Week 4 - Raffle and Geometry! Free Math Quizzes and Project Ideas

This week's FREE Common Core Math Quiz domain is Geometry for grades 3-8. They will be added onto last week's domains in the same document.

Follow the links below the Raffle to download your grade level Quiz! (3-8)

The Raffle Winner from Week 3 is Ana Ward, Congratulations!!!

I will be contacting you by email with your $25 TpT Gift certificate.

If you didn't win this time, come back next week to try again!

Raffle Week 4 - Math Assessment Bundle!

...including the Common Core Posters for all Standards, the Assessments with Learning Goals and Scales for all standards, and the Student Portfolio Pages. Winners will be notified by email and listed in the blog post for the following week. You will be able to chose the grade level you need (3-8), so you can enter the raffle any week, or every week to win!

The easiest way to keep track of the weekly Raffles is by following Mrs. L's Leveled Learning blog on Blog Lovin', by email Newsletter, or by Facebook.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Click on the links below for this week's Common Core Domain Geometry!

Each Quiz has one math problem for each Common Core standard in that domain. The number corresponds to the standard number. Each problem has the learning goal stated to help kids focus on the goal and make the connection between the quiz, and their work in the standards. 

As a visual-spatial thinker, I always found geometry really fun and easy to teach because I could SEE what was being described. The biggest challenge for me and some of my students was the vocabulary! Understanding how the visual representations translate into verbal descriptions, and the huge array of terms for every figure, can be a struggle to memorize. I decided to have my students engage with the vocal by using their imaginations and artistic abilities to create Geometric Kingdoms! This project can be easily modified to focus on the specific Geometry standards for each grade level.

Here's the assignment:

1. Create a map for you Geometric Kingdom, incorporating all of the geometry vocabulary listed below. SKETCH some ideas on the back of an 11x17 paper, and draw the final map on the front side. COLOR if you have time!

2. Your kingdom may include buildings, parks, stores, homes, attractions, landscape features, etc. You may want to organize your objects into the categories based on the vocabulary terms. (Ex. Symmetry Carnival, Angles Park, etc.)

3. You must SHOW and LABEL all of the words in the places where they are represented on your map.  (Use your math book, internet, dictionary, etc. to help with definitions and examples.)

Here is the list of terms in the categories we defined:

Transformations (3) reflection (flip), translation (slide), rotation (turn)

Symmetry (3) line of symmetry, rotational symmetry, reflectional symmetry

Lines (9) ray, perpendicular lines, diagonal, line segment, intersecting lines, skew lines, parallel lines, perpendicular bisector, midpoint.

Angles (12) right, supplementary, vertex, angle bisector, acute, obtuse, degrees, vertical, adjacent, complementary, straight, central.

Triangles (6) obtuse, right, acute, scalene, isosceles, equilateral.

Circles (5) chord, sector, diameter, arc, radius.

Shapes (4) semicircle, similar, congruent, plane.

Polygons (9) polygons, regular polygons, rhombus, square, rectangle, trapezoid, parallelogram, quadrilateral, tessellation.

Word Cells (7) penta-, hexa-, hepta-, octa-, nona-, deca-, dodeca-. (The word cells can be applied to polygons –flat shapes, or polyhedrons – solid shapes).

3rd Grade Quiz pdf file   4th Grade Quiz pdf file   

         

     5th Grade Quiz pdf file     6th Grade Quiz pdf file 

             

      7th Grade Quiz pdf file   8th Grade Quiz pdf file

             

Thanks for stopping by.

Check back next week for this week's raffle winner 

and the last raffle and quiz domain!

Week 3 $25 TpT Raffle & FREE Common Core Math Quizzes for NF, RP & F

Today I'm linking up for Secondary Smorgasbord hosted by the ELA Buffet, and Desktop Learning Adventures. Well, it's never really frozen in Arizona, but considering I moved here from Michigan, I would say I am still coming out of the Deep Freeze!

This week's FREE Common Core Math Quiz domains are Number and Operations - Fractions for grades 3-5, Ratios and Proportional Relationships for grades 6-7, and Functions for grade 8. They will be added onto last week's domains in the same document.

