Ten more or ten less.

I forgot to post this from a fun lesson a week ago, we were working on finding ten less or ten more. I would shout out a number students would find a whiteboard to write that number, then they would have to find someone else to erase and write ten more or ten less than that number.  The students loved it!

Crazy ideas from student teachers..

A student approached me with an idea. He wanted a 10 minute slot of our day to share 23 pictures of monsters, brainstorm for 2 of the best names, (then I asked him how is this related to school) and I kid you not he said, "then we could segment and blend the names". How could I turn him down after that? So today we got to brainstorm, vote and name a monster. The 2 student teachers ran the whole session with a few interjections from me.  Check out the awesome tally marks for counting the votes.

I can compare numbers using symbols!

This center isn't just your typical comparison of numbers..students work there way up to comparing four different numbers to correctly align with how the symbols are placed in the equation. (students leg is hiding the 1st number in the equation) These mathmaticians were rockin, I may have to have them compare 5 numbers next time!

More travel agent shots..

Travel Writers!

Our first graders worked tirelessly last week to complete a travel brochure. They took on the role as a travel writer and travel agent. They researched different habitats and worked within a partner to create a travel brochure for that habitat. Students asked luring questions like "Do you want to go on a sea adventure?". Then they had to use their senses to describe what someone would feel, see, hear or even smell or taste in their habitat. They also had to color code a map showing where there habitat was in the world as well as what gear someone would need when traveling there.

To conclude this activity, we invited our reading buddies down to persuade them to visit our habitat.  I was so proud of the 1st graders, once they heard the call for all travel agents to begin selling, they went to work! They were shaking their brochures, asking their luring questions, then once they hooked someone's attention, they taught them all about their habitat. The 4th grade reading buddies were very impressed and wanted to visit the habitats! It was a great morning!

Verbs, nouns and adjectives..

Students were playing a game today unscrambling words to make a complete sentence. Once we made a sentence, then students "switched" out the nouns, verb and adjectives to make a totally new sentence!  Our "noun" was not happy about going from a gorilla to a pony. Haha. In the pictures below you will see students rearranging the words to make a sentence or writing a new noun, verb or adjective.

Student teachers!

I "employ" several student teachers throughout the day, but especially before the official school day begins. If students arrive early to school they are invited in the classroom to read or begin working on extra work. In the pictures below you will see student teachers helping students.with a question. These students are not giving the answer,but are teaching their friends HOW to answer it. The students always thank their friends for help and I can see it is making more of a collaborative learning environment. Students depend less on me and more on each other. It is really cool to see it in action. The other picture shows student teachers teaching a friend how to do a math center that she has never been to yet.  And this is all before the bell rings! This class is the best class, they make my days so much fun.