Should we be teaching fact families with 8 facts?

Hi,  Did you ever have an idea you just had to throw out there and see what people think? 

I have been noticing that it is really hard for kids to complete equations such as: 

8 = 12 - ___.

To complete these equations, they really have to understand the equal sign. 

Then, I got to thinking ~ what do we usually teach them regarding fact families and/or related facts? 

Four basic facts, such as:

2 + 3 = 5

3 + 2 = 5

5 - 3 = 2

5 - 2 + 3

Is it time to introduce a new fact family? A family with 8 facts? Here's what I'm thinking: 

I'm thinking of creating a series of activities based on this idea and thought I'd ask what you think of it first.

I know I'd have to build in lots of support to get kids started. If you have a moment, I'd really love to hear your thoughts . . . . 

Many thanks for stopping by!  :) Anne Gardner 

Building and Reading Simple Sentences

Even while kids are still working on letter identification, I love to get them involved in building and reading simple sentences.  

I start with a simple alphabet book or emergent text. Alphabet books from Lakeshore are pictured. If I didn't have books with the sentence structure I'm looking for, I'd create an anchor chart and work from there. 

I prepare by putting the magnetic letters kids will need to form a sentence in a little cup.  For alphabet-based sentences, I add an item that starts with the letter. Each child gets a sentence strip to build on. They shake the cup and use the book (or anchor chart) as a resource to build the sentence.

As kids work, we talk about leaving spaces between words and about a sentence being a group of words that makes sense together. We also pay attention to the period at the end of the sentence.  

I find that I can work with 3 or 4 kids at a time, so this is a great activity for guided reading groups or intervention groups. 

After each child has built and read his/her sentence, we put the letters back in the cups together.  I give directions such as: "Pick up the letter H. Put it in your cup. Find the word is. Hold the word is in your hand. Spell is with me. Pick up the word for. Let's spell for together. . . . "

Once everything is back in the cup, kids pass the cup to the person beside them and they each spill and build again. It's fun to see how much quicker they get as the lesson goes on!

I've also created a set of sight word sentences for very early readers. Ever see a child read a full page when he/she only knows 1 word? Check out this sight word sentence page for the word I. 

Because of the high level of picture support, kids can successfully read this page when they know the word I. (We provide support as needed to help them use initial sounds to check their reading on the other words.)  

This series builds just one word at a time. Here's the order of the first few words: I, like, my, see, can, the, go. Within the first seven lessons using this program, kids are proudly reading the sheet pictured below. 

After reading these sheets at school, kids bring them home to share with their families. Repeated reading is very important at this stage, so I have a child color one star in each time he/she reads the sheet. When all the stars are filled in, they bring it back to show me. (We celebrate and they earn a tiny treat.)

If you'd like to take a closer look at these sheets, you can download the samples shown above by clicking here. 

If you decide you'd like to use these with your students, you can get the set at my Teachers pay Teachers Shop. 

Thanks so much for stopping by and taking a look!

:) Anne Gardner (NBCT, Literacy)

Group Decision Making

Group decision making ~ it can be so tough!

From little decisions like where the family is going for dinner to significant policy decisions in our schools, it can be a grueling process.

Today, I want to share my all-time favorite tool for group decision making.

First, the group has to define the options. Once that's done, it's simple. The options are written down. Each group member gets a set number of chips (or any small object).

Each group member "weighs in" on the decision by placing chips on their choice of option(s). The beauty of this is, no group member has to choose a single option. Going out to eat, I may be torn between going for Italian or Mexican food. I could put an equal number of chips on both choices.

Once all group members have placed their chips, the chips are added up and the choice most often becomes clear.

I like it so much better than a simple vote - and sometimes trying to reach a consensus just doesn't work.

This can work for groups of students ~ they can "weigh in" to decide what book to read next in a literature circle or what treat to have for a class celebration.

It works beautifully with families, and I think it is also a great option for groups such as policy boards.

Do you have twists on decision making that work for you? If so, I'd love to hear about them!

Thanks for stopping by!    :) Anne

The Original Snow Cones ~ Sooo Good!

Hi,  The world is covered with a blanket of clean white snow here in Upstate New York today.  

I just had my very favorite dessert ~ homemade snow cones!  Thought I'd share some pictures with you. 

Here's the view from our kitchen. 

We scooped some clean, fresh snow. 

Reached for the raspberry syrup (my favorite). 

Drizzled it on and - yum - it's ready to eat! 