Follow the links below the Raffle to download your grade level Quiz! (3-8)

The Raffle Winner from Week 2 is 
Marcy Philo, Congratulations!!!

I will be contacting you by email to choose the grade level Assessment Bundle that you would like. 

If you didn't win this time, come back next week to try again!

Fractions blocks are essential for teaching those elementary skills like modeling equivalents and performing operations, but I also use them when I teach ratios. Fractions are also ratios! and middle school kids may find this easier to master when they make this visual connection. Once that can visualize a ratio, they can always draw themselves a picture, or use manipulatives when they need to work with ratios.

Here's a fun extension activity comparing fractions and ratios. Ask kids to figure out how many groups of a fraction they will need to make a whole number, and which whole number they will get.

Example: 1/3 x 3  or  1/3, 3 times, will make 1 whole.
 2/3 x 3  or  2/3, 3 times, will make 2 wholes, but it is impossible to make one whole? Why not?

  What other whole numbers can be made by multiplying 2/3?

  4/5 x 5  or  4/5, 5 times, will make 4 wholes... Is it possible to make 1, 2 or 3 wholes?  Why not?

   Do they see a pattern yet? What is it?

   What other fractions will give us this pattern?

Ratios also appear when multiplying and dividing fractions by fractions.  The last few problems in the Modeling Multiplication and Division Fraction Families project (download the preview problems and answers for free in a word document) are especially challenging and most of my students got them wrong the first time because they don't know what to look for, or what division of fractions really means. 

The Common Core standards ask students to be able to represent multiplication of fractions using a rectangular array, I like this site for online manipulatives, Fractions - Rectangle Multiplication, but I find the fraction blocks can do the same job and it's a different way to understand it. 

Example: 1/3 x 1/4 = 1/12      This means 1/3 of 1/4   or   1/4 of 1/3  which is 1/12 either way.                                      (Commutative Property). 

Example:  1/3 ÷ 1/4  =  4/3 = 1 1/3   ...because 1/4 fits into 1/3 one whole time, and 1/3 of a time. 

1/3 divided into fourths means, "How many fourths can fit into 1/3?" What kids have to remember is that the 1/3 and 1/4 have to relate to the same whole. It does not mean 1/3 of 1/4, as in multiplication.

The ratio that exists when dividing 1/3 and 1/4 is 4:3. This can also be thought about as the common factor, 1/12.         4 x 1/12 = 1/3    and    3 x 1/12 = 1/4

The Commutative Property does not apply to division, so when the problem gets reversed, the ratio gets reversed. The ratio that exists when dividing 1/4 and 1/3 is 3:4.

Example:  1/4 ÷  1/3 = 3/4   ...because 1/3 fits into 1/4 three quarters of a time, NOT one whole time.

Whew! This is hard for me to keep track of until I can draw it out and look at it! When kids can see where the 3/4 and 1 1/3 come from based on a drawing, they have another strategy to fall back on when solving problems. The Common Core standards ask a lot of kids; and considering that 5th grade is the first and only year that all four fraction operations are taught, some middle school kids still need time to master and connect these concepts to the 6th-8th grade ratio standards. 

Raffle Week 3 - $25 TpT Gift Certificate!

Sometimes you just need something different, so this week's "Happy New School Year" Raffle will be a $25 gift certificate to Teacherspayteachers.com so you can buy almost any resource from any seller you want! The winner will be notified by email and listed in the blog post for the following week.

The easiest way to keep track of the weekly Raffles is by following Mrs. L's Leveled Learning blog on Blog Lovin', by email Newsletter, or by Facebook.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Click on the links below for this week's Common Core Domains NF and RP!

Each Quiz has one math problem for each Common Core standard in that domain. The number corresponds to the standard number. Each problem has the learning goal stated to help kids focus on the goal and make the connection between the quiz, and their work in the standards. 

    3rd Grade Quiz pdf file                                             4th Grade Quiz pdf file 

     

      5th Grade Quiz pdf file                                          6th Grade Quiz pdf file 

                           
                                                         

      7th Grade Quiz pdf file                                          8th Grade Quiz pdf file 

                           

Thanks for stopping by.

Check back next week for this week's raffle winner 

and the next raffle and quiz domain!

Week 2 - FREE Math Quizzes for NBT & NS - Raffle for Assessment Bundles!

