Common Core Standard for Operations and Algebraic Thinking

Take a look at this Common Core Standard for Operations & Algebraic Thinking for Fourth Grade:

Gain familiarity with factors and multiples.

·        4.OA.4. Find all factor pairs for a whole number in the range 1–100. Recognize that a whole number is a multiple of each of its factors. Determine whether a given whole number in the range 1–100 is a multiple of a given one-digit number. Determine whether a given whole number in the range 1–100 is prime or composite.

 Now put on your thinking cap and brainstorm with me a few ways to gain familiarity with factors and multiples. Remember that the Common Core Mathematical Standards states that our students should have mathematical understanding. What can teachers do to lead our students down the road of "Mathematical Understanding" and not drag them by their hands by TELLING them a bunch of rules?

 

#1 Should we give them a cute bookmark like this that lists all the prime numbers to 1000 and ask them memorize it?  Or keep the bookmark handy to use when they do their homework?

__________________________________________________________________________

Here is a list of all the prime numbers up to 1,000:

2	3	5	7	11	13	17	19	23	29	31	37	41	43	47	53	59	61	67
71	73	79	83	89	97	101	103	107	109	113	127	131	137	139	149	151	157	163
167	173	179	181	191	193	197	199	211	223	227	229	233	239	241	251	257	263	269
271	277	281	283	293	307	311	313	317	331	337	347	349	353	359	367	373	379	383
389	397	401	409	419	421	431	433	439	443	449	457	461	463	467	479	487	491	499
503	509	521	523	541	547	557	563	569	571	577	587	593	599	601	607	613	617	619
631	641	643	647	653	659	661	673	677	683	691	701	709	719	727	733	739	743	751
757	761	769	773	787	797	809	811	821	823	827	829	839	853	857	859	863	877	881
883	887	907	911	919	929	937	941	947	953	967	971	977	983	991	997

 ___________________________________________________________________________________

#2 Could we use that interactive 100's chart that I talked about in the last post....   and .....?

Please share your thoughts in the comment section.  I've got some ideas and I'll share them in my next post.

Deborah Devine

Looking for Patterns in Multiplication Facts

I was thinking about other patterns that I could make students aware of when they are studying multiples of a certain number and I starting looking at the multiples of 5.

I have always pointed out that the products end with either a 5 or a 0.
As I looked closer I noticed :

• that the numbers that end with 5 are the products of 5 and an odd number
• that the numbers that end with 0 are the products of 5 and an even number

Giving students an opportunity to look at patterns of multiples of a particular number on a 100's chart can expand student's thinking.

Here is a website that has a printable interactive 100's chart. 

When studing their multiplication tables have students color code the number chart for math factors and multiplication tables.

They can print a different chart out for each number set, or work off of one chart. For example, color all multiples of three the same color. Do students see a pattern? Then color all multiples of four a different color from multiples of three.

The students wouldn't have to print the chart, just write their reflections about what they noticed.

(Note: If students make a mistake while coloring their number pattern, they can select the white crayon to color the mistake and it will reset the square to a blank color.)

I'll have to add that to my Multiplication Strategy Flip Book.


Deborah Devine

2011's Top Three Most Viewed Blog Posts Linky Party!

I just love linky parties. Fern Smith is hosting a linky party that has everyone sharing their top 3 posts for 2011.

I started my blog in June of this year, so would that make my top 3 the
" Best of 1/2 of 2011?"

This is a flip book that is created over time with students to help them remember their multiplication facts because of patterns. My post shows a copy of each page.

Math Fact Flip Book     2726 Pageviews

Day	Mini-lesson	Learning Outcome	Resources	Whole Group Everyday Math Lesson
1	Take one photo of each child for Management Board.		Complete the set-up of the Management Board for Day 2	Number Lines 1st/1.1 2nd/ 1.1
2	Introduce: Management Board . Model: How to obtain materials and where math stations are located. Model: Cleaning up a station	Sttroducig up a stationh stations are locatedor Day 2udents explore and learn how to obtain their instructional materials and where to go to work with their partners. Students will know what is expected as they clean up their stations.	Management Board Missing Pieces Box Numbered clear plastic tubs	Everyday Math Games: Monster Squeeze Number-Line Squeeze

This picture shows part of a chart that I made while reading Debbie Dillers book, "Math Stations." I was trying to show teachers that they could prepare their students to use centers and teach math each day too. We use the math program, Everyday Math, so activities from that program are mentioned. It could be used with any math program though.

A Plan for the First 14 Days in a 1/2 Multigrade Classroom Using Centers and EVERYDAY MATH         1780 pageviews


This student rubric makes students responsible for their own learning.

"Words Their Way" Student Rubric  941 pageviews

Deborah

Money Pattern Cards

With the help of a at-home parent volunteer, you can make these coin pattern strips for a math center on money or patterns. The value in the money center is when the students share their patterns with each other they must say, " Nickel, nickel, quarter, dime, nickel, nickel, quarter, dime." or " 5 cents, 5 cents, 25 cents, 10 cents, 5 cents, 5 cents, 25 cents, 10 cents." The strips starts the students on a particular pattern, and then the pattern continues right off the strip!

