It was nice to finally see my math groups since it's been since before break that we've met. They came in with enthusiasm and it was obvious that they were ready to get to work!
We focused on the LifeSkill of pride this week. We touched on a few of the quotes below. It's nice because those I've had before either remember them from last year or one student actually recalled one and used it in a situation. Impressive!
- Be proud, not loud!
- If better is possible, good is not enough
- You're my PRIDE and joy!
We start a new semester next week, so I thought I begin something new. I see the LifeSkills are alive and well in our classroom. I want to recognize and encourage students when I see them used! I'll even encourage them to give to their fellow students when demonstrated. I've used these before when I taught and they have a tremendous impact on the classroom. Just wait and see . . .
Students will receive a green slip with the LifeSkill they followed circled. They'll turn them into a large bin once they fill their name out. I'll have a drawing at the end of each month where three winners can choose something from my treasure chest. I'm very excited about this and hope that they will be too!!!!
Fourth Grade LA:
Exciting news to share in fourth grade! As many of you may already know, I introduced my students to Google docs. It is something they will use all through school, but we started early. They are quickly finding their way around as I gave them a chance to explore Google Slides. The great thing about it, is they can access their work from any computer. It's just a matter of logging on. I'm also able to share and monitor as they work on their projects. For example, I added the criteria for their monologue and presentation on their drive, so they can have it handy. Besides having the paper form to use, it's easily accessible on their drive. They continue to work on their Biography Timelines/Presentation/Monologue. Great things are happening and I'm excited to be part of it!
Fourth Grade Math:
We began our problem solving unit with a really tough story problem I ran across at my High Ability Conference in Indy. I've been waiting anxiously to put it into action. I had to put a stop to the "belly aching" and direct them to get to work. They really got to thinking and we had one student finish impressively quick. From there, I had her give a little coaching before I let them pair up. We had a handful figure it out and several were close behind. They wanted me to share the problem with you, so you can have a go at it. Good luck!
Six farmers each have 6 barrels. In each barrel are 6 cats who each
have 6 kittens. How many legs are there?
(Don’t forget the farmer's legs.)
We also did a fun Kagen Strategy call Showdown. The students are in teams working on a math problem. They solve it on their own then coach others to the right answer should they get it wrong. It's a great way to get everyone involved, yet see where each student is. We'll be doing more of this!
Second Grade LA:
We started the week with an insightful look at Point of View. We took an incident that happen in the book and looked at it from different points of view. We also talked about the connections that each character has to Edward. They continue to impress in their Writing Journals. I continue to throw out questions for them to ponder and many respond in a big way. At the end of the year, have them share when it comes home. They also enjoy just writing to me when they've answered the question. It's fun to read. On day two we returned to our ever popular Edward Tulane Jeopardy Game. Good check on comprehension and little fun facts about the story.
Second Grade Math:
We worked hard on lining up our numbers when adding multiple items from a grocery store. There's a lot involved when adding money. They first started with paper and pencil as we listed what we needed from the store (we had some expensive bread, lol). From there we moved to a Smartboard lesson where they actually got to move the food over which showed the price of each. I really had to keep a close eye so that they were all lining their problems up (luckily I only have four). It really started to click towards the end of class. The next day we tackled making change. Surprisingly with the use of the Smartboard, it was much easier for them. They were able to see the money, move it around, see the product and the amount they were counting up to. Fantastic!
Third Grade LA:
My group is enjoying the fairy tale study. We worked in a bit of grammar in by sending them on a "verb hunt". Each had a fairy tale book they used to find the different verbs. They are obviously familiar with what a verb is, but I did have to throw it back on them when they questioned me about a few. For example, how do you chair? They were not as obvious as my example, but they caught on quickly once I pointed it out. Then they took five of their list of ten and put them into past, present and future tense. They quickly caught onto the pattern of regular verbs, so the next day we worked with irregular verbs. It took a bit longer and some were just tough, but they did well. We even had time for a Smartboard lesson with SIXTH GRADE vocabulary words. They needed to match the words to their antonyms. It was fun for this group having only three . .. lots of times at the board!
Third Grade Math:
This group was really motivated to get back to their ice cream cone multiplication timed tests. Since it has been a month since we met, I used the first one as a warm-up. They did much better the second time. We moved onto greatest common factor (GCF) with a great worksheet that breaks it down. They were really lost at first, but said how much it helps to go through the steps. Then we moved onto a Kagen Showdown. It's the same strategy used with the fourth grade except we used it with reducing fractions. They were able to draw on the lesson yesterday, in order to answer the questions on their own. We, of course, used a team effort to coach those who did not get the answer correct. Such a win-win for all . . . they loved it!
First Grade LA:
We started out by reading Ann and Nan are Anagrams. We launched right into several word scrambles. They had the option to use cut out letters to manipulate the words into other words using the clues. I had to push them through the toughness and make them work. They wanted a hint right off the bat and that's not how we work in here, hehehe. They are getting relatively more difficult including having to make a clue for their own puzzle. This group is up to the challenge and very engaged. I even had one ask if she could have a copy since she will be out next week. Awesome!
First Grade Math:
The first day we played, "I have . . . who has?" with sums. They had several cards with a number at the top and an addition problem at the bottom. They called out, "I have 14, who has the sum of 12+4". It keeps going until we get through all the cards. This was challenging for them at first because they were not sure where to look on their card. We got into a rhythm by the end. They added the larger numbers very well. We also were number detectives using Think, Pair, Write, Share. It was tough to stump them on this one.
The first day we played, "I have . . . who has?" with sums. They had several cards with a number at the top and an addition problem at the bottom. They called out, "I have 14, who has the sum of 12+4". It keeps going until we get through all the cards. This was challenging for them at first because they were not sure where to look on their card. We got into a rhythm by the end. They added the larger numbers very well. We also were number detectives using Think, Pair, Write, Share. It was tough to stump them on this one.
Have a great long weekend!
Yours in education,
Mrs. Koedyker
No comments:
Post a Comment