Four Fours = Tons Of Fun
Saturday, September 28, 2019
algebra,
Algebra 2,
Algebra1,
Factorials,
growth mindset,
lessons,
Order of Operations,
Puzzles,
Reflection,
Testing
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My students took their end-of-instruction show on Apr 13th. That was ii weeks ago, in addition to nosotros withal guide hold iii weeks left inwards the schoolhouse year. My students in addition to I worked extremely difficult to encompass the entire curriculum earlier Spring Break began. Now that testing is over, it's been a full-time labor keeping them busy. I know a lot of people are in all likelihood reading this correct at nowadays in addition to thinking that I should withal hold upward teaching novel content. That merely isn't viable alongside how my schoolhouse structures testing. We started testing Apr 13th in addition to volition destination May 7th. Of course, nosotros aren't testing every twenty-four hours inwards that window. That would hold upward insane. But, the kids who demo upward to each shape catamenia each twenty-four hours are a surprise.
So, I'm taking this chance to guide hold my students reverberate on the schoolhouse year. I'm taking this chance to pose problems that stretch their brains. I'm taking this chance to engage them inwards the sorts of activities that are meaningful but don't necktie straight into the tested curriculum.
My kids maintain coming to my shape expecting to sentry a movie. Eventually, they're going to realize that's non how Ms. Hagan rolls :)
One of my favorite activities from the past times calendar week was called Four Fours. I learned most this puzzle from the #MTBoS, but I'd never tried it out alongside my students.
The Task: Form the numbers 1-100 using just 4 fours. Feel costless to role addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, exponents, roots, factorials, decimals, in addition to concatenation.
We played or hence using 4 fours in addition to some math operations to figure out what they made.
My students had never been exposed to the thought of factorials before, hence that was a fun mini-math lesson to give. I've never used factorials alongside my students because they aren't included inwards my state's tested standards. But, y'all know what, that shouldn't matter. I demand to halt worrying hence much most what's on the test. I'm selling my students short. I guide hold a endangerment to expose them to a side of mathematics they guide hold never seen, in addition to I demand to guide hold that.
Several of my students asked some actually expert questions most where factorial would gibe inwards alongside the gild of operations. I want I had asked them where they thought it gibe inwards instead of merely giving them an answer. Actually, I cry upward this is something I demand to function on for side past times side year. I acquire dorsum in addition to forth alongside whether I should review the gild of operations at the get-go of the schoolhouse year. Some years I practise because I notice that my students convey over hence many misunderstandings from middle school. But, I never experience similar this reviewing does much expert because students are convinced that this is review cloth in addition to they empathize the gild of operations perfectly fine.
But, what if I took it farther side past times side year? What if nosotros talked most the gild of operations, in addition to hence nosotros discussed where to seat all of the materials that studying Algebra 1 in addition to Algebra 2 in addition to higher bird math subjects brings alongside it? We demand to beak most factorials. We demand to beak most roots. We demand to beak most the vinculum. (I dearest exposing my students to novel math-y words!) We demand to beak most the departure betwixt parentheses that signify grouping in addition to parentheses that signify multiplication.
In other words, I demand to pace upward my game.
To construction this activity in addition to my students' responses, I printed off the "Mind Your 4s" canvas from 17GoldenFish.
I want I could say I passed out the pages for students to write their answers on in addition to the room was forthwith filled alongside rainbows, butterflies, in addition to grinning students.
That's NOT what happened
In fact, for the initiatory off 30 minutes of initiatory off period, I thought I had made the biggest error inwards the basis past times assigning this labor to my students. There was complaining. There was grumbling. Yes, I realize those are kinda the same thing. I gauge I merely desire y'all to realize that the vibe inwards my classroom was non a expert thing. Students were asking, "Ms. Hagan, why practise y'all loathe us?" To this, I answered, "I don't loathe you. I dearest you. That's why I'm trying to stretch your encephalon today."
The Growth Mindset Bulletin Board was working overtime.
Student: This is also hard!
Me: This volition guide hold some fourth dimension in addition to effort!
Student: I give up.
Another Student: I volition role some of the strategies I've learned.
Seriously, it wasn't pretty. I guide hold solely most nine students inwards my initiatory off catamenia Algebra 1 class. 4 of the students were working semi-diligently. The other v students were sitting in addition to complaining. They tried to merely sit down in addition to play on their cellphones, but I stopped that past times threatening to guide hold them away for the residue of the day. No i wants to lose their telephone for the entire twenty-four hours during initiatory off period! I didn't cry upward my students were getting anything out of this activity.
But, 30 minutes into class, something changed. One youngster excitedly announced that he had figured out how to notice a surely number. Another pupil asked how he had flora it. Instead of telling what he did, he gave a hint most using factorials. This led to a dyad of other students figuring it out in addition to exclaiming happily every bit a result. Pretty soon, the kids were going crazy alongside excitement each fourth dimension they flora a novel number. They were helping each other, coaching each other, encouraging each other.
Students who sat idle for the initiatory off one-half of shape were talking most how they didn't notice every bit many solutions every bit their classmates because the residue of the shape had gotten a caput start. Teenagers...
I had several students remark that this activity would guide hold been hence much easier if nosotros were using the expose v instead of the expose 4. I joked that they had merely flora the side past times side day's activity for me: Five Fives. In fact, when I gave the students a logic puzzle the side past times side day, they complained that they would rather hold upward solving Five Fives.
It was a corking encephalon stretching activity. It was a expert review of the gild of operations. It permit my students experience factorials. And, they learned what the give-and-take concatenate meant. It kept them busy for an entire 50 infinitesimal period. And, I cry upward it was a lot of fun. Definitely doing this again!
