Learning journals are one of the best and easiest ways to make learning fun at home. This post breaks down what a learning journal is and how you can start one. It covers developmentally appropriate concepts to include in learning journals for different age groups, how to manage prepping and impleme

Okay before we start digging into these Get to Know You activities I want to share a little bit of the “why”. When I first started teaching 5th grade math a few years ago I noticed right away that my students were coming to me with some math baggage, if you will. Both good and… Continue reading Getting to Know Your Students as Math Learners

FREE printable Symmetry drawing activity for preschool and kindergarten kids. A fun art and math activity in one! Kids will complete the symmetrical pictures by drawing the other half.

One of the ways I love to keep myself and my students organized is by labeling everything. One, there’s no guesswork, two, students learn to recognize the words and what...

I absolutely LOVE interactive journals!!! I am still working on other subject areas, but for now I use them in Math and Science. Here are some sample pages from my September Math Journal Prompts in action: I have always taught thematically, so the main themes in the September pack are Apples and Farm. However, about half of them are general prompts (like the dice, ten frame and putting numbers in order). All of these are based off standards taught early in the year for K students. If you're interested in using interactive math journals and don't know where to start.. these are perfect! Each prompt has pictures for your kiddos to work the problem out. This helps little learners to solve the problem without getting distracted from drawing out pictures, etc.. It also offers a quick assessment for the teacher. Check them out here!

KINDERGARTEN MATH - UNIT 1 I am thrilled to be sharing this huge Counting and Cardinality Unit with you! This is the math unit we start the year with in kindergarten. The kids love all of the hands-on activities we get to do, and I love how easy it is to keep them engaged.

Hands-on math activities for children who love blocks! You can use these printable counting and addition games with your favourite unit blocks to build math towers, supporting early math and fine motor skills. Math towers – block addition activity printables Watch this video to see how you can teach addition to your children: […]

Student created math journals for the entire year! These interactive math notebooks are a great way for Kinder through Fourth Grade to practice math skills in an interactive way. These math notebooks cover number sense, addition and subtraction, graphing, shapes, money, word problems, and so much more!

Okay before we start digging into these Get to Know You activities I want to share a little bit of the “why”. When I first started teaching 5th grade math a few years ago I noticed right away that my students were coming to me with some math baggage, if you will. Both good and… Continue reading Getting to Know Your Students as Math Learners

I am SO excited about my Preschool Math Journal! This is something I have wanted to create for awhile now for Hayden. Each month (August - May), will include 20 short and simple math prompts to review and assess math skills to help prepare for kindergarten. The Preschool Math Journal is from my TPT shop! You can buy each month individually, or the bundle of August-May Journals! For a free sample, be sure to scroll to the end of the post! Buy the Preschool Math Journal Here are some sample prompts that Hayden has been working on, from the August Math Journal. He worked on identifying and tracing number 12. counting quantities and comparing numbers, addition, and patterning. I LOVE these prompts because he can QUICKLY complete these, and I can see if these are skills he is secure with, or something we need to practice further. Hayden is 4, and some of these prompts are super simple for him, like identifying pictures that are different and comparing sizes. However, it is still important to review these skills! A few of the other prompts we have done so far are below. Identifying numbers, ordering by size, tracing and drawing shapes. I hope these math journals can be helpful to your little ones! Again, they can be found in my TPT shop! Preschool Math Journal Here is a FREE SAMPLE of 12 preschool math journal prompts! I hope you and your little ones enjoy! Preschool Math Journal Free Sample

I am so excited to announce that I FINALLY finished another Interactive Journal set, and this time it's for your little Pre-K Mathemati...

Improve students' understanding of math concepts with kid-friendly independent math practice for K-2. Read this guide for a variety of math ideas and activities that your kids will love!

Are you looking for super fun measurement worksheets and activities for kindergarten?? You found them!! Your students will LOVE these hands-on learning activities and fun, extra practice worksheets that teach a variety of kindergarten measurement concepts.

As teachers, we all know that assessments matter. It’s important to check student understanding and provide meaningful feedback. After an assessment every teacher faces the same challenge…now what? Do I reteach the students who haven’t mastered the concepts, or move on so others don’t get bored and I can cover everything? How do I make […]

Using Math Journals. Student created math journals for the entire year! These interactive math notebooks are a great way for Kinder, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th grade to practice math skills in an interactive way. They cover number sense, addition and subtraction, graphing, shapes, money, word problems and so much more!

Mathematics is often seen as a daunting subject by many students, but it doesn't have to be that way. By incorporating creative and engaging math ideas and activities, teachers can unlock the math magic in their classrooms.

Lesson plans, activities and ideas for kindergarten classrooms, including math problem-solving, reading workshop, writer's workshop, inquiry-based science journals, literacy centers and more!

