Fact Power

What is "Fact Power?"  Fact Power is the term we use to relay to our first graders the importance of beginning to know simple addition facts quickly and effortlessly without the use of a number grid or counters.  Similarly to reading a text multipe times to increase fluency, we need to practice our simple addition facts to increase our speed and accuracy.  Currently we are working on +0 and +1 facts.  In addition, we are working on sums of 10 (6+4, 3+7, etc.) and doubles facts (3+3, 5+5, etc.). 

Consider utilizing some of the following resources to engage your 1st grader in some fun addition practice!  Xtra Math is an online resource that we utilize in the classroom for addition practice, which may also be utilized at home.  A set of flashcards with the above mentioned facts was also sent home as a form of extra practice.  In addition, below are two new math games that you may play with your child at home to increase their "Fact Power." 

Shaker Addition Top-It -

All you need for this game is two dice.  One player rolls the two dice and adds up the total of both dice to find the sum.  The second player follows suit and rolls the two dice to find the sum.  Whichever player has the higher sum receives a point.  The winner is the player with the most points at the conclusion of the game.  Need a challenge?  Use three dice to practice adding three addends OR program dice to have digits larger than six.

Addition Top-It -

A deck of playing cards is the only material necessary for this game.  Before playing remove the face cards.  Deal out all numerical cards evenly amongst players.  Play is similar to the traditional game of war - Each player turns over two cards and adds the numbers to find the sum.  The player with the highest sum takes all cards.  The winner is the player with the most cards a the conclusion of the game. 

Happy Adding!

Procedural Writing

We are crazy about nonfiction writing in 1st grade!  Our friends are writing a variety of informational pieces throughout the months of January and February.  We are learning how to write with the purpose of informing our readers.  Last week we took a look at cookbooks, craft books, experiment guides, and toy assembly pamphlets.  What do all of these texts have in common?  They have steps/directions!  How could we possibly learn how to make that coveted starburst bracelet on a rainbow loom or build that dream dollhouse out of legos without the directions?  Our friends determined that a large feature of directions are transition or order words such as first, next, then, finally, etc.  We practiced this skill by generating and sequencing directions for how to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, how to make your bed, how to blow a bubble, etc.  

Our recent snow days came at the perfect time as our first independent piece was how to build a snowman.  You can stop by the back hallway to see our projects currently on display.  Finally, each child created their own book of directions of their choosing.  Topics ranged from how to throw a football to how to draw a star.  Ask your child what topic they chose for their direction booklet.  These books will be saved for our end-of-year portfolio.  

Next up - Animal Research Reports!