Here is an easy strategy to model subtraction using a 10 strip (a strip of paper with 10 circles). This concept is a foundational skill that will help kiddos as we dive into more difficult math problems. Oh, and did I mention that this video is starring 3 of our own amazing students?? 🙂
Tag Archives: math
How to Regroup – a Video Podcast from Room 203
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Watch some awesome second graders review with our class the steps of double and triple digit addition and subtraction!
Fair Share Division
We are learning about division! And it is so much fun! We started by dividing plastic counters into different groups.
                    (Mason was our student photographer)
We then talked a little bit about the 2 kinds of division- measurement and partitive.
Measurement Division problems state the total number of objects and the number of objects in each group. The unknown is the number of groups.
Partitive Division problems state the total number of objects and the number of groups. The unknown is the number of objects in each group.
The fun continued when we played fair share fruit loops! This is a game that I came up with to help us have some hands on fun with division. We passed out cups of fruit loops and playing cards (empty bags that represent groups). I then gave the students a division problem- like 15 fruit loops divided into 3 groups. The kids grabbed 3 playing cards, counted out 15 fruit loops, and then divided! (this is the partitive division). We divided with measurement division, too! I would give the students problems similar to this- 20 fruit loops, and there will be 4 in each bag (or group). The students would take one playing card, put 4 “in the bag”, and then grab a new card until they run out of cereal. The quest would be to find out how many groups you would need. It was a blast and our second graders really grasped division! We even discovered that division problems have fact families, like addition and subtraction!!
                                    (Andrew was our student photographer)
Fraction Action
This week we are learning all about fractions!! Fractions are pieces of an entire object. They can also be parts of a set. Second graders need to be able to divide shapes and sets of objects into two, three, and four equal parts and identify those parts as halves, thirds, and fourths. Learning fractions can be fun!! Check out this incredible powerpoint on the basics of fractions:
Enjoy watching this fabulous fractions movie from NASA KSNN video… then check out the links to go bowling for fractions and take an online quiz to see how much you really know about fractions!!
The Results Are In! Our Class Graphs Favorite Genres
You might have noticed the online poll our class has had on our blog. We asked the question: What is your favorite genre? 29 people replied. According to our survey, the genre mystery had the most votes. With that information, we went to work creating different graphs to represent what we learned.
To start the activity, I divided the kids into 5 groups. I passed out all the materials needed to create the graphs as well as a printed copy of the poll results. Everybody was an important part of completing their group’s project. We made 5 different graphs and tables- bar graph, line graph, pie graph, pictograph, and a tally table. Not only was this a great cooperative learning activity, but it was tons of fun to use an online poll from our blog to help us understand the different types of graphs!
Graphs, Graphs, & More Graphs!
We are studying about data collecting and graphing this week in math. We can collect data and make simple graphs on ANY subject… just think of a question, ask that question to others (this is called a survey), and then put that information, or data, in an easy to read form. There are all sorts of ways to represent your data- bar graphs, line graphs, pictographs, pie graphs, and Venn diagrams
Our powerpoint this week comes from Monica Yuskaitis and helps us to understand more about graphing basics. graphs.ppt
Follow these links to play a variety of data collection/graphing games:
What is the Commutative and Associative Property? Ask Us- We’ll Tell You!
Two properties of math that we are learning about are associative and commutative. These properties are like rules that describe how math works. This powerpoint describes what these properties are and give some great visuals to explain how they work.
Our class recorded a podcast today on the commutative and associative properties. I recorded our learning for all to hear!!! Enjoy!
Missing Addends Add Up to a Challenge
Our powerpoint for this week is another gameshow spin-off reviewing Missing Addends. This topic can be tricky and we have learned a few strategies to help us in class.
1. Count up- Look at the other addend and COUNT UP while drawing tally marks or using counters until you reach the sum.
2. Count back- Start at the sum and then subtract the other addend in the addition sentence.
3. Memorize the fact family! If you know that 2,3, and 5 are all in the same fact family, then finding the missing addend for 2 + x = 5 will be a breeze! This is the best strategy and ultimately what second graders should be doing by the end of the year. It shows automaticity with math facts which will be a great benefit to them next year in third grade.
I hope these strategies help- good luck!
Cherry Counting Contest
Our class just completed a cherry counting contest where we counted up to 1,000! On Tuesday afternoon when we had just finished saying the number 990, we were so excited that someone mentioned that we do some yoga to calm us down ( I thought that was a fabulous idea).
This was a great opportunity for us to learn more about numbers, expanded notation, and not to say the word and between the hundreds and tens place. Our cherry trees were designed on PowerPoint- another technology integration for our classroom.
Using a TV Station to teach Double Digit Subtraction
Their are challenges of teaching math to a multi-leveled group of students. Some students have that ability to process numbers with ease while others struggle. Double digit subtracting can be difficult for those that seem to get lost in the “steps” to solve that problem. I came up with a way that seems to work well by using the acronym for Channel 2- CBS.
The letters refer to our 3 step method to solve all double digit problems- Check, Borrow, and Subtract. We always check our problem before we attempt to solve it. Can I subtract? If yes, then do it! If not, then I need to go to my step 2 which is to borrow. After I have changed my 2 numbers, then I move to my final step- subtract.
