DreamBox Learning®» Math and children’s literature

Tuesday Teacher Tips: The Important Thing About…

Lisa W — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 15:00:43 +0000

Welcome to the Tuesday Teacher Tips series! Each week we’ll highlight teaching and learning resources, ideas to use in the classroom, as well as things to ponder as you go about your teaching day. Use the book The Important Book by Margaret Wise Brown (Harper Collins Publishers, 1949) to create math poetry. Use the words you are studying in your math unit and have students create a poem defining the most important thing about the word, the thing that should be remembered about the word long after the unit is complete. Then have students write additional sentences to describe other attributes and characteristics about the word. End the poem the same way you started, with the most important thing about the word.

The important thing about an equilateral triangle is that it has three equal sides. It is a three sided polygon with three congruent angles, each angle measuring 60°. But the important thing about an equilateral triangle is that it has three equal sides. The important thing about a clock is that it tells time. It has the numbers one through twelve on its face. The small hand points to the hour, and the bigger hand shows the minutes. On some clocks there is a hand that shows the seconds. The clock on my microwave has only numbers, it is a digital clock. But the important thing about a clock is that it tells time. The important thing about a penny is that it is worth one cent. It takes one hundred pennies to equal one dollar. Abraham Lincoln, our sixteen president, is pictured on the front. It is copper in color and larger than a dime which is worth ten cents. But the important thing about a penny is that is worth one cent. Write your own poem around a math word or concept. Email it to us and we’ll include everyone’s Important Poems in a future blog.

Tuesday Teacher Tips: Two of Everything

Lisa W — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 16:00:34 +0000

Welcome to the Tuesday Teacher Tips series! Each week we’ll highlight teaching and learning resources, ideas to use in the classroom, as well as things to ponder as you go about your teaching day. About the Book I was recently introduced to the book Two of Everything: A Chinese Folktale (1993) retold by Lily Toy Hong. One day while Mr. Haktak was digging in his tiny garden he comes upon an ancient pot. He soon learns that the pot is magical and doubles everything that is placed inside of it. Mr. Haktak and his wife experience some difficulty with the magical pot. My favorite line comes after Mrs. Haktak falls in the pot and a second Mrs. Haktak appears. As the couple tries to figure out what to do with the new Mrs. Haktak, Mr. Haktak yells, “…If I put her back we will not have two women but THREE. One wife is enough for me!” (My husband would most likely agree with this sentiment!) Using it in the Classroom This book works well in introducing upper elementary students to input-output tables and expressing function rules algebraically. In the article, “Two of Everything,” from the October 2010 issue of Teaching Children Mathematics (available as a free download to NCTM members or $7.00 to nonmembers), Julie C. McNamara wrote of how she used the book in the classroom. After reading the story, McNamara created an input-output chart with picture representations of what happened in the story. Columns were labeled, “What goes IN the pot” and “What comes OUT of the pot.” Next, she drew another T-chart with only number representations. With the new T-chart the student were asked to describe in words what the chart represented. Students responded that numbers that were put in doubled, were multiplied by two, or “got a match.” McNamara furthered her students thinking by asking them to write the rule algebraically. For example, 2n or n x 2 or n + n. Later, she introduced students to another pot that yielded different results. For this new pot, when one item was put in, three items came out. After student predicted the rule, she continued by putting a new number of items in the pot. When three items were put in, five items appeared. She emphasized that a rule can’t be determined for sure after studying only one input-output pair. Students then created their own magic pot with an original rule and a corresponding T-table. The pots were used in an interactive bulletin board; students had to figure out the rule for each other’s pots. Further Application I think this would be a great lesson to start the year. It’s hands-on and concrete enough to pull your struggling learners into the lesson, but still challenging to your advanced learners, especially when students are asked to describe the rule algebraically. After this lesson, the “magic pot” could serve as a starter to the day. When students entered the classroom in the morning, there could be a picture of the magic pot with a corresponding input-output chart. Students could be asked to figure out the rule, describe the rule algebraically, and continue the chart with five additional input-output pairs. Have you used this book in your classroom? Tell us about it, we'd love to hear about other ways you used the book to teach math concepts. Related Resources Another book that could be used to partner with this book would be One Grain of Rice: A Mathematical Folktale, which was highlighted on an earlier post. In addition, check out an article in Teaching Children Mathematics (November 2007), “Developing ‘Algebra-‘Rithmetic’ in the Elementary Grades” that also uses Two of Everything in the classroom. References Demi. One Grain of Rice: A Mathematical Folktale. New York: Scholastic Press, 1997. Hong, Lily Toy. Two of Everything: A Chinese Folktale. Morton Grove, IL: Albert Whitman and Company, 1993. McNamara, Julie C. “Two of Everything.” Teaching Children Mathematics (October 2010): 132-136. Suh, Jennifer M. “Developing ‘Algebra-‘Rithmetic’ in the Elementary Grades.” Teaching Children Mathematics (November 2007): 246-253.

