Monday Made-It 07.04.16

This week I just HAD to link up with Monday Made-It because my good friend Maribel from Learning in Wonderland is hosting it for Tara over at 4th Grade Frolics! She is an amazing person and is insanely creative and I can't wait to see what she shares with us!

This year, my school is putting a really big focus on teaching math vocabulary to our students. We want to have common vocabulary that we use, especially between grades K-3, so that students are familiar with the words before they even arrive in the next grade! I think it's so important for our students to know, understand, and be able to use math words effectively to help their understanding of the concepts being taught. One thing I really tried to do more with my first graders this year was having them describe how they knew how to solve a problem. To do that, they needed to be able to use the math words they had learned to explain their thinking.

Being at a new school last year, it was my first year teaching in this particular classroom, and I was so excited to find that I had bulletin boards GALORE covering almost every wall! I decided to make one of my big boards into a math wall.

I put up a few posters and anchor charts here and there, but never really used it to its full potential. Truth be told... most of the posters I put up at the beginning of the year stayed there even long after we finished learning about the concept! (oops!)

Yeahhhh... see how there's only one thing in the corner and then GIANT EMPTY SPACE? That is officially not using my math board to its full potential. Ha!

I wanted to create something to use on my math wall that would be meaningful for my students as a resource while teaching certain math concepts - and something that I could use as a teaching resource as well, so I created math vocabulary posters!

I'm going to use these cards in pocket charts as I'm introducing the words - when I'm done, they'll go on my math wall for student reference. Each one has the math word at the top and a picture and a kid-friendly definition on the bottom.

I also plan on printing them a bit smaller for students to have their own set on rings! I'm so excited to get them all put together. I really think that these math vocabulary posters will help my students in their number talks, calendar, and whole group learning!

You can get these editable posters right now in my TPT store! Over 40 math words are included. The best part is... they are totally EDITABLE! So if there is a word you need; or a different definition you'd like to include for a word, then you can change the card to fit what you want it to say! 

In honor of the 4th of July and Monday Made-It, these math posters (along with the rest of my store) are 20% off today only! Click the picture below to download a preview and check out all the words that are included!

Head on over to 4th Grade Frolics (click to get there!) and share some of YOUR Monday Made-Its!

Monday Made-It 06.20.16

After hearing so many great things about 4th Grade Frolics' Monday Made-It from my good friend Learning in Wonderland, I knew I finally had to join in the fun! I'm linking up for Monday Made-It to share my newest creation!

One of the resources I needed most this year to help my students learn were hands-on resources to teach place value. In moving up to first grade this year, I found out that it was one of the most difficult concepts for them to master, at least in the beginning! The thing that helped them learn place value skills the most were by participating in hands-on, engaging activities, so over the weekend I created 7 different place value activity mats for my students to use next year.

With these mats, students will use number cards and place value blocks to practice creating various double digit numbers! I also plan on having them use play-doh as a fun manipulative on these mats as well! Why is it that every time you add play-doh into the mix, they all BEG to do it?! Ha!

I also made activity mats to practice adding and subtracting double digit numbers. Something about seeing the numbers built in front of them make it so much more simpler for them to solve.

If you don't have access to place value blocks, you can laminate the mats and have your students write directly on them with a white board marker.

I included black and white versions of each mat to save ink, so I printed out this comparing numbers activity mat on fun neon blue cardstock and stuck it in a write-on/wipe-off pocket!

I also created activities to practice identifying groups of tens and ones in each number. Students use the number cards again to choose a number and describe how many tens or ones the number has. I modeled it by drawing a picture to solve as well as writing the answer in the space below. You can also use place value blocks or play-doh to build the answers!

The last activity mats I created were Ten More, Ten Less ladder mats. These tens ladders helped my students SO much when it came to adding double digit numbers by ten later in the year.

You can find all of these place value activity mats by clicking on the picture below!

I hope you'll link up with us over at this week's Monday Made-It! There's always so many great ideas to be found!