Even Vs. Odd Numbers

Learning even and odd numbers, especially when the the number is larger than a single digit can be tricky for students to master.  First of all, if you don't have this book:

I would suggest getting it to add to your math reads.

Following your reading, have the class play this Even Steven and Odd Todd game as created by First Grade A La Carte.  The students pair up and decide who will be Steven and who will be Todd.  They then take turns rolling a dice.  If the number rolled is even, "Steven" moves their game piece towards the winner circle.  If the number rolled is odd, then "Todd" moves their game piece towards the winner's circle.  The first person to reach the winner spot...wins!

Here's an Odd Todd and Even Steven video from You Tube that I am sure kids would enjoy singing along to!

Speaking of Odd Todd and Even Steven, check out these *adorable* little guys from 

The First Grade Parade.

The activity that went along with these little guys was just as fun and cute as they look.  For the example, Mrs. Carroll used candy corn, but any treat would be fine and hold the kids' attention I'm sure! ;)  First, you will need to explain to the students the difference between Todd and Steven.  Odd Todd doesn't like to share and always has a different number of items in each hand (ie:  8 + 7 = 15), but Even Steven is super nice and always want things equal and fair with his friends.  After going through this, she gave each student a pile of (uncounted) candy corn.  With a partner, teams had to come up with whether the number of candy corn they had been given was an odd or even number.  Please refer to the link above for a further explanation of the activity.  Definitely something I will be using next year!

Step Into 2nd Grade with Mrs. Lemons has made up several FREE even and odd posters that would be perfect around the classroom! 

I love this bulletin board idea from The Teacher's Wife...Even and Odd Street.  If you think it's an idea your students would love too, Lindsay has included a free template for the houses at the bottom of her post.  Thank you Lindsey!

I really like this activity from Stickers, Scissors and Smiles.

The students take a handful of unifix cubes and pair them up.  Then the kids draw their discoveries on a 20 grid paper like what's shown above.  Then the students brought their drawings to the rug to share their discoveries and chart their findings. 

From Love2TeachKG, here is a FREEBIE on TpT.  It is a 12 pages download including this reinforcement page.

Here's a FREE Even & Odd Sort from Lauren and Jeanine's Creative Corner.

Last idea on this subject, for now, is this one I came across on Two Can Do It.

This is another FREE download so it would be super easy to print these pages out and store them away to use for a math station/center.  The only thing I think I would add to this would be a recording sheet so the kids know they have some accountability.  Other than that, I love the simplicity of this idea.  The kids take dominoes and place them on the correct mat, depending on what they had.  The mats read:  EVEN & ODD (numbers on both sides), EVEN (numbers on both sides), or ODD (numbers on both sides).

 

Here's a twist in the game Rock, Paper, Scissors to incorporate even and odd numbers.  This is a two player game, one person is “odds” and the other is “evens.” Kids shake their fist, chant “1,2,3, shoot!” Then, they stick out zero, one, two, three, four, or five fingers. Kids find the sum of their fingers. If the answer is even, then evens gets a point. If it’s odd, odds gets a point.  

Source:  E is for Explore!

OK so there you have it.  A few great ideas I have discovered that should help you get on your way to creating a more exciting Even vs. Odd numbers math lesson.  I'd love to hear how some of these ideas turn out in your classroom, or better yet, if you have any other ideas to share!

Math Essential Standards - 1st Grade

Hey there!  Remember me?  I have had this blog on my mind for a while now, but man oh man, I swear life gets busier by the day! I'm not sure if it's the age of my children and all that they're involved in, working full time and being a mom to 4, the stress of keeping up on everything at school, including RTI, or what, but yeah, you could say I've been busy!
First of all, I just have to say how proud I am of all my cute little firsties.  They are doing so great with reading this year and the majority of my class is on grade level.  Thank you parents, volunteers and everyone else!!  I think for this reason, my focus lately has been geared more towards math and what I can help them with there.  We have done math centers every day this week and most of last week.  Yes, that can be a little bit more work, but I think the small group instruction is so much more valuable.
My first grade team sat down at the beginning of the year and mapped out what math essential goals we wanted our students to be able to achieve by the end of the school year.  We then broke down our goals by trimesters so the end goal would seem achievable.  Here's what we came up with.

Trimester 1
Students will be able to verbally count to 30, write to 30 (without any reversal and with neat handwriting), recognize the symbols +, -, and =, and be able to correctly use those symbols in a problem.

