Handout!
My Newest Adventure... YOUTUBE!
Number sense - the trickiest little bugger in the world. It is not teachable, it is not memorable, it is engrained in us. Some of us have great number sense and some of us don't. Ok, you may be asking yourself - what is number sense? Number sense is the ability to be flexible with numbers - compose and decompose numbers quickly - visualize numbers and paint a picture of their relationship to one another. Hard, right? How in the world do we teach number sense?
As I continued on my journey of understanding number sense and what exactly it is... it dawned on me... going back to my teaching experience in third grade... my students who struggled so much in math were missing NUMBER SENSE. That is the key. Ok, great, but how do I build that? How do I try to help my Kindergarteners develop number sense so that when they get to third grade, they aren't struggling like some of my students were? How?
And then, it happened. A local math coach came to our school to give an example of ways to do math groups in our classroom - students were broken up into a structure (not program) called BUILD. I was so intrigued by it and what the letters stood for, that I started searching things on the internet - there isn't much out there on BUILD, just some experiences here and there, like mine, but I noticed that the more I looked, the most common phrase I came across was "number sense". And this is how it all began... the restructuring of my math time over the entire Christmas Break. I was excited, nervous, anxious, and determined to make this work - I wasn't happy with my current structure, so heck, anything should be better, right?
YES. It has been the best experience ever.
Let me tell you a little about BUILD.
BUILD is a structure, much like Daily 5, if you are familiar with that reading program. It is NOT a curriculum, it is a structure. You create the rest. I have worked hard on my BUILD program and I am excited to share my experiences so far this semester and my experience as I continue on this number sense journey. Each letter stands for something different -
B-buddy games
U-using manipulatives
I - independent work
L - learning about numbers
D - doing math with Mrs. Marsh
When I initially began BUILD, it was pretty hard, especially because I was beginning it second semester of Kindergarten. I didn't have the time to take it slow introducing each letter, like I did with Daily 5 Reading at the beginning of the year. I was in the car, full tank of gas, pedal to the metal, trying to get my best teaching of the year completed. I decided to email my Dean and ask if there was ANYONE who could spare 15-25 minutes in the afternoon to help me get this implemented. My kids were doing great with it, but I was so ready to start pulling my small groups with D - doing math with Mrs. Marsh. I got lucky - my dean was intrigued about this new math program and wanted to put some hours into the classroom anyways (yes, welcome to the perks of private school, folks!) so he volunteered to be that person. Best thing ever. He has been a support to the program that has allowed me to try and fail at many different things during this program so that I can continue to make it better. That's also the beauty of having a boss who is not intimidating, truly cares about his teachers and students, and pushes me to be better than I was yesterday. Ok - jumping off the sappy rocker... on to BUILD.
Here is the structure to my math program:
12:35-12:45 - Number of the Day - each student has a binder where they are asked to do many things with the number of the day - they write it in words, write the next three numbers, draw a picture, tens/ones, number bonds, tally marks, tens frames, one less/one more, and much more - and YES that is 5 and 6 year olds doing this independently with partner check. I keep tiles in the middle of each of their tables so that they can use them to help. Its great!
12:45-12:50 - Number Sense Game - I play some sort of warm up number sense type game - Ex. take a ball, put your students in a circle, play one less or one more game. Toss the ball to a student, say one less than or one more than 5 and they have to answer, then throw the ball back.
12:50-1:15 - Math Mini Lesson - whatever lesson I have planned for the day - whether its 3-D shapes, or bar graphs.
1:15-1:35 - BUILD time - I generally do one session a day, but lately with all the snow, I have been doing two sessions... as my Dean said the other day at the end of the day assembly "I am exhausted after BUILD today" - bring your running shoes, everyone! :) I spend about 20 minutes for 1 session.
So, I have about an hour or so to get my math block done and thankfully can go longer if I need to. Often times math ends up going until about 1:45.
My BUILD buckets are organized like this:
I have revamped my BUILD to not just be tubs filled with number sense activities, but to also be differentiated within the numbers. Initially we had tested all of my kids using CBM's to determine their number sense and everyone was mostly in the same spot... not knowing their numbers at all. Yes, they could count 1-100 in order, but they didnt know what the numbers meant, how big they were, where they fell in the world of numbers without saying them in order starting back over with one, etc. It was rough. But, just in the 2 months of doing BUILD, my Dean made a suggestion... why don't we look at differentiated within your letters. WHAT!? GREAT IDEA... so of course, that is the process I have begun. Let me explain how I have done this.
Clear Tubs - Kids working on numbers 1-20
Red Tubs - Kids working on numbers 1-50
Yellow Tubs - Kids working on numbers 1-100+
B- Buddy Games - these tubs (bright green) are NOT differentiated because the kids play them together for fun and its partner - so they help each other.
U - Using Manipulatives - Differentiated
I - Differentiated math journal and missing numbers in hundreds charts
L - Differentiated tubs
D - Differentiated groups based on a program called MAP (measures of academic progress) that our students take at the beginning, middle, and end of year. It is pretty AWESOME. It maps out for me where each students strengths and weaknesses are in 4 strands: numbers and operations, geometry, algebraic thinking, and Measurement & Data. My groups are fluid and literally change every time I change strands. I tend to focus on one strand for 2 weeks, then move on to another and so forth. Use whatever data your school has on your students to determine your groups and remember to keep them fluid... something we, as teachers, sometimes struggle with because it is SO MUCH WORK! :) But your kids will benefit and you will feel pretty good about yourself - confident.
This produce is my entire BUILD Math program. It can be used in the pre-k, Kindergarten, First, and Second Grade Classroom - editable to adapt to your student's needs. Here is what you will get:
1) An entire explanation of the program with pictures, examples, implementation, etc.
2) Number Sense Testing
3) Over 20 Differentiated Activities for building number sense
4) Student Check In Sheets
5) Promethean Flip Chart for rotations
6) Explanation of Buddy Games with the Games
7) Explanation of Using Manipulatives with the activities
8) Explanation of Independent Work with the activities
9) Explanation of Learning About Numbers with the activities
10) Implementation Anchor Chart
11) BUILD Signs for your classroom
12) BUILD Signs for your tubs
13) ALL printable activites
14) Number Cards 1-200 for your tubs
All you need is a printer, card stock, tubs, paper cups, and to make a MEGA Hundreds Chart.