5 years ago I took a CGI (Cognitive Guided Instruction) training and loved everything about it. I took in a lot of what I learned and it shaped the way I teach math. CGI is an elementary level mathematics professional development at WCER in the 1980's and 1990's by education professors. Last year I took another training and it revitalized my need for journals in the classroom and more CGI instruction. But finding time to fit them in every day was a challenge. I think I finally have a good routine down that allows me to include journals and problem solving skills every single day. So here we go! Journals are pretty simple. Just a composition book! I do have labels on them but this picture is old! Here is our math journal routine: We have a story problem of the day that I type up in a simple format. Students put their heads down, close their eyes, and listen to the problem. Here are some examples of the problems. (I print them like this so I can cut them and give each student a problem to glue in their journal) Next we raise our hands and decide where we should start. Once students know where to begin they can get started in their journals. They glue the problem down in their journals and start by drawing a picture. I always have blocks available on the tables so they can also use manipulatives to solve the problem too. Our expectations for math journals are simple. #1 Draw a picture to show your strategy. #2 Write a number sentence that shows how you solved the problem. #3 Write a complete sentence to answer the question in the problem. When they have done all 3 things they get a stamp or sticker from me and then they can move on to math tubs. Here are a few examples: This kiddo had a great strategy but needed help on accuracy. This was his first independent attempt. We discussed going back to double check. He saw his mistake immediately and fixed it. This was early in our journal journey. This kiddo gets it, but we needed to discuss how to show our strategy. In this case I would ask, "Where did you start?", and students can usually pin point that. He started with 13 and then counted on 6 to get to 19. We've worked on how to show that to share with others. This kiddo is super sophisticated. She showed her work with tens and ones (circles and x's) and went on to explain her thinking by naming the strategy she used in her sentence. She showed she needed to add on 12 by showing it is a 10 and 2 ones. This kiddo is using blocks to show me his thinking.... This kiddo does amazing pictures everyday to show her thinking using different color crayons. The most important part of all of this are the quick 2 minute conversations I have with them as they explain their thinking to me. Sometimes I have them explain to a neighbor and we try to share 3 or 4 journals each day in a "Writer's Workshop" style share time at the end of math. Doing journals daily has helped us have conversations about math, name our strategies, and explain our thinking. Our problem of the day always has to do with something that is going on in our lives. It's important to write your own problems so the kiddos are invested in the problem and it really makes a huge difference. I have some problems already typed up and ready to go for days I don't have time but they really enjoy being the "problem of the day" so I try to stick to that. You can see the entire set of math journal resources HERE. When students finish they move on to math tubs. Math tubs have all kinds of hands on materials in them. I use these large dish pans for my math tubs so they can fit a lot of different materials! To see MATH JOURNALS and what I put in my tubs click HERE. Want to save this for later? Pin it here!

Math Journals, or problem solving notebooks are a great way to get students writing about their mathematical thinking. They are also especially effective for giving you a glimpse into their problem solving process. I use math journals almost daily in my class and often start with this strategy to help my students more coherently explain their thinking. Teaching 4th grade in Nevada means teaching the dreaded constructed response math questions for our state test. One thing that I have been trying in my class that has been very successful is the making a MESS model for problem solving. As you can see from the anchor chart the MESS acronym stands for: M - Model E - Equation S- Solution S- Sentence The students learn to use the acronym to help them set up a written response to a math problem so that they not only know where to start, but also all of the parts to include. It is really easy to remember and they LOVE the idea of being encouraged to "Make a Mess". I started my students off with the anchor chart above, then gave them my math journals which are set up using this method, and include 4 math prompts for each standard. I print out the ones that my students need to work on most and place them in a folder for math journal time. This student started to divide the given numbers (963/10) but then raised her hand and asked if she could round first. I told her, "Try it!" The students become better and better at writing responses as we share methods and responses throughout the year. Towards the end of the year in preparation for testing, I start giving them prompts without the model to guide them. After working with the MESS model all year, they know what to do, and are better prepared. I really emphasize perseverance and trying things out before raising their hands to ask for help. I compare it to a video game. I say, "If you don't pass a level on a video game, you don't call me up and ask for help, you try something different, you persevere until you figure it out. That is exactly what mathematicians do!" I have been blown away by some of the feedback that I have received! Grade Level Math Journals Available: 1st Grade Math Journal 2nd Grade Math Journal 3rd Grade Math Journal 4th Grade Math Journal 5th Grade Math Journal 6th Grade Math Journal Here are a few links with sample constructed response questions http://tn.gov/education/assessment/ConstructedResponseAssessment.shtml http://www.sandi.net/cms/lib/CA01001235/Centricity/Domain/217/Math%20Documents/Archives%20K-5/Grade%204%20Modules%201-10%20Response%20Guides.pdf http://www.opi.mt.gov/PDF/Assessment/CRT/RI/07/07Gr3MathCR.pdf I also have a Pinterest Board where I pin Math Journal Ideas. I am linking up with Fourth Grade Flipper for Tried It Tuesday. Head over there for some other amazing ideas, or to share something you have tried recently! This post contains affiliate links. I earn a small commission each time someone makes a purchase using one of my links, which helps to support the blog. All opinions are my own and I only promote brands and products that I have used myself and truly love. I would love to hear from you! ❤️ Have a question? Idea for a resource you might find helpful? Be so kind and leave a comment below.