Trimester 2
Students will be able to verbally count to 70, write to 70 (without any reversal and with neat handwriting), add and subtract within 10.

Trimester 3 -
Students will be able to verbally count to 120, write to 120 (without any reversal and with neat handwriting), add and subtract within 20.

If you are a first grade teacher, you may be aware that the new goal for first graders is to be able to reach 120 by the end of the year, where it used to be 100.  We view our goals as "baby steps" towards reaching that goal.  It has been such a thorough thing to do and by doing this process has opened our eyes to a lot of things we assumed the students already knew, but didn't.  I am linking up to some activities I have come across that have been helpful in reaching our goals.  If there is something you feel could be useful also, please leave a comment below.

Trimester 1
Number Writing Practice (FREEBIE) from I Heart Teaching.

Roll the Dice from The Sharpened Pencil.

To review numbers 1-20 at the beginning of the year, Just Reed has made a FREE Number Review Book to download from TpT.

Trimester 2
Adding within 10.  Make 10 (FREE) Math Station from Mrs. Robbins.

Rainbow to 10 FREEBIE from A Cupcake For the Teacher.

Ways to Make 10 (FREEBIE) from The Linton Academy

So in actuality, this center could possibly create addition problems up to 12, but why not push the kids a little right?  This FREEBIE from Jessie's Resources is one that has been used in my classroom as a center and has also been sent home for extra practice with students who may be struggling with beginning addition.  It's easy to play and create, free and fun for the kids, so what's not to love?

Trimester 3

FREE 120 Chart from Mrs. Plant's Press (There are 5 charts with 5 different fonts to choose from.)

Adding within 20 from Kindergarten Lifestyle:

More FREE 120 charts and mystery coloring charts from First With Franklin

Mrs. T's First Grade came up with a fun idea for the students to work on number order and number recognition (1-120).  Download a 120 chart (on her blog) and have the students color in their charts.

 Have the students then cut their charts apart (by color) to turn it into a puzzle.  The students then trade their puzzles with a friend in the class and have to put the chart back together.

So what about you?  Does your grade also set math standards?  What are the ones your grade is working on?  I'd love to know what's important to each of you!

In the next few posts I am going to be writing about various math ideas (centers, games, activities, etc.) and then I will be moving on to teacher appreciation.  I have lots of door decoration ideas and gift giving ideas I am eager to share, so stick around...

Teaching Place Value

These little DIY place value mats from The Teacher's Wife is on my list of things  to make this summer.

Here's a place value FREEBIE from TpT thanks to Second Grade Cup of Tea.  It is geared towards 1st and 2nd grades.

I love using books for all areas of teaching, including for math.  Here's a list of the top books to use when teaching place value thanks to Hub Pages.

A place value review; 4 ways to write a number freebie from Peterson's Pad.

Here's a FREE place value story recommended for 1st and 2nd graders from TpT (Sarah Sebesta) .  I read through this 5 page story and really like the simplicity of it, along with the pictures.  It seems like a great addition to my file!

I found this idea on Pinterest, but when I clicked on the picture to go to the link, it only opened the picture larger.  If you know where this idea came from, please let me know so that I may properly give credit. 

I am going to create the black line for this paper first (easy enough) and then use this idea at a math center/station to review place value.  Each student will need a paper, 2 dice and crayons or a pencil.  The directions from Pinterest were these:  Math center idea for tens and ones. use foam dice so they don't make any noise. Student rolls 2 dice. The 1st number is for the tens place and the 2nd one is for the ones place. If they roll a 6 and 4 they write down 64 and then they draw the picture. You can add more dice for larger numbers.  I love that students are able to write and draw the number for extra practice!!
**UPDATE:  I created a blackline for this place value game and here goes my 1st attempt to upload it to google docs.  I'm crossing my fingers it works!  Click on the picture to get your FREEBIE... (hopefully!)  :)

Lory's Page gave to 2 free downloads to use a a review or math center.
This first idea is to be used as a math center/station.  The directions can be printed along with the game board if you follow my link.  Basically, the students are to roll 2 or 3 dice (1 at a time) depending on their skill level.  The students place their dice in the column they want, trying to ultimately end up with a smaller number than their opponent.  Your students could also practice write their numbers in standard, expanded and written forms for some extra practice and review.  This is a game of strategy and fun.  I know my firsties would have a lot of fun with this activity!!

This would act more as a review page, but I know the kids would still love it!  Thanks Lory for creating and sharing!!