Linking up with 4th Grade Frolics for Monday Made It! This week's FREE Common Core Math Quiz domains are Number and Operations in Base Ten for grades 3-5, and The Number System for grades 6-8. They will be added onto last week's domains in the same document.

Follow the links below the Raffle to download your grade level Quiz! (3-8)

The Raffle Winner from Week 1 is 
Jody Erickson, Congratulations!!!

I will be contacting you by email to choose the grade level Assessment Bundle that you would like. 

If you didn't win this time, sign up for the Week 2 Raffle below!

This last week I took my kids to visit the Science Center and it really got me thinking about Common Core Math. It is controversial; some people like the rigor, some people think it's developmentally inappropriate, and some of us just have to teach it. I found myself thinking about the types of word problems that people associate with Common Core Math, and I thought of a few of my own real-world problems. For instance...

My 16 month-old daughter decided to pop the nipple off of her formula bottle and drench herself on the way there. Of course I had no extra outfits in the diaper bag, but this question came to mind...

If a pair of saturated 18 month-old cotton pants are put under an Xlerator hand dryer, how many minutes for each square inch of fabric am I going to have to stand here drying them?

If a 3 1/2 yr. old who is still potty-training downs a 20 oz bottle of water in one go, what will be the rate of potty-checks per hour that I have to conduct to avoid an 'accident'?

The volume of a sphere is equal to 

4/3 π

r

3 

If the radius of a ping pong ball is about 1 cm, how many ping pong balls can a toddler fit in her mouth?

And finally; if every five-minute warning given decreases the duration of whining by about thirty seconds, then how many times will I need to give a warning in order to hear no crying when it's finally time to leave?

Raffle Week 2 - FREE Assessment Bundle 

...including the Common Core Posters for all Standards, the Assessments with Learning Goals and Scales for all standards, and the Student Portfolio Pages. Winners will be notified by email and listed in the blog post for the following week. You will be able to chose the grade level you need (3-8), so you can enter the raffle any week, or every week to win!

The easiest way to keep track of the weekly Raffles is by following Mrs. L's Leveled Learning blog on Blog Lovin', by email Newsletter, or by Facebook.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Click on the links below for this week's Common Core Domains  NBT and NS!

 

Each Quiz is one two-sided page with one math problem for each Common Core standard for that domain. The number corresponds to the standard number. Each problem has the learning goal stated to help kids focus on the goal and make the connection between the quiz, and their work in the standards. If you don't use Common Core standards verbatim, they are still useable to assess the grade level skills. Check them out for yourself!

3rd Grade Quiz pdf file

 4th Grade Quiz pdf file 

 5th Grade Quiz pdf file

 6th Grade Quiz pdf file 

 7th Grade Quiz pdf file 

 

8th Grade Quiz pdf file 

If you find that your students struggle with content from earlier grade levels, consider introducing The Posters with Learning Goals and Scales, or the Assessments to help you quickly determine what level of instruction they need to advance.

See a quick VIDEO TUTORIAL to use these products more effectively. 

Thanks for stopping by.

Check back next week for this week's raffle winner 

and the next raffle and quiz domain!

DIY Logic Puzzles for Math Class!

Logic puzzles involve thinking skills that are so valuable and applicable in so many content areas, but  are rarely stated directly in content standards. I would use them 2-4 times a year because they can easily be modified to fit into any theme or holiday. Solving them are a valuable exercise for every student. Writing them was quite a challenge that I reserved for my higher and gifted kiddos as a fun challenge!

How do they work? Logic problems are based on the idea that if one outcome is true, another outcome cannot be true. For each problem students are asked to follow clues to help them match pairs of things, with exclusive matches. For example, If Sam’s last name is supposed to be Lee, then his last name cannot be Smith, Jones, or Gonzales. This can also be a clue because it tells you what answers may be left. So you can ask yourself two questions as you read each clue;

  1. Which last name definitely matches each person?   ...and...

  2. Which last name definitely DOES NOT match each person?

As you read each clue it's good to mark the chart below so you can see and understand which matches are a YES, NO, or UNKNOWN still. Here's an example of a puzzle I used to teach the process to my whole class.

