Turkey Centers!

In anticipation of the Thanksgiving holiday, we spent Monday and Tuesday completing a rotation of Turkey Centers!  At each center, we reviewed a different skill - adding 2 and 3 addends, subtracting, sorting, making patterns, reading, sequencing, noun-pronoun and subject-verb matching, word families, and lots more!  We had so much fun.

I hope everyone is having a wonderful Thanksgiving vacation.  See you Monday!

Number Stories!

During the second quarter, first graders have been solving word problems that involve addition, subtraction, and missing addends.  Word problems (or number stories, as we sometimes call them) can be tough!  They combine reading, critical thinking, and modeling to solve problems.  But they can also make abstract concepts like addition and subtraction more concrete by requiring students to apply their knowledge of mathematical relationships in real world settings. 

Students are learning how to use pictures to help them solve word problems and how to write a number sentence that corresponds with the problem posed.  Here are some examples:

Addition:
On Halloween, Marco got 8 peanut butter cups and 3 Hershey kisses.  How many pieces of candy did Marco get all together? 

First, students should write a number sentence to help them frame the problem:

                                  8 + 3 = 

Next, students should create a model of the problem using drawings, pictures, tallies, etc.

Now, students should be able to use their drawing to help them solve the problem and finish their number sentence.

                                  8 + 3 = 11

Subtraction:
9 birds were sitting on a tree branch.  Then 2 flew away.  How many birds were left sitting on the tree branch?
                                       9 - 2 = 

Once the model is drawn, use your picture to help you solve the problem!

                                       9 - 2 = 7

Missing Addend:
I planted 14 seeds.  6 of the seeds were apple seeds.  The rest were pumpkin seeds.  How many pumpkin seeds did I plant?

These are the hardest kind of word problems!  Many times, students want to add the two numbers they are given (14 and 6).  Remind your first grader see that 14 is the total (or sum).  We know one of the addends (6) but not the other.  The number sentence that correlates with the problem looks like this:


                               6 + ___ = 14

   

How many pumpkin seeds do you need to get 14 in all?  Finish the model to find out the answer!

                                     6 + 8 = 14

  

This week, we will introduce number stories with three addends.  Encourage your first graders to practice making up their own number stories and see if they can use a picture and a number sentence to solve them.  Have fun!

Happy Halloween!

We had a great Halloween in First Grade!  We read a book about bats and wrote our own informational texts to teach others facts about bats.  We made our own bats out of construction paper and hung them from the ceiling, and then got to examine a real bat skeleton!  We also carved a jack-o-lantern with Ms. Pollard on her last day in our classroom and did a shared writing project where we wrote about how to make a jack-o-lantern using sequencing words we know like first, next, then, and last.  

Congratulations on Finishing the First Quarter!

It's hard to believe we are already one-fourth of the way through First Grade!  Congratulations to all of the hard-working, kind, and brilliant students in Ms. McHenry's class!

Wacky Wednesday!

As you know, Wednesday was Wacky Wednesday!  We took pictures of some of our wacky outfits and wacky faces and then wrote sentences about the pictures.  We had to use past tense in our sentences, since Wacky Wednesday was in the past.  Can you find all the verbs that tell about the past below?

They were wearing their pajamas too!

Lots of first graders wore their pajamas on Wacky Wednesday!

They were making wacky faces!

They had backwards shirts!

They laughed and laughed because they looked wacky!

No Homework???

It's true!  

There is no math homework tonight!  As always, first graders should read their "Just Right" book to an adult this evening.  Don't forget to sign your child's reading log.

Also, tomorrow is "Wacky Wednesday!"  Forest View families have reached their half-way goal for the un-fundraiser, so students may wear their wackiest outfits to school tomorrow.  I'm looking forward to see what silly ensembles they put together.

Place Value

During the first six weeks of school, our math lessons focused primarily on number sense - counting, place value, patterns, and comparing numbers to determine which is greater and which is less.  As we begin our next math unit, the focus will remain on place value as we explore addition and subtraction.  

For grown ups, place value seems pretty straightforward.  We have our ones place, our tens place, and our hundreds place.  But for a first grader trying to grasp this complex, abstract concept, place value can be pretty confusing!  

In the term "place value," place refers to the position of a digit.  That is, whether the digit is in the ones place, the tens place, the hundreds place, etc.  Value tells us what that digit represents.  A 6 in the ones place represents 6 ones, or the number 6.  A 6 in the tens place represents 6 tens, or the number 60.  Understanding place value is critical to a conceptual understanding of our base-ten system, and helps us solve problems by understanding the way numbers relate to one another.

Encourage your child to use models to represent two-digit numbers.  Practice naming numbers (up to 120) you see in print and identifying the digit in the ones, tens, and hundreds place.  Ask your child to tell you what each digit represents.  Use drawings, tally marks, base-ten blocks (or something comparable) to practice making two-digit numbers at home.  If your child is ready, you can even try three-digit numbers!  Remember, your child should be able to count up to 120 by the end of first grade.  Being able to touch and build and move manipulatives around is an important part of first graders' development, so don't just stick to paper and pencil.