I can't seem to access this page, but looking at the picture I found on Pinterest, I think I can make a judgement on how to recreate this center.

First, I would make a recording sheet like the one shown above.  Next I would give each child 2-3 dice to roll to make a number.  In the column that says "number" have the child record the number they rolled.  For example, if your student rolled a 3, 6,  and 2, they would write down 362.  The last step would be to have the student glue down the correct place value.  Cheerios for the 1's, pretzel rods for the 10's and Chex cereal for the 100's.

**UPDATE:  Click here for a FREE document I made that you can use.

Oh and check out what I picked up at Walmart this weekend for only $6.97 for a 12 pack...Mr. Sketch smelly markers!! 

I am so excited to use them at my spelling center next year!

Teaching Beginning Addition

One of my favorite new discoveries is this blog called Tales of a K-1 Classroom.  If you are wondering where to get started, how math centers might look, or where to find FREE materials to get you started...look no further.  I have linked too all her FREE math ideas.  Of course she has more than just addition activities, unlike the title of this post, but I thought I would feature one of her many roll and color activities.  Most kids know about Angry Birds.  In fact these birds seem to be everywhere now-a-days...hats, shirts, pillows, toys, etc.  With them being so popular, I think my students would be super excited to know we were using them for math too. 

If you're looking for another theme, don't worry Sara has you covered there too!  There are games using dinosaurs, Flat Stanley (love that book series!), Legos, and many, many more fun ideas.  Oh and while I'm singing out my praises for her blog, can I mention that I also love her

Math Game Binder idea!!

I am strongly thinking of using the same concept with my students next year, but making a few changes.  I am still figuring out how I want to work my math program next year. 

Ok so on to some more addition games/ideas since that is the title of this post!

Great Schools has this free dice adding worksheet that could easily be added to a center for extra (unguided) practice.

For only $1.00 from First Grader At Last, this bowling for Facts game is the perfect addition to any math center (no pun intended ;))

All you need for Addition Tic-Tac-Toe is this FREE game board and 2 ten sided dice.

Source:  Swamp Frog First Graders.

Ok so you might have to use this addition game (Roll, Add and Write) around Thanksgiving because of the turkey in the corner, but what a great practice for younger kids with adding, number recognition and correct number formation!

This activity came from Heather's Heart and I am including a link to her math games because she also has a lot of neat ideas to choose from!

Money, Money, Money, Money...Money

Can you read the title post without breaking out into song?  Ok so here are a few money ideas, games and activities to incorporate into your math stations.  I have lots, so this may be broken into a few different segments.

Magic Money looks like a great resource for both home and school use.  It is a free download from TpT, thanks to Nicole.  I love that there is also a letter already typed up to send home explaining how to use this system.  Trust me, money is a hard thing for little learners to grasp, so any help tool is greatly appreciated!

Dollar and Cents snakes and ladders game FREE from Down Under Teacher.

or Money Track (coins and bills)

Tales From A K-1 Classroom has more than just FREE money printables so make sure you check out the link so you don't miss out.  Trading Up looks like a fun one to use though!

Another money game, similar to the one above, is called Money Trade.  The freebie is from Classroom Freebies Too.  The game was played with kindergartners and went up to $0.25 so it seems like a more basic/simpler game than the one above.  I'm thinking I would start with this one first and then move to the one above next.  You could also use this idea for your struggling or lower students and use the one above for the more advanced students.  Either way, everyone would be gaining a little extra practice with money!

Here is a 53 page money unit created by The Lesson Plan Diva.  I haven't bought it yet ($6.00), but it looks well worth it with all the featured ideas you could use at centers.

Teaching Measurement

Move over ruler...here come the marshmallows!  This looks like a fun and different approach to measurement from First Grade Fabulous Fish.

Speaking of marshmallows and measurement, here is a free download from TpT thanks to Kelli from Castles and Crayons.

Lory's Page did a great post about measurement including free downloads to her activities.  I can't wait to try out the Magic Grow and all the other measuring activities!

If you work with kids 3rd-6th grade, here's a FREE download from Classroom Freebies called Find a Buddy Who...

And finally, my last measurement idea (for now) comes from Family Fun.  Make a marshmallow catapult.  This could be an in class (group) project or a homework assignment, depending on how you wanted to do it.  Either way, launch a few marshmallows, measure their distance and record your answers.

So what about you? What fun measurement activities do you like to do?