Hello Everyone!! If you are working on fractions, you have to read this book! Equal Shmequal by Virginia Kroll is a perfect book to introduce kids to the concepts of equal and unequal, symmetry, same, congruent, etc. This week I used this darling book to introduce our fractions unit. Today we worked hard on the symmetry aspect of equal and unequal. In first grade, symmetry is an important mathematical concept that actually serves as a jumping off point for many different mathematical objectives. We naturally look for balance and order in our lives, as well as in math. Symmetry can be taught with real life examples and leads beautifully in to a study of fractions. To help grasp the concept further, I made up a life sized game of equal schmequal! Kids got some paper triangles. I made sure that there were two of each color. I taped a line of symmetry down the carpet and we reviewed some of the math talk words that would be important for this game. Then the kids took turns placing the shapes one at a time making sure that the design they were creating was symmetrical, the shapes were congruent, the sides were even, the same, mirror image, etc. They were delighted with the design created and definitely understood the idea of symmetry. Equal Schmequal!!! I have some similar activities in a symmetry mini unit I shared last spring. This little unit includes : 2 mini posters with definitions A hands on shape activity creating a class symme “tree” 4 visual activities 3 center or math tub activities A vocabulary word search For your 20 page symmetry unit (free) click HERE!! :) We had a great day!! We hope you had an equally great day!! Thanks for stopping by for a peek into our little Window On Wonder!" Let us know what you think!! Joyfully! Nancy Oh! And stay tuned for a quick little terrarium unit to help learn about living things and dependency!!