Math Workshop truly changed the way I reach students for the BETTER. Being able to work with students on their level in a small group helps me not only see their thinking, but it also prevents students from sitting through an entire lesson “lost.”
Math Station Planning Present
Math Stations should not be intimidating or a burden, and sadly, I know many teachers feel that way. The purpose of stations (or centers, if that’s what you call them) is for students to review and practice what you have already taught them. You should not feel like you have to put out brand new centers every week (which is usually where the burden sets in). Use open stations (not worksheets) that you can recycle throughout the year!
Big skills, such as multiplication and division to name just two, shouldn’t be done “only when you’re teaching it.” Students need to practice these skills all year. Provide the same laminated open activity with dice at various times of the year and students won’t get tired of it- because each roll of the dice provides a different problem! Differentiate with different sized dice, and you’ll be able to use the same open activity with different learners all year long! You can find all of my math stations here!
For more Math Resources and ideas, follow my Pinterest board!
Sharing Sunday: Snow Themed Activities {1st-3rd}
Here comes December! Oh my goodness, how is the year almost over?? The authors of The Primary Peach are back again this month to make your life easier and help you plan for these crazy few weeks before Winter Break! I am sharing some fabulous activities with a snow globe theme- great for grades 1-3. The best part: almost all of them are freebies or ideas from blog posts! Click on any of the images below to download the PDF. Once you are on the PDF, click around on all of the images to visit the resources!
Head over to The Primary Peach for more Sharing Sunday posts!
Why I love the Division Area Model (and you should, too)!
I know there is a lot of controversy about the Common Core, and that is not what I’m here to discuss. If you are a teacher, whether you are for or against CCSS, you have to teach the standards! So I am here to (hopefully) make your life a little easier. π
The division area model can seem difficult to teach because it’s NEW to so many, but actually, I found my students to be MUCH more successful with it than the traditional long division algorithm.
That means we need to slide the “remainders” over to the tens place, but we also need to trade those two hundreds for twenty tens to be able to make groups.
Now, we can put seven tens into three groups to divide evenly.
So again, we slide those remainders over, this time to the ones… so those two extra tens should now be traded for twenty ones.
And of course, we can divide 24 into three equal groups by putting eight in each group!
The same could go if they said 300 could be in each group… when they go to subtract 900, they are going to see that 300 can’t be correct! But luckily, this student figured out it was 200. π
Moving to the tens, same idea- I like to have the students “box” what they are going to be dividing. This way, they remember it is 23 tens, not just 3 tens.
Finally, just like before, add up all those numbers across the top of the model to get your quotient!
I like to give students this larger workmat (laminated) with a dry erase marker to help them do their work. Not only is it more fun, but of course, it is also easier to erase, and erase, and erase… π
You can find this activity (and many other division stations) in my Differentiated Division Stations for Math Workshop pack! I also have other math station sets in my store.
Check out these blog posts, too, on why to use Math Workshop and how to Manage Stations!
Sharing Sunday: Multiplication Resources at Your Fingertips!
I can’t believe October is upon us!! The authors of The Primary Peach want to make your life easier and help you plan this month! I am sharing some fabulous resources for teaching multiplication in third and fourth grade. The best part: many of them are freebies or ideas from blog posts! Click either of the images below to download the PDF. Once you are on the PDF, click around on all of the images to visit the resources!
Make sure to visit The Primary Peach to see other posts sharing amazing resources!
Managing Math Stations: Tips and Tricks!
Are you ready to get MATH STATIONS rolling in your room, but still a little nervous? Or maybe you are just ready to change things up a bit to be more organized. This post has some great tips and tricks for you!
First of all, when you first get started with math stations, you may want to consider not differentiating. (GASP!) I know. I said it. This is not a must- if you feel your kids can handle it right away, go for it! But in my math workshop, I think getting my routine down and helping kids understand how to access stations, how to work well with others, and how to clean up needs to happen first!
Organization is KEY. Making sure everything is together and ready for them at each station will keep them from roaming the room or worse, INTERRUPTING you when you are with your small group! If you have been a follower of mine, you know I LOVE my 10-drawer rainbow cart.
It doesn’t take up a lot of room and all of the stations fit in it nicely. The kids can just take out the entire drawer and take it to the place where they will work, or they can take out what they need from the drawer. It’s your decision! Also make sure your manipulatives are organized in a way that is easy for the students to get to- base-ten blocks, for instance, are not going to fit in the drawers- use a Rubbermaid tub that is easy for students to open and close.
Another must-have for organization is Ziploc bags! If there is a game or an activity where students work as partners or in a group, put everything they will need in the bag.
For your own sanity (and the students’ too), QUIET DICE are a must!! I have two tricks for you:
You can read this post about using felt for dice- it keeps the dice from clacking all over the desk tops. Another option is foam dice! A lot of the manipulative kits are coming with these now. The only drawback is they are usually only found as 6-sided, and I LOVE 10-sided dice!
Of course, having students sit on carpeted floor for dice games is a great option, too!
LAMINATE EVERYTHING! It will keep the paper police happy, and keep you from visiting the copier as much. Students can use dry erase markers or vis-a-vis markers and then wipe it off. Stations can then be used more than once through the year, and you don’t have to really prep anything!
I also love this because “we’re done” is not allowed. Oh you finished that game? Wipe it clean and start over! The great thing about games with dice and cards is they aren’t ever really playing the “same” game since the numbers change every time!
Anticipate what they might need… this can be tricky sometimes so make sure students know where manipulatives are that they can access any time. But, for example, if you know your lower students struggle with multiplication facts, provide some tiles they can use to make groups in a multiplication game.
This will not only MAKE them practice (which is the whole point of stations), but it will prevent them from just guessing until their partner tells them they are right.
I hope these tips help your Math Workshop go smoothly! Check out my Guide to Launching Math Workshop for more tips, as well as some starter stations! Need more stations and games for your classroom? Check out all of my math units in my TPT store!
Follow my Math Workshop Pinterest Board for even more great ideas!
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