Count All About It

We learned last week how important multiple exposures to counting is for first graders. So, this week I have created a center where students will estimate using different objects. They will also have a real life connection by estimating how many hershey kisses are in the jar. At the end of the week, whoever guesses the closest will get the candy!
In spelling, we are going to be working on -ake and -ike words. Please be sure to practice these words at home. Learning spelling patterns is a huge part of learning to read.
I will be posting pictures of our new math center, so keep checking!

STRATEGY

Today we talk about calling the strategies by name. We shouted out STRATEGY several times to help students remember this big word! In math we use different strategies to add and subtract. Some examples are: using a numberline, counting up, use your fingers, use tallies, draw a picture, and counting out loud. I put this number story up on the board. I had 10 cupcakes. My mom ate 4. How many do I have left? The students could choose one way to solve the problem. After solving the problem, they got with their math partner and used the sentence starter, "the strategy I used was..".
The students did AWESOME! They not only got the answer correct and knew it was subtraction, but they all used a variety of strategies.
During reading we talked about text connections. I brought "Mr.Connection" with me today. It is a cup filled with sentence starters to help students understand how to make connections while reading. We made a poster of the three types: text to text, text to self, and text to world. First I read a book and modeled my text to self connection. Then I had students share their connections. During reading groups, they all got to choose a stick and make their own connection to the book. They caught on really well. Today was just an introduction so I can't wait to see all the great connections we make in the weeks to come!