Here is a downloadable parent note to ask for their help.

Deborah

Formative Assessment with Door Posters

 

For a quick formative assessment, make a door poster like this. In my class as the students left the room for lunch recess, I would ask them a quick question:

• point to the cube
• point to the spacial net that can be formed into a cube
• which 3D shape has two bases that are circles
• what is another name for the very top vertex on the pyramid
• why are these figures called 3 Dimensional
• which 3 D shape would you make to package this object that I hold in my hand
• which 3 D shape has congruent sides
• which shape has a curved surface
• how many faces, edges, or vertices does this 3D shape have

There are so many questions that can be asked and that is the beauty of this simple poster. If a student didn't know the answer, I moved them to my side and had them listen to 3 or 4 questions that I would ask other students. Then I would ask them a new question (usually one that was a variation of the question that they heard me ask other students). This method is easy to differentiate for different learners and there are NO papers to grade either.

 I wonder if this would be a good idea for those teachers that have to take their students to the bathroom each day as a whole group. Just post the poster near the bathroom to use as a visual aid while working with your students individually as they wait for others to use the bathroom.

Deborah

Visual Comparision of Measurements

How many times do students write down the answer.. 8 square yards and they don't have a clue about how large that amount of space really is?  It is just something that you write to get the correct answer.

That's why I created a display like this with some 4th Grade students so they could actually visualize the amount of space that is covered by one square foot, one square yard, and one square meter. In addition, the display shows the length of one meter, one yard and one foot.

 An easy way to create a classroom display like this is to assign different measurement to small groups of students. "Your assignment is to make a model of one square yard." 

If all the teachers at your grade level feel that their students would benefit from this display... place it in the hallway near your classes. Then take the time to discuss it with your students.

(Those green characters are inchworms based on the book "Inch by Inch" by Leo Lionni.")

Deborah

Easy Way to Manage Individual Classroom Computer Use

When teaching math in small guided groups, here is a way to easily manage individual computer usage.
(1) Make a poster that lists the students in each guided group and label 4 spring laundry clothes pins with the numbers 1,2,3,and 4. 
(2) Teach the students how to use the chart- the student with the clothespin on their name is the one that will be using the computer to play internet math games while the rest of his/her group plays the games with a paper gameboard, or with the needed maniulatives like dice, tokens, and cards. 
(3) After the 20 minute small group "game time", the student moves the clothespin down one space to designate the student below them on the list that will be the player the following day.
(4) What do you do about students who are absent on their day?  The student below them is assigned to the computer that day, and the absent student misses their turn.
(5) What do you do about a student who messes with the list, and they are now the student with the clothespin on their names?  AFTER the other students tell the teacher what he/she has done.... the student receives a paper clip over their name. When it is actually their turn, they lose their turn and the paper clip is removed.

What kind of system do you have that works well for you?

Deborah Devine

Order of Teaching the Multiplication Facts

Do you teach the multiplication tables in order of 1- 12? I would suggest teaching one easy one set of facts like 1's and linking it to one more difficult like 3's. Then easy, difficult, easy, difficult.

 I think of it as "build my confidence and now let's work a bit."
Also think about what facts go together... like 2's and 4's, and 3's and 6"s.

Deborah Devine

2012 Daily Calendar

Don't waste that December 2011 calendar.... take it down with your class after you come back from the holidays and discuss:
How many days were in December?
How many days were we in school during the month of December?
Subtraction problem: Days in the month minus number of days in school.  Does that leave the number of school holiday days?  Or do we also need to subtract the number of Saturdays and Sundays in December also?
What day is the 365th day of the year? (Have student remove the day from the calendar)
What day of the week was Christmas EVE?  What does the word EVE mean? When is New Years' EVE? (Have student remove December 24th  from the calendar)
Who can tell us what days in December were Sundays? (Remove from calendar)
What days of the week, that are still on the calendar, are ODD numbered days? (Remove as mentioned)
What is the name of this month?  How many months are in a  year?  Let's say the names of the month in order from January to December together as a class.

Here are some more ideas:
Remove...
a number you can read
the first Monday
the third day of the month
____ birthday
all the teens
the highest numbered day
two days whose sum is 8
the day in the third row, second column
a number that is 2 tens and 5 ones

Dismantling the calendar can be the activity for the day. Add the new January 2012 calendar with your class the following day.

I use to set up the next months' calendar for the next day of class, but then I realized the opportunity to enhance number skills and awareness of calendar patterns by dismantling the previous month together as a class.
Deborah

PowerPoint Slide Show For Parents to Help Their Children with Multiplication Facts

This PowerPoint presentation was created to use with parents of students from 3rd - 6th Grade. The purpose of the presentation was to involve parents in helping their children learn their multiplication facts. 

 According to the new Mathematics Common Core Learning Standards, students are to know their multiplication facts FLUENTLY by the end of 3rd Grade.

I didn't know how to download a PowerPoint presentation to my blog, so I made a JPEG of each slide. Hopefully this will be of use to you.  I will also make the slides available in my Google Docs File as a PDF file. Click HERE to go to the Google Doc file.



Deborah Devine