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.

I love to READ...in Math Class!

Here we are in February, also known as "I Love to Read Month" around these parts. It is a pretty big deal around here. Many local celebrities - radio/tv personalities, major league sports players, etc., head into classrooms/schools to read books to kids. The point of the campaign is the share a love of books and the importance of reading at all ages.

At our school we schedule "read-ins" where the librarian allows us to bring our team of students to the library for a whole morning or afternoon, just to read! The kids love it, as they wear their pajamas, and bring their pillows and blankets with them.  It is always a challenge for some students to read quietly for that length of time, so we stop in the middle for snacks and to switch up reading materials. The best part, I get to sit and read too!

So...how do I tie this into my math class?
...I read of course. I have to admit my students look a little perplexed when they sit down and I tell them that they get to sit back and relax while I read them a book.

"Huh? Why are you reading us a book? Isn't this Math class?"

Integrating literature of any kind into your math lesson is always a great change of pace for your students. At first they might think it is strange to be reading in math, but by the end they always enjoy it! 

Over the course of this month I am going to share a few of my favorite books that I integrate into my math lessons along with some activities I have created to accompany them.

Here are some of the books I will be highlighting this month:

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

Stay tuned, tomorrow I will be sharing my list of must-have books for the grade 1-5 Math classroom.