Making Literature Your Math Lesson Hook

There are many books with stories and pictures that shows sets of items, buying items, measures, and so on that can be used to pose problems or activate students' knowledge and encourage them to invent their own problems. A well known book that can be used in this context is The Doorbell Rang by Pat Hutchins (1986). You can check that one out if you are interested. Here are some other suggestions:


Hannah's Collection by: Jocelyn (2000)
This is a colourful book , by Canadian author Jocelyn, highlights the fun and skills that makes collecting enjoyable. This book can be used as a good jumping off point for students to share their own collections or to model the character's collections. The focus is on sorting and grouping objects within a collection or between collections can provide opportunities for adding, subtracting or grouping objects for introducing multiplication.


One Hundred Hungry Ants by: Pinczes (1999)
This book is written by a grandmother for her grandchild and helps students explore multiplication and division. 100 ants are on a trip to a picnic and try to speed up their travel time by moving from a single file line to two rows of 50, four rows of 25 and so on. The story uses arrays to explore different ways of grouping the 100 ants. It is a great introduction for students to explore grouping and using an array.


Hope these resources can serve as interesting hook activities in your future 3 part math lessons.

Teaching Mathematics in the 21st Century

Technology is an essential tool for learning mathematics in the 21st Century and all schools must ensure that all their students have access to technology. Effective teachers maximize the potential of technology to develop students' understanding, stimulate their interest, and increase their proficiency in mathematics. When technology is used strategically, it can provide access to mathematics for all students.
NCTM Position Statement on the Role of Technology in the Teaching and Learning of Mathematics (2008)


There are many new ways to enrich student learning at all grade levels. While technology can be used in K-3 classrooms to enrich student learning, a theme that is integrated throughout the outcomes and expectations of the curriculum documents. The NCTM Illuminations provides excellent resources for teaching and learning. There are resources for lesson plans and "math-lets" (applets designed to provide tools for developing understanding in mathematics). For students, there are multimedia investigation activities to practice their problem solving skills. In addition, the "Game Room Project" allows students to explore different mathematics topics and play games with other students over the Web.
Illuminations (http://illuminations.ntcm.org) is an excellent resource for teachers looking for ways to expand on their existing lesson ideas or discover new lesson ideas.

Internet Safety

Throughout the month of October, we have been practicing internet safety in the computer lab.
Students have had the opportunity to play interactive games which present unsafe situations and safe situations. Their job was to decide if it was safe or not. Students now have a greater awareness of how to use the internet responsibly. 
You can find the two links we used on the link page of our blog.
On the "Badguypatrol" site there is an excellent "grown-up" section. It explains safety practises and the rationale for teaching our children about these basic rules. Please take a few minutes to explore the website and practice these safety guidelines at home with your child.

http://www.badguypatrol.ca/
http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/index.cfm

Thank you for your continued support!

October Updates

October has been an exciting month with just a few more days to go!
I would like to remind students and parents that we are still collecting non-perishable food items for our school food drive. Thank you to everyone who can contribute to our community. Please be sure to have your scholastic book orders completed and returned by the October 27th deadline.


Finally, Halloween falls on Monday October 31st and students are invited to wear school appropriate costumes. Please keep masks and distracting accessories at home and be sure to send only peanut free treats in lunches. 


Thank you again for your continued support!

Ideas for a culminating activity

Check out my example glog created on glogster.edu
A great idea for students to demonstrate their knowledge and skills in any subject. This example pertains to the grade 4 unit on rocks and minerals. Students can research the everyday uses of a rock or mineral of their choice and explore the environmental and social impacts from a variety of perspectives.
A great way to differentiate your culminating activity to meet the needs and strengths of all your students!
Enjoy