to have teachers in the family?) I have seen other teachers make their own with hot glue dots.  That is totally something I would do! J

Boards…

We do dictation and written responses pretty regularly during small groups.  We have regular whiteboards in my classroom, but for Guided Reading, I prefer to use one of two options.

A glossy page protector with a piece of cardstock inside is literally the most inexpensive whiteboard equivalent EVER.  TIP: USE LOW-ODOR markers.  (Right now I have the BIC markers because they were a great back-to-school sale deal and they have been working really well!)

These are awesome.  Every year at the UEA Convention (Utah’s Education Association Convention) they hand out a sample magnetic board.  Well, after a few years of going, I have a set for my small groups.  (I am lucky because usually my friends that go with me give me theirs, too! Now that I have a set, we’ll start collecting a set for them, too!) The boards are really not that expensive, so you could just buy a set J I just had so many from before I started teaching that it made sense to continue my collection.

Whew!  That was quite a post!

And I didn’t cover all of the games and poems I use!

We’ll have to save that for another day!

My Calendar Routine: August

One of the most common questions that I get is about my daily calendar time. I decided to go ahead and just walk you through how my calendar is set up for the first week of school.  I will try and keep updating it as the year progresses, as my calendar time/area changes throughout the year.

I use Every Day Counts Calendar Math- with a twist.  I take the things that I think are best from it and then add in my own things that support the Core and my student’s needs.

A little background…

·         I have one calendar helper that stays the same for a week.  They lead the class, while I stand back and focus on questioning and proximity

·         Almost everything is done chorally.  I have the added benefit of knowing American Sign Language, so my students say (or sing) and sign.  Everyone is accountable for participating. (I make a big deal about how it’s their responsibility to help the Calendar Helper!) J

·         There are some things that are done EVERY DAY, no matter what. I have other additional things that are added in, and changed as we move through the year.  Today’s posting is all about the basic routine. These are the things that I do every day. J

We start with discussing the pattern. (The old core wanted us to label it- like A-A-B, etc. but the Common Core does not- so from now on, we will just talk about what observations we have about the pattern, briefly, and probably not every day.)  Then, together, chorally, we say the date “Today is, Monday, August 27th, 2012. This is the season of summer.” (The calendar helper points to each part as they say it.)

Having them marked with simple cards allows even your lowest students to participate- because all they have to do is match the cards to the word on the calendar.

Then we look at yesterday, today, and tomorrow. We sing this song (the tune is “Frere Jacques”):

“Today is Monday, today is Monday, August 27^th, August 27^th.  Yesterday was Sunday, tomorrow will be Tuesday, two-thousand twelve, twenty-twelve.”

(The whole class sign the words as we sing it, the calendar helper changes the signs.)

Then the calendar helper adds a straw, and we count how many we have in all.  As soon as we are done counting, we say “We have been in school for ___ days this year.”

Then the calendar helper changes the number (indicating how many straws there are.)

We have an enhanced sound system in my classroom, so the Calendar Helper uses a microphone and asks the following set of questions, the class answers chorally, and the Calendar Helper records their responses. (We’ll pretend that it is the sixth day of school.)

“What’s the number of the day?”	“The number of the day is six.”	(There is nothing to write for this question.)
“How do you write it as a numeral?”	“The way you write it as a numeral is _____”	(The students at this point are writing it in the air, the Calendar Helper will write it on the chart.)
“How many hundreds are in the number six?”	“There are no hundreds in the number six.”	(The Calendar Helper writes “0” next to hundred.)
“How many tens are in the number six?”	“There are no tens in the number six.”	(The Calendar Helper writes “0” next to hundred.)
“How many ones are in the number six?”	“There are six ones in the number six.”	(The Calendar Helper writes “6” next to hundred.)
(I don’t start Expanded Form until later- sometimes as early as day 31 of school, but usually closer to day 50.  It depends on what my class is ready for. Until then, I cover it with post it tape.)
“How do you write six as a word?”	A student is selected to “cheer it out” (I model this the first few days) “Give me an s!” Class: “s!” ‘Give me an i!” Class: “i!” “Give me an “x!” Class: “x!” “What does it spell?” Class: “six!”	(The Calendar Helper writes each letter as the class says it.)
Up until the 100th day of school, we add a dot sticker to a ten frame.	“1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6! We have been in school for six days this year!”	The Calendar Helper adds a sticker, and then points as the class counts.
We do even/odd later in the year, when they are ready for it.

This is what my student's see until they are ready for Expanded Form. 

This is what the chart really looks like

We glue on the number to the Counting Tape. (Okay, I actually have to put it on because it's up so high, but a lucky student puts the glue on the number! So literally my onlyphysical responsibility during this entire time is putting it up.)  I pre-print the numbers on different colors of paper (so 1-9 are on one color, 11-19 are on a second color, and so on. All of the tens are on one particular color, different from all of the other numbers.)

We make a tally mark for every day we are in school in the month. The Calendar Helper marks it, and then the class counts. They end with saying a sentence “We have been in school for six days in August.”

Each month has a different picture for them to write the tally marks on.

Last year my class really needed to see the sentences written out. I have the names of the months on Velcro so that they are super easy to switch each month.

We have a "Question of the Day".  To start the year, I put a picture up (this is a picture from my Fancy Nancy Calendar).  The students tell a number story about the picture.  For example, you could say "There are five people.  Four are kids, one is an adult."  After a few days of doing that, we add in saying "Four and one are the same as five" at the end of their story.

The last thing we do is add to our 100 board pocket chart and write the number on the hundred board. I have both because we look at different patterns in each.  The pocket chart goes red/white. The written hundred board we write in with one color and then mark things they notice- like fives and tens. Every year it develops a little differently but we eventually find all of the important First Grade patterns- and beyond! (This year we will be adding in two additional rows as the new Core wants First Graders to understand numbers to 120...)

 The Weather Boy/Girl is up next! We say “Weather boy! Weather boy! What do you see? Tell us what the weather will be!” (Obviously we substitute “boy” for “girl”when our weather person is a girl!) J
The weather person uses the microphone and gives us a complete sentence “Today the weather is sunny.” Then they add to our weather graph.

I love Target's $1.00 pocket charts! They are perfect for so many things!

You could use any symbols you want. This is the set that I have. (Thanks, mom!)

The symbols for the graph are just stored in a snack size ziplock, the weather person just pulls out what they need.

Again, that’s the basic routine for my calendar.  There are LOTS of variations and things I add in at different times of the year. I will try and keep you updated as they come up this year!

And here it is, all put together!

In case you were wondering...

The two red pocket charts are actually pocket charts designed for CD cases.  I found them on clearance at a local teacher supply store. They. are. awesome!

This side has the weather graph pieces, the numbers for the Counting Tape, glue sticks, assorted pointers, markers, and the days of the week- that have Velcro on the back.

  
Everytthing they need is right in a pocket.  Whiteboard markers, dot stickers, straws, rubber bands (for the tenth day), the words to label our Hundred Board, etc. All ready to use!!

The math vocabulary pocket chart is used for the vocabulary from our current unit of study.