I love incorporating games into math as much as possible. Who doesn't love playing games, right?! But the problem with games is that they often require quite a bit of prep work for us teachers. I've been trying to come up with some that require little to no preparation to use. I'm so excited to

Discover the perfect way to elevate your 3rd grade math lessons with the Mindful Math Curriculum! Dive into a comprehensive program that covers every aspect of third grade math, offering engaging lessons, hands-on activities, and teaching resources. From using math centers, math journals, number talks, assessments, and manipulatives, this guide has you covered. Plus, it's aligned with Common Core standards and Canadian standards. Grab the FREE addition and subtraction activities!

Have you ever thought of giving an interactive notebook a try in your primary classroom, but the thought seems too overwhelming? Do you have an interactive notebook resource, but are not sure

Here is a fun way to motivate students in a math journal or math workbook! As you teach a new concept or unit of study, introduce the reference tools...

Okay before we start digging into these Get to Know You activities I want to share a little bit of the “why”. When I first started teaching 5th grade math a few years ago I noticed right away that my students were coming to me with some math baggage, if you will. Both good and… Continue reading Getting to Know Your Students as Math Learners

This post shares 13 different hands-on, engaging apple-themed journal activities for preschoolers and toddlers. These activities are great for an apple theme and cover a variety of different learning skills from pre-writing, to graphing, to letter sounds, and color words!

My awesome coworker and I made up a trig matching activity. I know it's not a novel idea, but here is another resource for precalculus teachers to solidify angles in standard position. You can find the file HERE. Via our internet math community, I learned that it's easier to leave one of the pages uncut (the pink sheet here), and then the students can place the matching cut up green and gold cards on the page. Before, I used to cut up all three, and then that took up too much space on the student tables. Thank you virtual PD friends for the great tip. My buddy and I also decided to break up the teaching into 2 class periods with degrees one day and the dreaded radians along with their devilish friends, FRACTIONS (duhn DUHN duhhhhhhn) for the next day. Hopefully, this will allow the fraction/radian goodness to seep into their resisting minds more readily. I didn't share the word document because it seems to mess up when you download it via box.net (or maybe I'm wrong). If you want the word document to play around with, send e-mail. Another thing I like about this is that we didn't use all special angles. We also didn't indicate which was up or down on the pink sheet, so that stumped some kids and they had to think and justify the direction. Yay math.

Greetings friends! Lindsay here . . . Wowzers. Where did August go? Yes, I know its super pitiful that it is already September 5th and...

I've heard it from teacher after teacher: " I dread teaching measurement every year. " It's hard to blame them. There's nothing ground-shaking about measurement. There's nothing exciting about metric vs. customary. It's just one of those skills that our stud

I love teaching all algebra topics with tons of interactive and collaborative activities that get students thinking independently and working together. This way everyone gets the practice they need to feel confident in algebra. Here are a bunch of slope activities that you can assign to students working in group or even digitally. I have updated many of the activities to now include links to interactive digital slope activities in Google Slides and Google Forms for blended learning.

I am so excited to announce that I FINALLY finished another Interactive Journal set, and this time it's for your little Pre-K Mathematicians!!! I have included prompts to match every Pre-K Math Standard. There are also so many different levels of each prompt. I did this for many reasons. 1. You can build on their learning. 2. You can differentiate their math journals. 3. Math Journals are the perfect documentation for learning! Here are just a few examples of the prompts included: Think you might want to try them out in your classroom??? Click here to grab a few prompts FREE! If you aren't sure you want to invest in journals yet, use a piece of construction paper or copy paper. Although, students take a lot of pride and ownership in their interactive journals. I do not think you would be disappointed if you decided to jump on board! Click here to purchase the entire set.

I'll admit it. When it comes to teaching fractions, I cringe a little. There is no doubt that this is a very difficult concept for many young learners. The idea of breaking something into equal parts and creating a new number is something very hard to grasp. In order to meet all learning styles, you

Pinterest is an explosion of wonderful ideas, and at times can be overwhelming. I decided to wade through my "For School" board and pick the...

This could be used for notes in a math journal or as an anchor chart. In my class students glue it into their journals. It compares and contrasts Area and Perimeter. ...

I absolutely LOVE interactive journals!!! I am still working on other subject areas, but for now I use them in Math and Science. Here are some sample pages from my September Math Journal Prompts in action: I have always taught thematically, so the main themes in the September pack are Apples and Farm. However, about half of them are general prompts (like the dice, ten frame and putting numbers in order). All of these are based off standards taught early in the year for K students. If you're interested in using interactive math journals and don't know where to start.. these are perfect! Each prompt has pictures for your kiddos to work the problem out. This helps little learners to solve the problem without getting distracted from drawing out pictures, etc.. It also offers a quick assessment for the teacher. Check them out here!