So, I'm taking this chance to guide hold my students reverberate on the schoolhouse year. I'm taking this chance to pose problems that stretch their brains. I'm taking this chance to engage them inwards the sorts of activities that are meaningful but don't necktie straight into the tested curriculum.
My kids maintain coming to my shape expecting to sentry a movie. Eventually, they're going to realize that's non how Ms. Hagan rolls :)
One of my favorite activities from the past times calendar week was called Four Fours. I learned most this puzzle from the #MTBoS, but I'd never tried it out alongside my students.
The Task: Form the numbers 1-100 using just 4 fours. Feel costless to role addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, exponents, roots, factorials, decimals, in addition to concatenation.
We played or hence using 4 fours in addition to some math operations to figure out what they made.
My students had never been exposed to the thought of factorials before, hence that was a fun mini-math lesson to give. I've never used factorials alongside my students because they aren't included inwards my state's tested standards. But, y'all know what, that shouldn't matter. I demand to halt worrying hence much most what's on the test. I'm selling my students short. I guide hold a endangerment to expose them to a side of mathematics they guide hold never seen, in addition to I demand to guide hold that.
Several of my students asked some actually expert questions most where factorial would gibe inwards alongside the gild of operations. I want I had asked them where they thought it gibe inwards instead of merely giving them an answer. Actually, I cry upward this is something I demand to function on for side past times side year. I acquire dorsum in addition to forth alongside whether I should review the gild of operations at the get-go of the schoolhouse year. Some years I practise because I notice that my students convey over hence many misunderstandings from middle school. But, I never experience similar this reviewing does much expert because students are convinced that this is review cloth in addition to they empathize the gild of operations perfectly fine.
But, what if I took it farther side past times side year? What if nosotros talked most the gild of operations, in addition to hence nosotros discussed where to seat all of the materials that studying Algebra 1 in addition to Algebra 2 in addition to higher bird math subjects brings alongside it? We demand to beak most factorials. We demand to beak most roots. We demand to beak most the vinculum. (I dearest exposing my students to novel math-y words!) We demand to beak most the departure betwixt parentheses that signify grouping in addition to parentheses that signify multiplication.
In other words, I demand to pace upward my game.
To construction this activity in addition to my students' responses, I printed off the "Mind Your 4s" canvas from 17GoldenFish.
I want I could say I passed out the pages for students to write their answers on in addition to the room was forthwith filled alongside rainbows, butterflies, in addition to grinning students.
That's NOT what happened
In fact, for the initiatory off 30 minutes of initiatory off period, I thought I had made the biggest error inwards the basis past times assigning this labor to my students. There was complaining. There was grumbling. Yes, I realize those are kinda the same thing. I gauge I merely desire y'all to realize that the vibe inwards my classroom was non a expert thing. Students were asking, "Ms. Hagan, why practise y'all loathe us?" To this, I answered, "I don't loathe you. I dearest you. That's why I'm trying to stretch your encephalon today."
The Growth Mindset Bulletin Board was working overtime.
Student: This is also hard!
Me: This volition guide hold some fourth dimension in addition to effort!
Student: I give up.
Another Student: I volition role some of the strategies I've learned.
Seriously, it wasn't pretty. I guide hold solely most nine students inwards my initiatory off catamenia Algebra 1 class. 4 of the students were working semi-diligently. The other v students were sitting in addition to complaining. They tried to merely sit down in addition to play on their cellphones, but I stopped that past times threatening to guide hold them away for the residue of the day. No i wants to lose their telephone for the entire twenty-four hours during initiatory off period! I didn't cry upward my students were getting anything out of this activity.
But, 30 minutes into class, something changed. One youngster excitedly announced that he had figured out how to notice a surely number. Another pupil asked how he had flora it. Instead of telling what he did, he gave a hint most using factorials. This led to a dyad of other students figuring it out in addition to exclaiming happily every bit a result. Pretty soon, the kids were going crazy alongside excitement each fourth dimension they flora a novel number. They were helping each other, coaching each other, encouraging each other.
Students who sat idle for the initiatory off one-half of shape were talking most how they didn't notice every bit many solutions every bit their classmates because the residue of the shape had gotten a caput start. Teenagers...
The same cycle continued for much of the day. The shape would start off grumbling. But, the excitement of a pupil or ii would somehow plow the shape around. The canvas I gave students to fill upward out had 5/100 answers already filled in. To acquire their participation bird for the shape period, students had to fill upward inwards 25 additional answers. Of course, they were encouraged to practise to a greater extent than than that.
It was fun to run across students brand observations during this activity. For example, inwards almost every shape period, i pupil would exclaim that the bulk of the answers they had flora were inwards the far correct paw column. To this, I said, "Well, it makes feel since that column is multiples of four." I'm kicking myself now, though. What I should guide hold said: "How interesting! Why practise y'all cry upward that is?" #stilllearning
I did guide hold a occupation alongside a pupil looking upward answers on their phone. I'm merely skeptical when the completed assignment looks similar this. I know that every bit I worked on the activity that my answers were much to a greater extent than sporadic in addition to spread out.
I had several students remark that this activity would guide hold been hence much easier if nosotros were using the expose v instead of the expose 4. I joked that they had merely flora the side past times side day's activity for me: Five Fives. In fact, when I gave the students a logic puzzle the side past times side day, they complained that they would rather hold upward solving Five Fives.
It was a corking encephalon stretching activity. It was a expert review of the gild of operations. It permit my students experience factorials. And, they learned what the give-and-take concatenate meant. It kept them busy for an entire 50 infinitesimal period. And, I cry upward it was a lot of fun. Definitely doing this again!
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