The end of the first week of school is such a triumph! I have a wonderful set of fifth graders this year and they all seem eager and excited to work. Of course there is a sprinkle of nuts here and there but life without nuts is boring.
THE GOOD- I used Kahoot as a way for my students to get to know me. They loved it (they always do love Kahoot) If you have never used Kahoot go HERE and sign up for free!
One of my lessons this week was about Stem and Leaf Plots. I always like to find a fun way to collect data in order to teach the parts of a stem and leaf plot. I found a VERY FUN game called SKUNK. The kids asked everyday if we can play it again. The game is teacher led and involves the whole class. The teacher rolls two dice and the students win and accumulate points by standing or sitting when the dice are being rolled. Rolling a 7 or 11 will cause every standing student to lose all their points. I know this sounds confusing but here is the free game I found online. The link contains more detailed instructions. GET THE SKUNK GAME HERE!
Another GOOD lesson was a lesson about Dot Plots (sometimes they are called Line Plots). We first collected shoe sizes in a frequency table and then turned the data into a Dot Plot. Then in order to collect more data, we measured hand spans. Students traced one hand into their journal and then used a ruler to measure from the tip of the pinky finger to the tip of the thumb. We collected the data in a frequency table and then we turned it into a Dot Plot.
Our last lesson of the week was using Edmodo to collect data on “favorites”. For example Favorite Avenger, Favorite Ice Cream Flavor, Favorite Color. Using Edmodo to collect this information, allows the students to see the data in a horizontal bar graph. We then turned the horizontal bar graph into a vertical bar graph. Afterwards I revealed “last year’s data” (these numbers I purely made up for this lesson). Using this year’s data and last year’s data students created double bar graphs in their journals.
If you have never used Edmodo, it is AMAZING!!! Visit the Edmodo website and join today! It is a great way to communicate with students and parents in a safe and secure environment. You can send assignments and notes as well. https://www.edmodo.com/
THE BAD- I did not have time for everything I wanted to accomplish this week 🙁 I already have roll-over lessons! Oh well, the hare never wins, but the tortoise does.
THE UGLY- The bags under my eyes… I am exhausted.
Next Week– I will be assessing my students on the three types of graphs featured here today, in order to see who needs reteaching. I will also be starting, and hopefully reviewing whole number multiplication from fourth grade. I love to use literature to help teach multiplication, so stay tuned!
I would love to here about your first week or if you use any of the ideas I have shared with you today. Please comment!
Peace, Love, Math-
Jenn
Thank you for stopping by today! I hope you were inspired and you were able to find something new to try in your own classroom! If you didn’t find what you were looking for- please email me! I am happy to help!