Tuesday Teacher Tips: Summer Reading

Lisa W — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 16:52:06 +0000

Welcome to the Tuesday Teacher Tips series! Each week we’ll highlight teaching and learning resources, ideas to use in the classroom, as well as things to ponder as you go about your teaching day. This month I was able to hear Beth Skipper, journal editor of Teaching Children Mathematics present on including literature in the math classroom. She brought in a cartful of her personal library of math-related literature, and I'll admit, I was excited; I love finding new titles to use in the classroom. Since the workshop, I’ve taken full advantage of my public library’s services and checked out a stack of picture books. (Don’t worry. I’ll share my reading lists in upcoming blogs!) I’ve also ordered a copy of New Visions for Linking Literature and Mathematics by David J. Whitin and Phyllis Whitin (2004). I’m checking my mailbox daily for its arrival! What are you reading this summer? Have you found any professional development books that have piqued your interest? What math-related literature do you use in your classroom? I’d love to hear about the books and highlight them in an upcoming blog.

Tuesday Teacher Tips: How Does 1 + 1 = 5?

Lisa W — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 17:36:44 +0000

Welcome to the Tuesday Teacher Tips series! Each week we’ll highlight teaching and learning resources, ideas to use in the classroom, as well as things to ponder as you go about your teaching day. An author and illustrator I admired a lot, David LaRochelle, recently came out with a new book, 1 + 1 = 5: and Other Unlikely Additions. David, a former elementary teacher, has visited my previous school many times as a writer-in-residence and I’ve always loved his easy, imaginative way of teaching. That seemingly effortless way of leading kids into learning has translated into his latest book. I recently read his new book to my third graders. When I showed them the cover and read the title, immediately students erupted: “What?” “That’s wrong!” “They made a mistake!” My only response was, “Well, let’s see.” And then I started to read. 1 + 1 = 5? 1 set of triplets + 1 set of twins = 5 babies! A few kids understood and murmured, “Oh!” 1 + 1 = 14? 1 ant + 1 spider = 14 legs! A few more kids got it. It didn’t take long before everyone was trying to guess what 1 + 1 would equal in the next equation. This was a true, interactive book. The strange equations are presented first, accompanied by a few visual clues that are hidden within the picture. Then you turn the page to find out the answer, in both words and illustrations. On the home page of David’s website, look under Two New Books! and click on “free teaching materials.” You’ll be able to download a host of great material to use with your class to go along with this book. Using one of the suggestions in the teacher’s guide with my own class, I had my students make up their own equations and write them on a folded piece of construction paper with the equation on the front and the answer inside. One suggestion on this activity, do a lot of brainstorming of things that come in sets (1 cat has four legs, 1 insect has six legs), otherwise you’ll get some very random equations. I interviewed David, and asked him a few questions about writing this book. LISA: What was your inspiration for 1+1=5? What drew you to writing a book about math? DAVID: The book began with a list of odd equations that I jotted down on a legal pad: 1 + 1 = 5: 1 bike + 1 trike = 5 wheels 1 + 1 = 7: 1 square + 1 triangle = 7 sides, etc. I thought the equations were fun, but I didn't know what I could do with them. Many months later I ran across the legal pad again and thought perhaps I could illustrate them, put them together in a book, and send them to an editor. I was delighted when an editor at Sterling was interested. She eventually chose someone else to be the illustrator, but I'm excited that she wanted to publish them at all! LISA: How did you come up with the equations for the book? DAVID: I did a lot of brainstorming. The first equations were easy, but I wanted each 1 + 1 equation to have a different answer. There are many ways to add two things together to get eight (1 chair + 1 table = 8 legs, 1 dog + 1 cat = 8 feet, 1 skateboard + 1 wheelchair = 8 wheels) but I only included one. I also wanted each equation to be about things that children could relate to (animals, sports, etc.). LISA: In the teacher resource pages [on your website] it says that you had over 150 subtitles for the book. How many different equations did you have for the book? How did you decide which ones to use? DAVID: I brainstormed lots of equations that were either too complicated (1 hour + 1 minute = 3,660 seconds) or too imprecise (1 star + 1 snowflake = 11 points). I picked my favorite 15 to send the editor, but she had me replace almost a fourth of them. Her main concern was that if the book were translated into a foreign language, the equations needed to make sense in different countries. For example, I had to replace 1 dime + 1 nickel = 15 cents because of the different currencies used in foreign cultures. Likewise we couldn't think of a way to illustrate 1 October + 1 November = 61 days without relying on holidays or seasons that might not be universal across the globe. Share your favorites What unlikely addition equation can you come up with? Do you have a book that teaches math in a unique way? I’d love to hear from you!

