Show Me the Money!

 

I am doing triple duty with this post and linking up with Math Madness, Tech Tip Tuesday, and Tech Tuesdays. 

I'd like to share one my favourite free websites - ThatQuiz. I've been using this gem for at least a few years, but for some reason, I've never posted about it. The beauty of ThatQuiz is that you can use it for both practice and assessment purposes. There are a number of built in tasks, but you can also design your own. I'll be honest though, I've never needed to design my own tasks. Each topic has several ability levels, so it has always met my students' needs for differentiation at the grade 2 and grade 3 level.

Here's how it works: You set up a free account and add your students names to your roster. You can also set up a password for each student if you choose. You then assign "tests" to your class. Once students have completed the tests, you can login to see their score. You can even tell how long it took each student to complete the tests. I like to have my students practice a particular skill first without logging in and then I'll assign a test on a different day, so that I can have a record to print out for my grade book. I always call it a task, rather than a test, and my students know to try their very best because I will be looking at the results afterward. It's a quick and easy way to identify who knows what they're doing and who needs additional in-class support.

We recently used ThatQuiz to practice telling time. I was able to set up several different tasks, one for time to the nearest hour, one for time to the nearest half hour, one for time to the nearest fifteen minutes, one for time to the nearest five minutes, and one for elapsed time. It really showed me who needed extra practice and it also let those kids who struggle with elapsed time to feel successful in other ways.

I am really excited for my students to practice identifying coin combinations and making change this week. If you're a Canadian teacher, like me, you know how hard it is to find Canadian money resources. ThatQuiz lets you choose from American or Canadian currency!

I also put together a Snack Shack Adding and Subtracting Coins Money Game for my early finishers. We played as a class on the interactive whiteboard last week and my students are excited to try it in pairs tomorrow. If you'd like to grab a copy, it will be on sale for $1 until Tuesday evening. The first person to comment below with their email address will win a copy for free!

For more great math ideas, please check out the math linky on Diana Lynn's blog.

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Building Fact Fluency with Reflex

I'm linking up with Love Always, Diana Lynn for Math Madness Monday. I've blogged about a number of online math programs over the years, but Reflex is my new favourite.

We'd been using Mathletics in the classroom for quite some time and I hadn't been as impressed in recent years. The program was novel when when we first began using it, but it hadn't evolved enough over time to keep my (or the students') interest. I was anxious to find something new for my students to use, especially since some of them were moving with me from grade 2 to grade 3.

While Mathletics does a good job of aligning to the BC curriculum, what I really needed was something that focused solely on building fact fluency. With all of the recent focus on mental math strategies (AKA "new math"), students have been spending less time memorizing the basic facts, even though fact retrieval speed is a huge contributor to future math performance.

After noticing a link to Reflex on a classroom blog, I visited the website and noticed they were offering an Educator Grant (good for one year of use). I applied and was accepted a couple of weeks later. I completed my online training and my students were on their way!

Here's what I love about Reflex:

Students first take a pre-test that determines their base level for either addition / subtraction or multiplication / division. The pre-test takes several sessions, so it's pretty accurate.

The program adapts to each child's current level and targets the fact families they need to learn next. Each child works at his or her own pace.

Students are encouraged to play each day until they earn a "green light". You can only earn one green light per day and it typically takes around fifteen minutes (although it's based on performance, not time). After earning a green light, students have access to the virtual store to spend their coins.

Once you earn a set number of green lights, you start to unlock new games. This keeps the novelty factor alive.

There's no "timing", but the program doesn't consider a fact mastered until the child proves over and over that s/he knows it quickly. This part is essential for quick and effortless recall because putting centre activities or worksheets in front of students only seems to encourage the ones who naturally enjoy math.

The reporting features are brilliant! I log in from home each evening to see my students' progress for the day. I can see exactly which facts they still need to learn, which makes it easy to plan their lessons for the following day.

No marking or recording needed!

The kids LOVE it! They're so engaged and they actually beg to stay on after they get the green light. The milestone certificates are a hit, too.

How we use it in class:

We are lucky to have regular access to iPads, so we've been using Reflex almost daily since early November. Students simply put on their headphones and find a quiet spot in the classroom.

Results

The results have been nothing short of amazing so far! The students began with an average starting fluency of 22% and have now reached an average fluency of 86% (including nine students who have since mastered addition / subtraction and have moved onto multiplication / division).

