Launching Math Journals

I launched math journals last week with my kindergarten classes thanks to k-5 math teaching resources and their kindergarten math journal e-book.  Math journals have been an on and off thing since returning to kindergarten and just watching my students last week reminded me why math journals are so important.


1.  Math journals are a spot for students to record their answers and show their thinking.
2.  Math journals are a tool that help students articulate their learning.
3.  Math journals are a tool to front load oral language and math explanations.
4.  Math journals help students organize their thoughts.
5.  Math journals help students show growth over time.

Already after two days of problem solving I can observe and see individual differences in my mathematicians.    Math journals are a window into a child's thinking and reasoning.  During our reflection time I am seeing confidence emerge as students share their thinking.  Our reflections are also causing a few students to realize they are missing a piece in their own work and rushing to get a pencil.  We are just beginning and seeing how you can revise your own work to make it  more complete is an advanced skill, that I am happy to see.

By the way - I think any teacher will want to review e-book resources from this website.  My initial thinking about this website was shared on July 16th.

Happy 50th Day of School!

When you teach kindergarten that alternate days your students never attend school for 100 days.  The 100th day of school has become a great way to visualize and make the number 100 concrete.  However, I felt if my students didn't really experience the number 100 it didn't seem the best use of our time.  Then last year, I thought about the number 50 which is a fairly large number for five and six year old children and thought I could adjust things I did with 100 to 50.  I'm on year two of the 50th day and we love it.  I thought I would share the things we do in case any of my readers might also never experience the 100th day of school.  

My students bring in a collection of 50 things.  We will orally share what we have brought.  We will listen intently.  We will take a photograph of each student with their collection.  We will share our collections via VoiceThread.

We will practice counting one to one and visualize five groups of ten as we create Fruit Loop 50 necklaces.  This is a great way to visually see groups of ten with each ten being a different color.  Each year I am amazed how intentional and focused my students are with counting while making their necklaces.

Dot to Dots are one way students can read and order numbers.  I put out a variety of number sheets up to 50.  I forgot how much fun it is to create a Dot to Dot and see the shape one creates.

We will create a class book, I wish I had 50........

We will play the Number Grid Game from Everyday Math with a modified grid to 50.

We sing, read, and illustrate Happy 50 Days to Us, to the tune of Happy Birthday.

I do hope to find a 50 piece puzzle for next year.  I hope to think far enough ahead to have a parent volunteer bake cut out cookies in the number five and zero.  If you know any books with 50 in the title I would love to know.  Right now we look at 50 Below Zero by Robert Munsch and I'm not finding much luck with any other 50 related books.

Girls Need More Block Play!

While attending our state OCTM math conference last month, I attended a great session with Barbara and Diane from Bowling Green State University.  I have to apologize, I didn't save my program and I didn't write down their last names.  I walked away from their session and immediately made an instructional decision for our classroom.  Have blocks out daily!  Research is showing girls get less block play and this sets them up for a disadvantage mathematically with geometry.  Less block play is fostering a spatial deficit. 

I returned to my classroom and each day since blocks have been a morning choice.  I took an inventory of the blocks in my room and discovered there were lots.  I have a three dimensional block set in natural wood.  I have colored one inch cubes.  I have natural wood one inch cubes.  I have a colored set of building blocks that's perfect for a table top and I have the traditional larger wooden blocks great for building on the floor.  I think offering a variety of blocks provides choices and will create more spatial flexibility.  I'm only offering one set at a time right now so it's something different daily.  I was thrilled last week when three of my girls wanted to show me what they did with blocks.  We are defying research, we are building spatial knowledge, we can do geometry in kindergarten!