YES = ✔        NO = ✖       UNKNOWN =  ☐ Empty Box

The example below shows how the students write their own clues. They match their own names to categories of favorite things. You can select the categories with stickers or clip art, or let students write their own. It's can be a really fun way to learn more about them if they get to decide on their won favorite things. 

If they get lucky, this process is easy and smooth. The biggest place students get tripped up is by writing clues that are to specific or too general. Some of the clues should be general, meaning that more than one name will match each sport, for example. But, there has to be at least one or two clues that are specific enough to only match one name, or the kids will never figure it out! Testing their puzzles is the next most important step after writing them. It is fun to share them with other kids when they're done, but they have to make sure that their puzzles work first!

This weekend I'm releasing a new FREEBIE through my TpT Store as a fun December activity. Whether your school celebrates holidays or not, you can tailor the forms to your own themes.

In This Freebie You'll Get: 
 - Teacher directions and suggestions for successful use.
 - Presentation screens for explaining logic puzzles to your students.
 - My favorite websites for free printables and interactive logic puzzles.
 - Blank forms for students to try writing their own!

You can become a follower and enjoy other exclusive freebies ideas and updates by signing up for my newsletter. I hate overflowing inboxes, and no teacher has time for reading tons of emails, so I will not overload you with blurbs or ads. You will get helpful ideas, activities, free products, and links to hopefully make your job a little easier. Enjoy the FREEBIE and thanks for signing up!

Bless Your Holiday Season!

You May Also Like These Games...

Interactive card game for the whole class! Two sets of cards for Grades 3-5, and 6-8 standards.

No Prep Interactive Power Point Quiz Games. Grades 4-7 currently available. Search my store under the grade level you want.

FREE Equivalent Fractions Games with printable pieces and animated directions for students!

Games make Pre-Algebra Expressions Fun and Easy!

Today I'm linking up with 4th Grade Frolics for Monday Made It! One thing I was always looking for as a classroom teacher; fun games! I discovered "Who Has" games while teaching gifted resource students, and I loved the fact that it could be used in large or small groups for a quick and engaging practice. The greatest thing about this game is that the whole group has to stay engaged in order to play.


          Here's how it works...

1. You have a deck of 30 cards for each set. Copy, laminate, and cut out all 30 cards.

2. Randomly distribute cards to students until all cards have been passed out. This card game makes a round back to the first person who begins, so it is important that all cards are sued and that there is only one of each card. If you’d like to make multiple copies for smaller groups, I recommend using different colored paper for each set so they aren’t mixed up.

3. Anyone in the room can begin the game since it makes a round. Choose one student to read their question card. “I have...”. “Who has...?” I like to place cards under a projector so the whole class can reread them as they’re read aloud.

4. The student with the answer, or next card reads it aloud. If they do not have the correct card, the teacher or the class can help them figure that out and return to their seat to wait for the right prompt.

5. The game is done when everyone has read their card and returned it to the front. The last student’s card should align with the first reader’s card. If it does, the game was done correctly!

Hint: You many want to set a timer once the children know how to play! Challenge them to increase their fluency the next time! 

So many of the math standards for elementary and middle school requires students to translate words into expressions and equations. I was reminded of this as I finished up the learning goals and scales for the 3rd Grade Common Core Math Assessment. It seems to be in every grade level but begins heavily in third. Translating words could mean simple phrases or word problems, either way students are practicing the same skill. I just finished making a Who Has game deck for Pre-Algebra Expressions that aligns to the Common Core standards in grades 3-8. How did I align it to all of those grades? There are two sets; one for Grades 3-5, and one for Grades 6-8. You are welcome to use both for review in middle school, or an extra challenge in the elementary grades!

I'm offering this game as a freebie for my Newsletter followers until December 15th, 2014. You can follow my Newsletter through teacherspayteachers.com, if you are a member, or by signing up for the email list through this blog. (See the top right corner of the homepage!) 

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you enjoy the freebie!

Sincerely, 

Pre-Algebra Manipulatives and Apps

So, a few days ago I linked up with Teaching Trio for the Sunday Scoop and shared some example slides of pre-algebra problems from Common Core. The examples are from an interactive whiteboard application from Hands-On Equations. I accidentally deleted it - a long annoying story. I was going to repost it anyways and thought Tech Thursday would be the perfect opportunity! It relates to so many grade levels, whether you're teaching Common Core math or not.

