Math Madness

Oh-my-goodness…I’m already knee deep in school ‘work’ and the year hasn’t even started!  The awesome part about this is that I love it!  I have been working diligently the past few days to reorganize my binder files.  Not much has been purged since I switched from hanging files to binder files 4 years ago…I bet you know where this is headed!  This will definitely need to be a story for another day (I’ll be sure to take a picture of my recycle bin to show you how well I did).  In the midst of this process, I came across some materials I have from a great online math resource-K-5 Math Teaching Resource. The website is http://www.k-5mathteachingresources.com/

I NEED to tell you a little bit about the site.  This website has a plethora of math activities, all organized by grade level, as well as domain.  All of the activities are aligned with the Common Core State Standards (CCSS).  There are a couple reasons why I like this site as a math resource.  One, the activities are very straight forward so the children understand the directions quickly and can get right to work.  Two, most activities come with a directions sheet that can be hung during the activity, or at a center if you wish, to serve as a reminder for students as they are completing the activity (even though most students won't be able to read all of the directions).  They can also be used as a reference during your lesson closure.  Three, most of the materials you need are included with the directions.  The materials are typically quite generic and simple, but they serve the purpose. 

Since the activities are organized by standard, it’s very easy to jump on the website and grab the activities that align with the standard being taught.  Also, several of the activities are linked to great math literature, which is a double bonus in my book!  Click on the link to see an activity from K-5 Teaching Resources for this book.

It's a good one, isn't it!!

I have noticed that some activities are those that can be found in other resources, such as Fill a Hexagon, which I know is also a lesson in the Investigations math series.  I know not everyone has access to a variety of resources at their school so this could be a bonus!

I think I should be getting paid by this company right about now for the advertising!!  Oh well, I continue on anyway.  Last year, I purchased the Kindergarten journal they offer and really like it.  It’s 90 pages and full of journal topics.  The journal topics are great, open-ended, multiple response topics that allow children to problem solve, both independently and collaboratively.  They also hit the ever so important 8 mathematical practices that are a crucial part of the math CCSS.  As with the activities, the journal topics are labeled with the standard being addressed.  AND, I know all my fellow labeling, organizational junkies will like this one...they can be printed, one topic per page, on address labels and stuck directly on each student's journal page!  

You definitely need to check out this website if you haven’t already!  If you have, or just did now, let me what you think and how you plan to use some of the activities.  I have been playing Race to Trace with my kiddos for a few years now and they love it!

So maybe that was a lot about the website, oops!  Back to purging and organizing I go...

As Promised...

I mentioned in my last post that I was working on a song poster to go with the Five Silly Monsters song book.  Well, it's done!  I love using interactive song posters in my classroom and my kiddos typically wear them out at centers. Here is the final semi-final product (I need to 'cutsie' it up a bit with some type of border when I can get into my classroom and get all of my craft goodies)

If you read my last post, you know that I bought monster puppets to use with this song, but I know not everyone is a shop-a-holic retail investigator.  I scoured Teachers Pay Teachers to find free monster puppets to share with you all, but came back empty handed (imagine the sad look on my face).  So, off to Google I went.  Google has and knows everything, right?!?  I got SUPER excited when I found some HERE at NickJr for, drumroll,... freeee!  Here is my disclaimer about these masks/puppets...They are from the show Yo Gabba Gabba which I also researched to learn is targeted toward preschool age children.  You KNOW what that means!  If the kids recognize the monsters, they may turn up their noses.  My cartoon challenged self has learned by experience that kids are VERY particular about their cartoons, wink wink!  End disclaimer.  As I was saying,  I think they are cute and would work as an added manipulative for the song.  

In addition to a counting or subtracting lesson, this song can be used for those weird five to ten minute time slots that tend to pop up from time to time before lunch or specials.  If you're in like, or love, grab this poster by clicking on the picture or on the TPT button located in the left side bar. 

Monster Monday

Happy Monday! 

I spent part of my weekend doing what I do best…shopping!  I can’t pass up a good bargain, especially when the item is beyond CUTE, so these monster puppets were a must have!

I bought these for $1.49 each at Michaels craft store.  

Now that I have these adorable monster puppets, I had to have a song to go with them.  I created this song that can be sung to the tune of “Five Little Ducks.”

Visual, hands-on learning is so important for Kindergartners.  Some students can act out the song using the puppets while the others use math manipulatives, or create a visual representation in their journals or on dry erase boards.  This provides the perfect opportunity to discuss what is happening in the song and touch on the Common Core State Standard that requires students to represent and solve addition/subtraction word problems.
After singing and acting out the song numerous times, the song book and puppets can be placed at a center for students to continue to practice reading with fluency and prosody. 

Pop on over to my Teachers Pay Teachers store, or click on the picture below, to grab the book for FREE!

I am currently working on poster size text, with numbers that can be manipulated, to make a song poster.  Check back in the next day or two to grab those, too!