Wednesday, September 7, 2011

A Numeracy Rich Environment

After reading and learning a little bit more about Guided Math, I really wanted focus on creating a numeracy rich environment.  I wanted to be more intentional about the amount of math items and vocabulary that I hung up on my classroom walls.

I started with the most basic--my calendar.


I am thinking of putting up a Math Word Wall around this area too.  It would be solely dedicated to math vocabulary. 

I wanted to do more with the time concept since it's a hard one to grasp.  I saw an idea like this on Pinterest and after finding these clocks at the Target Dollar Spot, I knew I could do it! 


Next, I moved onto the tags in the cubbies.  Normally I would write the numeral and the child's name.  This year, I thought I could just do the number and hopefully reuse them again!  I did add a word though--the NUMBER word!  How simple, but it increases the effort for a Numeracy Rich Environment!



I added number magnets to my desk where I've only ever had letters before.  I always kept the numbers in one of my math drawers.  Why not have them out all the time? 



Our first Math Out Of The Box lesson today required us to take a "Number Walk" around our class and school in search of numbers! The children surprised me with how many numbers they saw. 

They noticed the numbers on our materials tubs. 


They noticed the numbers outside our classroom. 



The children are working on a math project tonight that is called "Math About Me."  They will write down numbers about themselves (age, height, phone number, street address, birth date, how many siblings or pets, etc) and display them on a piece of construction paper. 

I worked hard to increase numeracy in my classroom, but as I continue on, I am realizing just how many numbers are all around us naturally! 

5 comments:

  1. I love your math about me idea! Is it from a series? I may just have to steal this idea!
    Tessa
    Spotlight on Kindergarten

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  2. Another teacher shared it with me! It was an old idea from a Mailbox magazine or something like that. We retyped and revamped some parts. I am looking forward to seeing the results!

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  3. How did you get the clocks to stay up?

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  4. I hot glued them :) Tape never works on our walls. I was able to hot glue the back around the edge so the hands would still move :)

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  5. Where did you get the lettering from?

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