I used Hands-On Equations with my 3rd-5th grade gifted and advanced students, but I also taught the basics to regular 3rd-5th grade classroom teachers from my two elementary schools. Your students do not have to be gifted to use it, and the program itself is developed with many levels, some of which I will illustrate below, so the exact same resources can be used from grades 2-8, and the students just work up to their own capacity.

The image above will give you an idea of how the materials needed, you will basically use the manipulatives to set up any problem involving a variable (missing number). The actual materials are very simple to create yourself using blocks, markers, or digital images, but the instructional progression of skills and problems for teachers and students come with the program. The examples below will show how the manipulatives can be used at various grade levels.

There are a few basic rules to using Hands-On Equations that come form the Properties of Operations. The first and most important one being, "Whatever you do to change the problem on one side, you must do to the other side." The second one is that you want to use inverse operations to simplify your equations! Subtraction should be used first, to get rid of extra values and simplify the equation, and then multiplication or division of values can be applied if necessary. Addition really doesn't enter in until the negative values are present; then students are adding values to both sides to make zeros, which are easier to work with.

The blocks are used to set up the equation or story problem. Red blocks represent positive integers. Blue markers represent positive variables. Green blocks represent negative numbers. White markers represent negative variables. The negatives become useful in the middle school standards. The red lines mean that values are being changed. If you use actual blocks, then you'd simply trade them for whatever you need next.

2.OA.1: 2 is subtracted from both sides. x = 5; 7 = 7.

The "Check" is part of the problem-solving routine. Kids have to redo the original problem with the new x value they've just found. It gets them in the habit of checking their work!

3.OA.4: Divide by 3 on both sides. x = 4; 12 = 12

 4.OA.3: Subtract 22 on each side. Divide by 3 on both sides. x = 12; 58 = 58.

For story problems and problems with large numbers, the pictorial method that allows students to draw out the blocks on paper, if they can't use real manipulatives at the time. Filled triangles represent positive variables; empty triangles would represent negative variables. Squares represent positive integers; circles would represent negative integers (see 7.NS.3 and 8.EE.2. below).

 5.OA.1: Add 15 to both sides. Divide by 3 on both sides. x = 11; 48 = 48.

6.EE.3: Subtract 6 on both sides. Divide by 3 on both sides. When 0 = 0, x can be any number!

                  7.NS.3: Add 7 to both sides. Divide by 12 on both sides. x = -12; -151 = -151.

             8.EE.2: Take the cubed root of both sides. Add 10 to both sides. x = 3; -343 = -343.

I have chosen a few examples based on the Common Core Standards for each grade level, but the complete program includes 26 different levels of increasing difficulty. It's a fantastic resource for differentiation or small group work with your higher students! Again, if buying a new program is not a possibility for you right now, you can definitely create your own materials and use it with your regular grade-level problems.

The materials you will need per student or pair are:

workman or model of a balance
2 dice with digits 0-5 (2 of each color)
2 dice with digits 5-10 (2 of each color)
8-10 colored markers (for each color)
(The actual colors are not important, as long as you have equal numbers of both.)

Hands-On Equations, the official program, can be found at http://www.borenson.com. Please visit the homepage and browse through some of the research and examples. I love this program so much, because as a visual-spatial learner, I always had trouble remembering the rules of equation transformation and equality. I was always taught Algebra as if it were just a big "to do" list of rules. The rules were hard for me to remember because I didn't have a concrete understanding of why we had to do it this way.  Consequently, I failed Algebra two different semesters, in 8th grade and in 10th grade. My mom hired a tutor and I started getting As again. My tutor didn't know about this program, but she did know how to explain concepts with concrete images instead of just rules.

I hope you found this helpful and will try using manipulatives for your pre-algebra lessons. If you're looking for more apps from Hands-On Equations, you can visit their Products page.

This month's Follower Freebie is a "Who Has" Game for practicing Pre-Algebra Expressions. Different sets allow differentiation for Grades 3-8! Sign up for my email Newsletter to get this exclusive offer! This offer will expire by Dec. 15th, 2014. Sign up today!