A Mathematical Folktale: More Than Just a Bedtime Story

Tami — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 16:26:18 +0000

A few years ago, on a much-enjoyed trip down to Portland, Oregon, I visited Powell's Books. This store used to be known as "the world's largest bookstore." I don't know what happened to that slogan, but with 7 huge stores in Portland -- 2 of which are specialty stores, and a large online service, I still believe it!!! Anyway… whenever I visit Powell's, I tend to spend the better part of a day getting lost in the children's book section. It's massive. It's impressive. It can even be overwhelming. And it’s this girth that can lead me to books I've never heard of before.

One Grain of Rice: A Mathematical Folktale

On this particular trip, I happened upon a very fine book, One Grain of Rice: A Mathematical Folktale by Demi. The story is of a Raja who believed himself to be wise and fair, but became selfish when a famine came. He refused to share his stores of the village rice. When the Raja offered a village girl a reward for a good deed, she suggested one grain of rice, doubled every day for thirty days. The Raja believed the reward to be modest and agreed to the terms. On the first day, the girl was given one grain of rice. On the second, two grains. The next day, she received four grains of rice. A few days later, she received over a thousand grains. By the end of the 30 days, the girl had received a total of one billion grains of rice -- enough for the whole village, and for the Raja too! The last page of the book has a chart to show how many grains the girl received on each day.

Math Learning Fun Through Literature

I love having this book in my collection. I really enjoy the math and moral messages. However, I also savor its fine storytelling, clever female protagonist, educationally-designed layouts, and beautiful artwork. Each page is drawn in the style of traditional Indian art, many touched with gold. And a few that open out into multi-page scenes filled with animals. By the way, One Grain of Rice, along with other great books, was mentioned in the August DreamBox Learning Parent Newsletter. The article was about children’s literature which encourages mathematical ideas. The DreamBox newsletter goes out once a month. It gives interesting and useful information to people who care about math learning. Sign up here for the Dreambox newsletter.

Using Children’s Literature to Bridge Reading and Math Learning

Sue — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 15:22:22 +0000

One of the cool things about my marketing role at DreamBox Learning is that I come across a lot of information about learning math that I think parents might really appreciate! In fact, it’s a DreamBox goal to be a resource for this kind of useful information. For example, in our recent DreamBox Parent Update we talked about how parents can use children’s books to help bring math to life. Children’s literature can really be a great bridge to help children who love math become more interested in reading, and children who love reading be more interested in math.

I recently found a wonderful resource for teachers that may also interest parents who want to not only use children's literature as a springboard to math literacy, but also to better understand the mathematics curriculum their child is learning at any given grade level. The book is Math Through Children's Literature: Making the NCTM Standards Come Alive, by Kathryn L. Braddon, Nancy J. Hall, and Dale B. Taylor. The NCTM Standards referenced in the title are the important mathematical concepts children should learn and skills they should acquire, as described by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, the primary standards-setting body in the US. The standards cover all the key skills for the elementary grades: number sense and numeration, whole number operations and computation, geometry and spatial sense, measurement, statistics and probability, fractions and decimals, and patterns and relationships. So while this book is written for teachers, it’s a fantastic resource for parents. There are more than 80 different books described, complete with ideas for activities you can do with your child to relate the math learning to his real-world experiences! So, for example, if your child has made progress with counting but you feel she’s struggling with larger numbers, you can read How Many Snails? A Counting Book, by Paul Giganti, Jr. and Donald Crews, which not only explores counting groups of objects and sorting by characteristics, but also encourages observation, discrimination, and visual analysis. Or if your child is comfortable with addition and subtraction and you feel he’s ready to explore multiplication, read Bunches and Bunches of Bunnies, by Louise Mathews and Jeni Bassett – a silly, rhyming introduction to the wonders of multiplication as growing numbers of mischievous bunnies do everything from going to school to playing pool! One last thought: if you think this sounds useful but you’re not sure you want to invest in the book, you can go to Google Book Search and review the entire table of contents, which includes all of the titles according to the curriculum standards they help children learn! Then you can find the suggested books at the library or a bookstore, and decide for yourself which books are right for your child.