Math Talks, Manipulatives, and Freebies... Oh My!

I have to be completely honest, last year I really struggled with making math engaging and fun for my students. I would try every so often to pull out the manipulatives, but in my mind it just took too much time/effort to use them (terrible I know)! This year my amazing school started the year with a Common Core Math training for every teacher. We spent two days learning, and observing a veteran teacher...and WOW! After that everything kind of clicked for me. I have been doing hands on math for the past week and a half, and my kids have been loving it! The woman training us came into our classroom and taught a lesson for us to observe. That was probably my favorite part of the training. I was able to observe four lessons in all, and I have already implemented a few of them in my classroom! 

using ipads during Math Centers (still a work in progress) 

One of the best things I took from the two day trainings was called "Math Talks"(it comes from Number Talks, check out their website here)  It is all about having the kids explain their thinking as they solve problems. We sit on the floor and I will write a simple math problem (7+9) on the board and let the kids go! When they have one answer they hold a thumbs up to their chest. It gives the kids an opportunity to share their thinking process, and hear their classmates. I explained to the kids that being able to explain math using words is a super skill! We will be working on this new super skill using Math Talks and Interactive Notebooks (more to come on that later!). 

Math Scoot! (find it here)

Besides the Math Talks, I have been trying to avoid the book. That may sound bad, but currently we are reviewing first grade skills and the majority of my kids do not need to be doing the math book pages. Instead I have found some hands on activities that allow me to assess their knowledge, while still covering the skills found in the textbook. 

My new favorite thing ever? Part Part Whole Mats. I think I used these in a variety of ways every day last week! (Find a download of the part part whole mats I created at the end of this post!) This way we used Part Part Whole Mats was as seen above. Each pair of students received a bag with 7 counters. They took turn tossing the counters. The yellow counters represented one part, the red counters the other part. The students were able to find all the different ways to make 7! 

This picture is from the same activity, but we used a different Part Part Whole Mat the next day. It had a few things filled in and the students had to use their minds to fill out the Part Part Whole Mat. Then came the tricky part...they had to create the Fact Family that went with it! 

My favorite part about this style of teaching? One day a student said "but we didn't do math today?" My response, "Yes! We did, we did Math Talks and used our Part Part Whole Mats." The students were surprised that this was considered math. I am loving it because it gives them a little bit of independence to learn things on their own, while at the same time giving me a chance to informally assess them on their understanding! 

Grab some of the Part Part Whole Pages I made for my students FREE here...I hope you can use them in your classroom!

Also...if you are hunting for SUPER Cute Apple Themed Math Centers...please check out Miss Amanda's new product! I love it, it is perfect for Fall and has everything covered. Perfect for getting a quick and easy start with hands on math lessons! You can check it out here!