Criticism
Here's my criticism so far: Reflex sells site licenses for entire schools. It's expensive, so an entire school would need to be committed to using the program. There's no way I can get my entire school on board (and I probably wouldn't want to because that means by the time kids get to me in grade 3, the program will be "old news"). You can also purchase individual licenses, but that method is expensive, too. I'm anxiously awaiting a roll-out of class licenses, but I hope this isn't just wishful thinking on my part.

Want to try out Reflex? They offer a one month free trial!

Don't forget to check out Love Always, Diana Lynn's blog for more great math tips!

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Piece of Cake!

We've been busy learning about fractions in grade 3. I know that my American teacher friends start fractions in grade 1, but here in BC we do things a little bit differently.

We started by watching this video TWICE! The second time around, the students had to jot down what they were learning. I was amazed by how much more they retained just by taking notes on a table mat.

My co-teacher found an amazing little packet of fraction worksheets and a readers' theatre play. She found it here, but I have a feeling it wasn't meant to be posted online...

We also played the Fraction Game and Tic Tac Toe. For Tic Tac Toe, I had the students draw the visual on a mini whiteboard before they were allowed to cover that fraction with a BINGO chip. 

Finally, we made fraction pizzas and fraction puzzles as a formative assessment. Both of these craftivities came from my supplementary basic fractions unit, which is on sale until tomorrow evening. Clicking on the photo will take you to my TpT store.

Fractions: Games, Posters & Craftivities pack includes:

• Fraction Game (two versions) 

• Fraction BINGO

• 8 Tic Tac Toe Boards (with student cards)

• Fraction Posters

• Fraction Pizza Craft

• Fraction Puzzle Craft

What are your "must haves" for teaching fractions in your classroom?

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Place Value Houses

This is a variation of The Teacher Wife's Even & Odd Street.  I saw almost the exact same thing on another blog, but I don't remember where.  If this is your idea, please let me know, so I can give you proper credit.

The students chose three playing cards from a deck and arranged them in ascending order.  They wrote their number combinations onto slips of paper and we practiced sorting them into even and odd. Students lined up in ascending order and descending order, based on the numbers they chose.  This was also our first experience with expanded notation, which I demonstrated using 1s, 10s, and 100s manipulatives.  

Finally, students collected the appropriate number of pre-cut construction paper 1s, 10s, and 100s in order to represent their number visually.  I love the way they turned out! I have a creative bunch this year!

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Math Musings

I have a confession to make.  I don't *love* math.  Okay, that's not much of a confession to those who know me.  But, the funny thing is, I actually quite enjoy teaching it.  I guess it's true what they say about teachers teaching best the skills and concepts they struggle(d) with the most.  I think I spend a lot of time thinking about ways to make math engaging.  When I first started out, math was the subject I dreaded the most.  The textbooks were boring and I hated the constant worksheets and marking. It wasn't long before I broke up with my textbook and began creating my own program. Three years later, I am very comfortable with the learning outcomes for the grade 2 program. Now, I look forward to introducing new concepts because I get to search the internet for ways to make my lessons interesting and interactive.  My lessons are more hands-on than they used to be.  Differentiation no longer scares me.  I have all kinds of at-home practice materials, as well as in-class review and enrichment work available.

This year I am using:

1. XtraMath & Rocket Math (in place of traditional math drills)
2. Mathletics (2X per week for 20 minutes + at-home practice)
3. Teacher-created booklets compiled from worksheets from the Mathletics website, SuperTeacher Worksheets, Education Creations, and various teacher blogs
4. Math Centre activities downloaded from various teacher blogs and assembled by yours truly.

I'd like to thank Erica at Erica Bohrer's First Grade , Cara at The First Grade Parade, and Abby at The Inspired Apple for renewing my interest in centre activities.  Be sure to check out their blogs for tonnes of free printables!

I tend to use my projector a lot when presenting concepts to the students. You can check out my class blog for interactive games and tutorials, organized by topic (on the left-hand side).  Although my links are always a work in progress, there are many great gems I have discovered online:

Ms. Chatz's Class

What did teachers do before the internet?  They must have wasted lots of time reinventing the wheel!

What works for you? Do you use a textbook or math program?

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IXL vs. Mathletics

Now that the school year is winding down, I am looking forward to having more time to update this blog.

A few months ago, I embarked upon a trial of two web-based supplementary math programs. The first program, IXL, I had seen advertised on numerous occasions on the Pro-Teacher message board.  The second program, Mathletics, I learned of through a principal at a nearby elementary school.  As well, my students had participated in World Math and World Spelling Days, both of which are put on by Mathletics.