I don't even have words to say how good this is ~ but somebody sure cashed in on the snow cone idea. Trust me, there's nothing like the real thing!  

Happy Holidays and thanks for stopping by.   :) Anne

Have you seen Literactive? Wow!

So ~ I finally found the free literacy website of my dreams! I just have to share it with you . . . . 

Literactive offers, by far, the best free collection of guided reading books that I have ever seen! I read through each book and each one made me smile. They are well-written with just a little animation added in to hold children's attention.  

Kids can choose to hear the story read to them, or can read on their own. This picture shows one page from a Level One book.  

Kids can click on a word to hear it read.  If they double click, many words are broken down phonetically for them. 

The books are written for Guided Reading Levels A - E. However, below you will see a book from the Guided Reading Level E section. With the compound words and text structures presented in this text, I am comfortable saying that these books are awesome for the entire first half of First Grade!

There's a whole section called "Learning Activities."  In this section, there are about one hundred games.  I'm still exploring and loving what I see!  The picture below shows a crossword activity that I even enjoy playing. 

There's also a section called "Road to Reading." Click on this road and you will find activities for each letter of the alphabet and nearly every early literacy skill. The picture below shows a sentence building activity. Kids hear a sentence read and then put the words in order to make the sentence.      

Registration is required to access this site.  The process was quick and easy. I received my password within one minute of registering. 

I have to give credit to "Being Inspired" on Teachers pay Teachers for pointing me to this site. I posted on the forum asking for suggestions as I was preparing to share with parents at our Curriculum Night. She pointed me to this site and I am soooo grateful!

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoy exploring this site and that you stop back again soon! I'd also like to invite you to follow along with me at Common Core Connection on Pinterest  where I love sharing ideas that get kids exciting about learning.         

:) Anne

Number Paths ~ A Fabulous Tool for Kindergarten and First Grade Math!

Number lines are common in primary classrooms - but a number path may be a better tool for many students to use as they work with addition, subtraction and comparison problems. 

A number line uses a model of length. Each number is represented by its length from zero. Number lines can be confusing for young children. Students have to count the "hops" they take between numbers instead of counting the numbers themselves. Students' fingers can land in the spaces between numbers on a number line, leaving kids unsure which number to choose (Fuson et al, 2009). 

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A number path is a counting model.  Each number is represented within a rectangle and the rectangles can be clearly counted. A number path provides a more supportive model of numbers, which is important as we want models that consistently help students build confidence and accurately solve problems.

  

I have been using number paths for a few years and highly recommend them for use in Kindergarten and First grade. 

  

Most major publishers are not yet utilizing number paths. So, I wrote some word problems using number paths. Click here to download the free samples shown below.

Students are presented with multiple ways to solve each problem. Once students are familiar with the ways these sheets support their learning, I often have each student select two ways to show and check their work. This allows each students to utilize the methods that are most effective for him/her. I love to give students time to discuss why they chose certain methods to solve a problem!

Each sheet includes a bonus question. These questions are perfect for extension activities in the classroom or for students to discuss with a family member and complete at home.

Thanks for stopping by and taking a look!  :) Anne Gardner

Mystery Number Puzzles with Hundreds Charts

A few weeks ago, I saw a picture on Pinterest of a hundred chart that had been cut up and turned into a puzzle. I loved it!

I got to thinking, wouldn't it be great to put a twist on that and turn it into a math center?  Here's what  I came up with . . . 

I started with a few hundred charts copied onto different colors of tagboard. I like to enlarge my charts to 11 x 17 to make them easier to work with.  Just like in the pin I had seen, I cut the charts into puzzles.  

Then, I simply removed some numbers from each puzzle. 

Now, it's set up so kids can put the puzzle together and then figure out (and record) which numbers are missing.  I have kids list the missing numbers for each color.  Voila - a bit of accountability.  

I was lucky ~ I happened to have envelopes the same color as my puzzles.  But, if I didn't, I'd just use ziploc bags and color-code them with a sticker or dot. 

To differentiate, I'm thinking of letting kids who need extra support build directly on another hundred chart.

After kids are confident with this, we'll move on to puzzles using a 120 chart!

For a challenge, kids could have to explain in writing how they know which numbers are missing.  (Another challenge I am considering is having kids find puzzle pieces with one or more lines of symmetry.)   

Hope you enjoy this idea.  Let me know if you think of more twists to add.  Thanks for stopping by and taking a look!   :) Anne