counting, Estimation, K-2, Making Math Accessible, Math Tools, Number Sense, Planning
Time IS NOT on our side! In a 1st grade planning session I was asked,”How do we fit it all in?” I loved this question because it asked for a solution to problem we know exists. We collectively tackled this question and the fruits of our labor are as...
Estimation, Fact Fluency, Games, Math Tools, Number Sense
What’s the purpose of flashcards? There’s 2 answers I frequently hear and only one I agree with. Answer 1: help kids know/memorize their facts Answer 2: help students build fluency through the automatization of strategy I know how Tracy and many...
3-Act Tasks, Making Math Accessible, Math Tools, Modeling, Number Sense, Patient Problem Solving, Teacher Content, Teaching in a Context
First week back to school and I was chomping at the bit to begin working on my #1TMCthing. My quick backstory about Vertical-Non-Permanent-Surfaces (aka VNPS) I first found out about VNPS on Nathan Kraft’s blog which referred me to Alex Overwijk’s Blog who...
Making Math Accessible, Math Tools, Modeling, Patient Problem Solving, SMPs, Strategy Development, Teaching in a Context, Who Knows?
If you listen carefully you will hear them. They sit motionless in every classroom, on top of desks, waiting to tell a story. Without the story they are nothing. What’s most difficult is that you can’t speak for them because the manipulatives speak...
Estimation, Fractions, Making Math Accessible, Math Tools, Number Sense, SMPs, Strategy Development
As teachers and students ramp up for testing I was invited to visit a 5th grade class and asked to focus on fractions. Before the lesson, the teacher and I discussed the importance of a number line, which was an extension of a conversation we had a couple weeks back....
Fractions, Making Math Accessible, Math Tools, Strategy Development, Teacher Content, Who Knows?
Last week I was reminded why I love being a teacher. I’m currently throwing down a PL gauntlet in my district for all our elementary and middle school teachers. For each grade level I’ve focused on 1 or 2 of the big ideas outlined within CCSS. In 3rd grade, I...