Working with Numbers

Graphics by Whimsy Workshop.

We've been working a whole lot on number sense!  Lots of counting, subitizing, ordering numbers, making numbers, etc...  

Our math program is Engage NY (don't ask me my opinion on THAT!), so we have a whole group lesson each morning that requires using a ton of manipulatives that my students love to lose.  :-)  We worked on building numbers and then figuring out different ways to make that number.  I do all my whole group lessons on the carpet.  We also supplement a LOT with center activities, because I'm sorry, but my Kinders can't sit through a 30 minute whole group lesson without being antsy, and I know they're not getting much out of it at that point.

We also use the problem sets and put them in our math journals.  Unfortunately, there are mistakes in the Engage NY materials and the directions don't always make sense, or the pictures are terrible, so sometimes we have to make our own versions of stuff.  Frustrating.  

One activity we did was a counting book.  The kids really enjoyed this, and it was good to see who was able to finish their counting book correctly and independently.  You can find this version of the counting book in my TPT store.

(I love her colorful stars!)

We played Memory with number cards.  They matched the number to the number of objects on another card. 

We also used my differentiated Number Clip Cards.  Counting a number, counting one more than a number, and counting one less than a number are included.   Plus, using the closepins forces them to strengthen their hands, and they love them!

We have also played lots of number games!  Roll and Color, Roll Count and Color, and Race to Trace are a few that we used.  I found these in various places around the internet, but they were all freebies. I know a few of them came from this freebie from The Moffatt Girls.  

We also did quite a bit of number ordering.  We ordered both pictures with a certain number of objects, as well as just the numbers themselves.

The kids loved being able to cut them out and put them in order, but they really loved being able to color them!  You could also make these into a hat.  (My kids LOVE hats!)  This activity can be found in my Fall Into Kindergarten pack, along with several other number activities.

This Skip Counting Freebie can be found in this post from Reagan Tunstall.  There are 4 different versions available!

We even used cubes to build towers that had "one more" with each consecutive cube.  

And when we finally figured out how to put our numbers in order, we expanded on that skill!

Here we are playing "What's Missing?" with a partner.  We put the number cards in order 0-10, one partner closes their eyes, and their partner hides one of the cards.  They have to figure out which number is missing.  Once they get better at that, we allow them to hide 2 cards.

We also played this with towers of cubes from 1-10.  The student hid a cube tower and the other student had to figure out which tower was missing.  (Unfortunately, I don't have a picture of this.  Sorry!)

We also played "One More, One Fewer" to help reinforce this skill.  The students choose a card and count out that number on the ten frame.  Then they rolled a +/- dice to see if they added a number or took one away.  This game comes from our old math program, Math Investigations 2, but it would be super simple to play in your own classroom!

Bobbing for Apples was a hit as well!  The students chose a number 1-20, and they had to figure out where on the paper that number went and write it down with a pencil.  They had to check to make sure their number was in the right spot on their by counting from the first apple to the number they had and check that it was in the right place.  Some more sophisticated thinkers used the numbers that were already on their paper to figure out where a certain number went.  I am sure this game could be created for different seasons as well, especially now that we are beginning to hit our teen numbers and work on them.

I hope this post helped you with some great math ideas for your Kindergarteners!  We are now doing a brief unit on shapes, so I will hopefully be back with some fun ideas to share about those soon!

What I learned from a thank you card

One of my Kindergarteners moved today.  When her mother informed me that today would be her last day, I was sad.  I really hate to see my students leave.  She was a great kid.  She had all of the qualities that teachers absolutely love in kids!  Sweet.  Kind.  Smart.  Funny.  Caring.  Hard-working.  You know, the kind of kid all teachers want a class full of.  Of course I didn't want her to leave!  I cry when any student leaves, so I knew I was in for tears today.

When she came in today, she handed me a card.  I immediately opened it, because, lets face it, I have no self control sometimes.  What I saw inside made me start welling up with tears immediately.

This is what it said:

Thanks for being my 1st teacher.  

The words, while simple, struck me in a strange way.  I had never thought of myself as someone's first teacher.  I knew that several of my students had not been to school before.  I knew that several of my students came in to school with a different set of knowledge than we hoped they would due to their inexperience with school.  I even knew that some of my students had been to pre-school, but this was their first experience with formal schooling.

But it never, ever occurred to me, not in a million years, that I was their first teacher.

The enormity of this responsibility is astounding.  As I came to this realization, it weighed on me heavily.  I have a responsibility to these students.  More than I ever realized.

Yes, I know that, as a Kindergarten teacher, it is my job to set the foundation for the rest of their school career.  The skills I teach my 24 (now 23) Kindergarten students will help set them up for success or failure throughout school.  It is my job to make sure that my students leave Kindergarten armed with the skills they will need to tackle first grade and beyond.  That right there is a huge responsibility.

But what that card implied was a responsibility even bigger than I imagined.  

