We have been learning about fact families in math. Fact families help us understand teh inverse relationship between addition and subtraction. A number fact is made up of three numbers. These three numbers can be used to make up other number facts. Knowing one fact can help children with other facts. Look at the number facts we can make with the numbers 3, 4, and 7. 3 + 4 = 7 7 – 3 = 4 4 + 3 = 7 7 – 4 = 3 Generally, subtraction facts are harder for children to learn than addition facts. If a child knows that 6 + 9 = 15, and he or she sees the subtraction sentence 15 – 9 = __, the child can think, 9 and what are 15? This use of thinking of the related addition fact when children encounter a subtraction fact they don't know, should be encouraged. Children often find themselves either counting up or counting back to solve subtraction, and that is inefficient. If children learn the important inverse relationship between addition and subtraction, subtraction facts will become much easier. As you work with your children at home, use questions that encourage this strategy of the inverse relationship between addition and subtraction. We began by reviewing with children the related addition facts (or turn around facts as we call them). For example 2 + 3 = 5 and 3 + 2 = 5 . After this, we learned about something new called a fact family. We talked about how the facts are related like people are related, therefore they have been given the name family. We used our whiteboards to try and come up with a variety of fact families writing two addition and two subtraction facts for each family. When we learned about fact families, we learned about how they can work in a triangle. We used triangles with the addends in the bottom corners and the sum by the dot at the top. Students took turns covering one area of the triangle while their friends tried to determine the missing sum or addend. I love integrating games into all subject areas, but especially math. The key is to find games that are rigorous, include tons of opportunity for learning/reinforcement, and that are so fun that students don’t even realize they are learning. One of my favourite games is “Salute.” Salute is used to reinforce addition/subtraction skills. To play, students get into groups of three with a deck of cards. Two students sit facing one another, with the deck of cards between them. Player #3 sits off to the side so that she can see both players’ faces. Player #1 and #2 each pick up a card, and without looking at it, place it on their foreheads as shown above. They can see what each other has, but they do not know which card they are holding. Player #3 (who can see both cards) mentally adds the cards together and says the sum out loud. Once Player #3 has said the sum out loud, Players #1 and #2 each try to figure out what card they are holding. So if the sum is 16, and Player #1 can see that Player #2 is holding a 10, he can perform a mental subtraction equation to figure out what he has (16-10=6). The first player to correctly state which card they are holding keeps both cards. The player with the most cards at the end of the game wins. As you can imagine, kids LOVE this game, and there are so many great skills involved, most importantly the inverse relationship between addition and subtraction. During our Language Arts and UOI time, we have been busy working on our LEGO stories. Students began by creating an illustrating a LEGO character, considering what they do, special powers, occupations, appearance, and qualities. From there, they thought about the setting, built it with LEGO, and started to tell their stories orally, using the lego as props to help them develop a narrative in their head. Cambridge University's Centre for Research on Play in Education, Development and Learning (PEDAL) researched playful writing through the year-long Play, Narrative and Narrative Skills Projects (PLaNS). Initial understanding shows that using LEGO® bricks in a teaching environment, and writing in a playful way, can help improve the following:
After telling and 'acting out' our stories orally, we sat down to write. We reviewed what makes a good beginning, middle and end. Students also created a 'set' for their LEGO movies including important details about the setting. When all was ready to go, we enlisted the help of our fourth grade friends. This is where our authentic learning continued to grow. There is so much that children can gain from collaborative-learning with other grades.
"Who among us doesn't remember a feeling of pride when, as young children, we were befriended by an older child? Those feelings of awe, curiosity, belonging, acceptance, and recognition: all were intrinsic in our development of sense of self in the larger world. They helped us to build the confidence and sense of safety we needed to navigate the world of school, and ultimately, the world around us. According to Leah Davies, M.Ed., good school-wide buddy systems promote more than just those warm feelings; these programs enhance positive behaviors in both the older and the younger buddies. Older children love the sense of responsibility they feel for their younger buddies and are therefore motivated to be the best buddy they can be. Further, they are able to practice their own skills of cooperation and collaboration with a younger child who can learn those same skills by interacting with the older students. They have opportunities to practice taking turns, sharing knowledge, listening to each other, helping and praising one another, and completing tasks with the help of someone more experienced than they are. Social skills are honed. Buddies tend to bond with one another and form friendships that are lasting and strong." (Berkwood Hedge School, 2017). Ask your child who their buddy is, and what they are learning together. I look forward to showcasing our LEGO digital stories to you on Friday afternoon.
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March 2017
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