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2gether We Are Better: Math Edition

Hey everyone! I am super excited to link up with Ashley from Schroeder Shenanigans in 2nd and Angie from Lucky Little Learners again this month for 2gether We are Better. 



This month the topic is Math. This year I am teaching math all day to 3 first grade classrooms. At my school, we were placed in departments. I taught reading and writing for the last 10 years but this year I am excited to grow my brain and teach math. 


Let's talk Math Games! I have to say that I LOVE math games! They keep the kids excited about what they are learning. They stay engaged in their learning. They are great for kids who finish anything early. 

A few games that I have used this year is Make ten fish. 
The game is super simple. You just need a 2 deck of cards with the face cards removed. The object of the game is to obviously make 10. Each child gets 3 cards. The remaining cards are in the middle of the pile. Player 1 for example may have the cards 0, 3, 6. They would ask the person to their left for a card that will help them make ten. "Do you have a 7?" If the player has the card, they give it to player 1 and the pair is laid down on the table. Then player 2 goes.If the player doesn't doesn't have that card, they say Ten Fish and player 1 draws from the pile. The player that runs out of cards in their hand wins! Now the beauty of this game is that it is basically Go fish that we all grew up with. Plus, you can change the name and make it work for whatever math skill you are working with. 

Now before I move on from games, I want to share an idea I got from The Brown Bag Teacher on making card holders. 
Click HERE for original pin

You just need a sharp knife, a pool noodle, and some cards. When I made mine, I cut them about 2 to 2.5" wide. I used a measuring tape and marked all the way down the noodle with a sharpie. I took the knife and cut down each mark. Once that was done, I took each piece and cut through until I hit the hole in the middle. I will tell you I got around 56 card holders out of a noodle. My kids love their card holders. They are great for my little hands! 


Now let's move on to Math Tips! 

My tip for you is about those struggling students. Those kiddos that seem to not be able to master fluency. I know you must be thinking "Isn't fluency for literacy?" Nope! As part of Common Core standards, students have a fluency standard. For my firsties, it is 1.OA.6. This standard says that they will add and subtract fluently to 10. So now that I am teaching on 1st grade Math this year, I can really focus on that. 

My tip is send home math flash cards home with your students and ask them to practice. Also, try doing 2 minute drills every two weeks. 

With my sassy pants, the goal is that the students are able to complete 30 addition and subtraction problems in 2 minute. 
To help me even more with fluency, I just recently completed a math training through the KY Center for mathematics. They trained us on what to look for when working with students. If you students are struggling to count back words, then that is the place to start in your small group. I would suggest working with subitizing cards as well. My students struggle to see the patterns in the dots to count the card quickly. With that being said, this leads me to.....


To help with fluency, I created a scoot with just addition. So because you decided to hope over to my little blog, I am offering this scoot to you for free. Just click the link below the image and it will take you my TPT store. I am going to leave this free for the next week. So, grab it before it goes back to $2. I really hope that you enjoy it. 


If you love reading about Math, hop around and check out the others. If you really LOVE this, then write a post and link right up. This is your time to share some of your amazing work and tips!  Thanks for stopping by! 

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