Adding Woes, Habitats, and a Freebie!

So this week, we're still review adding 2-digit numbers, without regrouping 

and then we're headed to subtracting 2-digit numbers without regrouping...

Now...I have to tell you...

this is really hard for a lot of our kids...

yes...teaching VERTICAL addition is the EASIEST thing to do...

because, well, that's what we use in REAL life, right?

I mean...

I do...

BUT, our district's math test that we give, ask them to do them horizontally AND give the strategy - ahh!

soo...we've been practicing adding tens this week for centers - and we'll continue with these centers next week too...

BUT, we'll add in some subtracting 2- Digit numbers in there too, probably...

OH BOY! lol

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speaking of 2-digit adding...

I have some kids that are seriously struggling with it...

because they JUST DON'T get place value!!

I've tried manipulatives...

I've tried 100s charts...

I've tried touch math..

and then one day, I'm not sure why, but I just labeled the tens and ones like this....

and by golly, they get it!!!

In fact, you should have SEEN one of my girls' eyes today...

she was SOOOO excited that she could FINALLY get the right answer!!

And THAT, my friends, is why I'm a teacher - because of THOSE little moments...

So, I made a little diddy that you can use that already has them labeled if you want...

click the pic to download...it's a freebie!

I hope it helps some of your struggling students too!

In addition to my Adding Tens centers (heehe - get it...in ADDITION to - badabum!)

We've been using Susan's Addition with 3 addends...

I really like this set in the pack because it's working math, phonics, AND following directions - ding ding ding!!

Following Directions...

SUPER hard for my kdis!!

And this is what I'm doing with my small groups this week - 

They have to find the 3rd addend, which is missing to answer the math problem...

Can I tell you how much I love these??

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You saw my post yesterday on my students' planning sheet for their habitat that's for sale...

Well, today, we some finished products!!

Check out the descriptions!

Great use of inferencing, knowledge of habitats, and not to mention this is such a higher level activity for them to do! They LOVE it...

Also - yesterday I showed you my Exemplar Sentence that I got from our Story...

So today - they wrote their own sentences... 

Go to THIS post to read more about Sentence Imitation!

I didn't realize how AWESOME my students were getting at writing students until I got a new student today who has not been exposed to doing these Imitation Sentence activities.

Now...

If I could JUST get them to write in a paragraph knowing where to end a sentence and start a new one...ahhh!!! lol

ONE

LAST 

THING...

LOOK what we got to watch happen today!!! 

isn't the baby chick sooo cute???

(do you like how I tried positioning the letters so that you couldn't see the NASTINESS that is my nails?? haha!)

I cant' wait to show you a surprise....BUT, I'm not going to tell you right now, JUST in case it doesn't happen...

Yes, I realize that you are saying - why aren't you doing these in the spring like everyone else??

well....

because our district has given us a pacing guide and in that pacing guide it tells us that Life Cycles are in the first 9 weeks...

Funny...

I think weather should be...

but...

I'm what do I know???

Ok - so I must go catch up on blog stalking and dvr watching - LATERS!