IXL

In all honesty, I wasn't that impressed with the customer service side of things.  It took quite some time for someone to get back to me with a quote, etc. that I actually forgot about the program. Eventually, I was given a one month trial for my Grade 2 class and a package in the mail with some more information.  I actually didn't find the site very visually appealing, but I figured I would let my students be the judges. Initially the students enjoyed IXL, but I could see its appeal wearing off at the two week mark.  At this point, I began the Mathletics trial.  Even though the students knew they had access to IXL for two more weeks, none of them chose to log in again.

Mathletics

Not only was the Mathletics team easier to reach, they insisted on providing training to any teachers who wanted to be involved.  Two co-workers and I met virtually with Deb to learn about the features of the program.  An hour later and we were sold!  There were Teacher Tools to assign and remove tasks, workbooks to print, video lessons to use with the interactive white board, and differentiation for different levels of ability.  For the students, there were live math competitions, games to unlock, certificates to print, and avatars to create. Three classes piloted the program, followed soon after by three more, and finally another three. While we were deciding who else might like to try out the program, Deb extended our trial.  By June, we had all of the Grade 2, 3, and 4 students signed up!  When surveyed 100% of my students preferred Mathletics to IXL.

-->Read about my favourite new math web app: Reflex

6

XtraMath

Parents always ask how they can help their child memorize the basic math facts (+ / - to 18). Over the years, I have recommended flashcards, dice games, addition and subtraction PowerPoint slideshows (where the answer flashes on the screen after three seconds), drill booklets, and websites such as Arcademic Skill Builders.  There is no one method that appeals to everyone and, in the end, the only thing that matters is that the child reaches the goal of speed and accuracy by the end of grade 2.

Recently, I came across yet another method, which seems to have renewed my students' interest in math.  XtraMath is a website, where the teacher uses her email address to create a free class account, with student log ins. It's premise is simple.  Students in Kindergarten and Grade 1 focus on addition, Grade 2 - subtraction, Grade 3 -multiplication, and Grade 4 - division.  Of course, it's easy to differentiate for individual students, should you have students working below or above grade level.  Students access the class page, click on their name and login with a four digit number code.  When they have completed their task for the day, the program automatically logs the student out.  Students can log in as often as every day, but it's recommended that they don't log in more than once per day.  The best part is, it only takes a few minutes.  Unfortunately, the program is flash-based, so we can't use it on our iPads.  For the past three days, I have been rotating my students through on two classroom computers.  So far, the students seem to like it (and I like that I can log in and check which facts they've mastered).

Please post a comment to share how you are using XtraMath in the classroom.

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Study Jams!

Study Jams! are short cartoon tutorials about a variety of math and science concepts. They seem to be geared more toward the intermediate grades.  They can be projected onto a screen to introduce or reinforce a concept.  They can also be used for independent study, as there is a set of questions to accompany each tutorial.  Study Jams! remind me of Brain Pop.

Please post a comment to share how you are using Study Jams! in your classroom.

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Math Lessons

Beacon Learning Center has a good collection of online math lessons, mostly aimed at a grade 3-5 level.  These lessons can be used with an interactive whiteboard to introduce or reinforce math concepts.

Please post a comment to share how you are using Beacon Learning Center resources in your classroom.

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Tutpup

After hearing about Tutpup on various message boards, I finally got around to signing up for an account.  Tutpup provides competitive educational games, where students compete against other players.  Students sign up under their teacher's account using a code, or sign up with their parents using an email address.  Names are not shared and there is no way for players to communicate with one another.  Only the teacher (or parent) has access to account information.  Tutpup looks like a great way to motivate students to practise their math skills.

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FREE PowerPoint Presentations

Social Studies

Math

Science

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Go Maths

Go Maths is a collection of games on a variety of math topics.  Use this site to challenge your brightest math students when they have completed their in-class work.  You can also try some of the activities in a group setting, using your interactive white board.

Please post a comment to share how you are using Go Maths in your classroom.

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Arcademic Skill Builders

Arcademic Skill Builders are online educational video games that support math skills such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.  This is the first computer lab activity I introduce to my Grade 2 students each year.  Students can play alone (against the computer), against strangers, or with their friends.  Arcademic Skills Builders is completely safe because there is no way for players to communicate with one another online.  Students wishing to play with friends can set up a password that they share in person.  This way, friends in different households or in the same computer lab can compete against one another.  Arcademic Skill Builders does not require a log in, nor does it store progress records for teacher access.  

Please leave a comment to share how you are using Arcademic Skill Builders in your classroom.

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