Reading in Math - Book 1

As promised, I wanted to share with you a few activities I do in my classroom that involve reading in Math class.

Today's book is Sir Cumference and the Knights of the Round Table by Cindy Neuschwander.

* Please note that some of the links in this post are affiliate links*

I LOVE all the Sir Cumference books! If you have yet to check them out, make sure you do! They cover a range of math concepts - mainly geometry, but also a few others.

I think the theme of this particular book is best used as a review of perimeter, and an introduction to circles, but I'm sure it could easily be integrated in more ways.

Quick summary - The king is upset because the rectangular table he uses to discuss matters of great importance with his knights is not very accommodating. He requests that Sir Cumference build a new table that will meet all his needs.

For this activity I only read up to page 7 on the first day. At this point I ask the students to identify the problem Sir Cumference is dealing with, and tell them that they need to help him find a solution. 

I provide each student with 3 pieces of brown construction paper that I have cut into rectangles (5 cm x 20 cm OR 1” x 4”) to represent the 5’ x 20’ wood table from the book. 

They need to cut and paste the paper any way they can think of, to make a new shape that will be better suited to the knights’ discussions.  They are only allowed to use the amount of paper they have for each table (i.e.  no taking from one table to add to another), but they do not necessarily need to use it all. I tell the students that we know how the story will likely end, given the title, so they are not allowed to make a circular table. Their table must have edges that they can measure, to determine the perimeter. If possible, students could also determine the area of their tables.

I have the students complete this activity in their Math Scrapbooks.

Here are just a few tables my students came up with...

            

Once the students have finished creating their new tables I read the rest of the book (usually the next day/class). After each new shape is revealed I stop to ask how many students created the same one in the activity the previous day. At the end I also invite students to share ones that were not mentioned in the book and the class votes on the most creative table.

Like this activity? You can grab it here.

Interested in reading in Math class, but not sure how to get started? Check out my list of must have books for Grades 1-5, and Grades 6 and up.

Using Math to Justify your Reasoning

"In my Math classroom, my students are not taught to do math, they are taught to think mathematically"

That is my motto!

My main goal is to help my students become confident, mathematical thinkers. How do I do that? Make math REAL! If teenagers can't see the connections between what they are learning and real life you are easily going to lose some of them.

I am a huge advocate of journaling in math class. You can check out a guest post I wrote for Minds in Bloom here.

Each week I work journaling into our routine. Thursday is known at "Thinking Math Thoughts" and I usually provide my students with a journal starter to get them thinking. However, I am thinking of switching it up from week to week, with the help of a website I found - Would you Rather?

I am so excited that I found this website! It is all about using math to justify your reasoning in real life examples. I LOVE it and can't wait to work it into my regular routine.

Here are some examples.

...and just in time for Halloween...

I LOVE these and cannot wait to see the different strategies my students come up with to justify their choices.

I would even take the time to have students partner up and share their responses with each other. Just to prove how differently we all think...and the different processes behind the thinking.

I might even encourage them to pose a "would you rather..." to their parents and see how they choose and the reasoning behind it.

So much math involved in this...can you tell I'm excited to give these a try?!?!?

Bright Idea - Showing off Student Notebooks

I am excited to be teaming up with an amazing group of teacher bloggers, once again, to bring you the "Bright Ideas Link Up". This link up was created to bring you practical classroom ideas from a variety of teachers, from different grades and subject areas. I hope you find some great ideas that you can easily implement in your own classroom. Enjoy!

Have you held your conferences yet this year? Have you started planning what they might look like?

Do you hold student-led conferences? If not, but you want to learn more, check out my earlier Bright Ideas post here.

For me, student-led conferences are all about the students celebrating their learning with their parents, by showing/demonstrating things that they have learned.

My Math Scrapbooks are a huge part of my math program and the students take a lot of pride in them. Seeing that they rarely go home, I want the students to have an opportunity to show them off to their parents.

The idea - Have students tab 2 (or more) activities to demonstrate to their parent(s) from their notebooks during conferences.

A few days before conferences I spend quite a bit of time prepping my students on what will be expected of them when they come in with their parents.

During conferences, my students travel around through different stations with their parents to demonstrate different skills they have learned over the course of the term.

One station is dedicated to their Math Scrapbooks. Before conferences, students are asked to tab 2 activities with post-its. They are allowed to choose any activities they wish, however they need to feel confidant enough to be able to fully explain the activities to their parents.

I find tabbing the activities before hand cuts down on wasted time searching for the right page. It also helps the students feel more prepared, when they know ahead of time what they will be showing their parents.

If you have some time before hand, have students partner up and pretend to be each other's parents in a mock conference. This will give them that extra boost in confidence when presenting to their parents, and also help reinforce those math skills one more time. It's a win-win!

If you enjoyed this bright idea, please consider joining me on Facebook for more great ideas!

For even more bright ideas, please browse through the link-up below, and choose a topic/grade level that interests you. Thanks for visiting!

An InLinkz Link-up

Math Scrapbooking - Getting Started

Over the last few months I have had a few inquiries about how I use math scrapbooks in my room. So with a new school year upon us, I figured I would start by telling you how I get them started.

I have been using math scrapbooks as an active engagement tool in my classroom since I started teaching ten years ago. Over time my scrapbooks have definitely evolved and become something I most look forward to starting with my students at the beginning of the year.

I know interactive notebooks are super popular lately, and there are so many amazing resources out there, but I like to think my scrapbooks are a little different. I think of them as an interactive math portfolio, where students demonstrate their learning in a hands-on and unique way. The scrapbook certainly doesn't act as my whole math program, but simply a place for students to "record" their understanding and growth.

I hope to share many ideas with your over the course of this year, and hopefully convince you to do a little math scrapbooking in your own classroom.

So let's get started...

What you need to make a scrapbook in your class:

A notebook (any kind will do), a student, and some ideas.

In the younger grades (4 - 6) I have used the larger 11 x 14 scrapbooks. I find that the blank pages allow for more creativity. 

In the  higher grades (7 and 8), I like to use a traditional 80 page lined notebook.

I make sure that my first activity of the year is something that is personal, engaging and will ease students back into math class. Here is a past blog post about my "Personal Numbers" activity, which becomes the first page in my students' scrapbooks. It makes a great get-to-know-you activity for those first few days back.

During the first few days of school, any time there is some extra time at the end of class, I allow the students to take the time to decorate the covers of their scrapbooks. The only criteria is that they have their name, and "Math Scrapbook" somewhere on the cover, otherwise they can decorate as they like.

You really don't need anything fancy for these scrapbooks, just the basics - coloured paper, glue, scissors. markers, pencil crayons, old magazines, etc.


Being a scrapbooker myself, I like to bring in some stamps, punches, etc, but they are not a necessity.

This year a colleague of mine, decided to have the students use their "Personal Numbers" activity as the cover page. Might have to use that idea in the future!

Stay tuned for more scrapbooking ideas!

Writing in Math Class?

Do you have your students journal in Math class? If not, I highly recommend you start. It can be very insightful!

Check out my guest post on Minds in Bloom, where I explain the benefits of journaling and how to implement journaling in your own math classroom.

I recently added 30 more journal starters to my "Writing in Math Class?" resource. That means you have 60 starters to help get your students thinking beyond the numbers in math class.

This resource is one of my top sellers. If you have already purchased this resource, make sure to re-download to access the revised copy.

OR

Leave me a comment below telling me what you like most about journaling in math class and you could win your very own copy! The more comments, the more winners, so spread the word.

The giveaway will be open until Monday night and I will announce the winners on Tuesday.

Good luck and happy journaling!

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