While I was away for the summer break a new book found it's way to my desk Teddy Bear Math by Barbara Barbiere McGrath. This book can engage children in a delightful exploration of counting, estimation, sorting, addition and graphing. The rhyming verse encourages readers to grab handfuls of Teddy Bear Counters for a variety of activities. Even if you do not have a set of Teddy Bear Counters for children to use along with reading the book I think it is a great addition to your classroom library.
An earlier book by McGrath, Teddy Bear Counting is a perfect companion to the new title. Together children will build Number Sense and develop counting skills.
Teaching Tip
Substitute beans as an inexpensive substitute for the teddy bear manipulative. I suggest dried white beans that can easily be spray painted red, yellow, purple, blue, orange and green then used for all of the counting and sorting activities.
Showing posts with label Number Concepts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Number Concepts. Show all posts
Friday, September 9, 2011
Friday, July 22, 2011
Ten Flashing Fireflies
"What do we see in the summer night?
Ten flashing fireflies burning bright!
Catch the one twinkling there
Like a star.
One flashing firefly in our jar."
One of my favorite childhood memories is sitting on my grandmother's porch at dusk waiting for the fireflies. Some nights all of the cousins would happily run around and try to catch them other nights we would lazily watch as in unison they seemed to float into the tree tops.
Ten Flashing Fireflies by Philemon Sturges beautifully depicts this summer ritual in an imaginative counting book that is the story of a brother and sister catching and counting fireflies then releasing them back into the night.
Teaching Tip
Counting seems such a simple concept from our adult perspective, but for the young child learning to count can be a daunting task. For starters they must learn the number names and the counting sequence, then it gets more complicated with concepts such as cardinality (knowing that the last number said identifies the total number of objects in a group) and stability (knowing that rearranging the position of objects in a group does not change the cardinality). To help youngsters master these complex mathematical ideas we must give them many opportunities to count. Reading books such as Ten Flashing Fireflies can help. Luckily, children often like books read to them over and over again, so each time we read with them we can ask questions that help them learn to count. First, have them count along with the characters. Then, ask them to predict what comes next. For example, when the children have three fireflies in their jar then catch one more ask how many fireflies are now in the jar. Have objects available such as beans, pennies or some other small item and have children use them to represent the fireflies. They can add a bean to a jar (or pile) each time another firefly is captured. After reading they can count the objects again and again.
What other ideas might you have for using Ten Flashing Fireflies to teach basic counting concepts?
Ten flashing fireflies burning bright!
Catch the one twinkling there
Like a star.
One flashing firefly in our jar."
One of my favorite childhood memories is sitting on my grandmother's porch at dusk waiting for the fireflies. Some nights all of the cousins would happily run around and try to catch them other nights we would lazily watch as in unison they seemed to float into the tree tops.
Ten Flashing Fireflies by Philemon Sturges beautifully depicts this summer ritual in an imaginative counting book that is the story of a brother and sister catching and counting fireflies then releasing them back into the night.
Teaching Tip
Counting seems such a simple concept from our adult perspective, but for the young child learning to count can be a daunting task. For starters they must learn the number names and the counting sequence, then it gets more complicated with concepts such as cardinality (knowing that the last number said identifies the total number of objects in a group) and stability (knowing that rearranging the position of objects in a group does not change the cardinality). To help youngsters master these complex mathematical ideas we must give them many opportunities to count. Reading books such as Ten Flashing Fireflies can help. Luckily, children often like books read to them over and over again, so each time we read with them we can ask questions that help them learn to count. First, have them count along with the characters. Then, ask them to predict what comes next. For example, when the children have three fireflies in their jar then catch one more ask how many fireflies are now in the jar. Have objects available such as beans, pennies or some other small item and have children use them to represent the fireflies. They can add a bean to a jar (or pile) each time another firefly is captured. After reading they can count the objects again and again.
What other ideas might you have for using Ten Flashing Fireflies to teach basic counting concepts?
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Happy May Day
May is a traditional holiday in many cultures. It is similar to the Labor Day holiday celebrated here in the United States. As we celebrate the contributions workers make to all of our lives. let's also note that none of their work could be accomplished without math.
Two books that emphasize that math and numbers are all around us are Missing Math A Number Mystery by Loreen Leedy and Neil's Numberless World by Lucy Coats.
Teaching Tips
Have children work in groups to list all of the different ways they encounter numbers and math in their daily lives. Later have the students share and compare their lists. Then the children can write their own stories.
Two books that emphasize that math and numbers are all around us are Missing Math A Number Mystery by Loreen Leedy and Neil's Numberless World by Lucy Coats.
Teaching Tips
Have children work in groups to list all of the different ways they encounter numbers and math in their daily lives. Later have the students share and compare their lists. Then the children can write their own stories.
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Odd or Even ?
In developing number concepts and number sense children learn to recognize numbers as odd or even. Two books that are helpful are Even Steven and Odd Todd by Kathryn Cristaldi and Bears Odd, Bears Even by Harriet Ziefert. Opportunities to develop an understanding of odd and even numbers are bountiful throughout the school day.
Teaching Tips
1. While counting any found objects or manipulatives have the students group the items in pairs. Emphasize that an item that does not have a partner, or any 'left over' item is odd.
2. Have students skip-count by 2's.
3. Give students a hundred's chart and two crayons. Have them shade the even numbers with one color and the odd numbers with a different color.
These sites have activities to help children understand odd and even numbers:
Teacher and Parent resources
Odd and Even exploration
Teaching Tips
1. While counting any found objects or manipulatives have the students group the items in pairs. Emphasize that an item that does not have a partner, or any 'left over' item is odd.
2. Have students skip-count by 2's.
3. Give students a hundred's chart and two crayons. Have them shade the even numbers with one color and the odd numbers with a different color.
These sites have activities to help children understand odd and even numbers:
Teacher and Parent resources
Odd and Even exploration
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