As their first teacher, it is my job to make sure they are hungry.  I need to ensure that they need to learn more and more to satiate that hunger.  I need to create a hunger that will never be satiated, no matter what happens to them in first grade, second grade, or even in middle or high school.

As their first teacher, it is my job to create that love of learning.  That love of reading.  I need to guide them towards the answers to their questions.  Towards the books they won't want to put down.  I have to show them that it's ok to love learning from the start.  They will need that love when things get tough.

As their first teacher, it is my job to make them independent.  They have to learn how to do things on their own, without the assistance of their parents.  It's time to grow up and move on now that we're in school.  I gently guide them towards independence while still allowing them to depend on me for guidance and support.  I help them amaze their parents with all the wonderful things they are capable of doing.

As their first teacher, it is my job to make their first experience with school a positive one.  It is my responsibility to make sure they go home each day with a skip in their step and a smile on their face.  I need to ensure that they are excited to share what they learned in school that day with their families.

As their first teacher, I am their first experience with school.  My attitude and how I handle myself can make or break that child's school experience.  It may be for just this year, or it may be forever.  I don't have any idea how much of an impact my words and actions may have on that child.  I have to be careful what I say and how I say it.  I need to nurture these students through their first experience with school.  I need to make sure they want to come back each day.  If they have a negative experience with school in Kindergarten, it does not bode well for the rest of their educational experience.

Though this responsibility falls on Kindergarten teachers, there is something we must remember.  Each and every day can be a child's "first day" of school.  Each and every one of you, whether you teach Kindergarten or seniors in high school, can be a child's "first teacher."  YOU can be the one who makes a difference in the life of a child.  YOU can change their educational experience from a negative one to a positive one.  

No matter what you heard about that student from their previous teachers.

No matter what the other students tell you about that student.

No matter what kinds of behaviors that child has displayed in your classroom.

YOU can make the difference.  YOU can allow that child to restart their educational experience within the confines of your classroom.  You can be their cheerleader, urging them to do the best they can.  You can teach them independence.  You can help ensure they love learning and will never be satisfied with what they know, no matter what.

Tomorrow could be the first day of school for one of those students in your class.  It could be the tough one who can't keep his hands to himself, or the little girl who feels like a failure because she struggles with learning to read.  You can find that way to connect with them and make them successful.  YOU can change their educational experience from a negative one to a positive one, and set them on a path to success.

Can you be a child's first teacher?

What's In a Name?

Being a first grade teacher for the past 3 years, moving back to Kindergarten was quite a shock to me.  I had gotten used to the independence that first graders have:  Little things like knowing how to walk in a straight line and write their own names- skills that most of my Kindergarteners don't have coming into school!   Even though I knew what I was getting myself into, I really forgot what I was getting myself into!

So we have hit the ground running with our students!  We have been doing lots of activities to help our students learn their names.  I have some students who can't even recognize their own name, so working with our names and the letters in them is so important!

We did a few fun art activities where the students had to decorate their names with different items.  We did both torn paper names and Bingo dauber names.

The torn paper names helped us see who was able to tear the paper (a few of them couldn't!), who could follow directions, and who could trace their names.  They turned out really cute. 

We also used Bingo daubers to stamp our names.  These also turned out really cute.  We had to practice with the Bingo daubers on a scrap piece of paper before we started stamping on our papers.  Doing that really helped the kids learn how to use them so they didn't mess up their white papers!

They turned out really cute!

We also did some other activities with our names and with letters.  

We did a capital/lowercase letter sort.

We did a "Letters In My Name/Letters In My Friend's Name" activity.

We did name puzzles and counted the number of letters in our names.

We also sorted the letters in our names and the letters that weren't in our names.  It was very interesting to see who knew the letters in their names versus the letters that weren't in their names.  Some of my students were very confident, while others really had no idea.  We've definitely got our work cut out for us this year- but I know we will get there!

We also made these cute name trees.  I don't know where the template for this came from, but it would be super easy to make your own!

 One of the last name activities we did was decorate the beginning letter of our first names with something that begins with that letter.  They turned out really cute- except one of my kiddos, whose name starts with a J, had to redo her letter because the jellybeans we put on her J got super gross and then fell off!  But the kids really loved decorating their letters, and they looked adorable when I hung them up.

One of my parents from last year gave me about 6 of these palm trees, so I decided to use it for my Chicka Chicka Boom Boom tree.  It looked adorable with their letters on it!

Do you have students who are struggling with their names?  I put together some of these name activities and they are available in my TPT store.

I included the Name Sorts (Letters in My Name and Letters in My Name/Letters in a Friend's Name), Name Puzzles, Counting the Letters in My Name Activity, and the Decorate a Letter activity, complete with ideas for decorating your letters and the templates for all 26 letters of the alphabet.  Sorry, the "coconut tree" isn't included!  If you're interested, you can check it out by clicking on the picture!

What are some fun things you do to help your students learn their names?