Workshop Wednesday: Fractions

How many of you dread teaching fractions??!! It's a very difficult concept for students to grasp, so I'm excited to read all of the ideas linked up this week with my BBB Jivey for her Workshop Wednesday!

I'm going to share a quick idea I use to introduce fractions to my students.

I want them to be able to relate fractions to real life, so I use my students as manipulatives. For example, I have 22 students, so my denominator is 22. I ask several questions that involve using the same denominator, but changing the numerator: how many students are wearing red, how many students ate cereal for breakfast, how many students have practice after school?, etc.

It gets them to notice and observe their surroundings and it's fun!

After we do several whole class examples, we create fractions for our group members. And, as a challenge, I have them create other fractions around our classroom. For example, 3/4 of the bulletin boards have polka dots, 5/18 of the reading baskets are pink, etc.

This is always a hit because it's about them!

( I usually just write these on a piece of chart paper, but I made a copy for you to grab to use in your classroom).

As long as you're a Head Over Heels For Teaching Facebook Fan, you can have this Fractions in the Classroom sheet with just one click on the Fan Freebies tab! If you're not, all you have to do is "like" my page here.

Have a great rest of the week...just two more days! We can do it! :O)

Tried It Tuesday: Boggle

I can already tell this week is going to fly by! Wouldn't it be amazing if we added an hour or so to our day and had a 4 day work week? I'd LOVE it! I might actually have time to relax instead of running errands, games, and getting ready for the next week on Saturday and Sunday!

Vote YES!

Anyway, it's time to link up with my sweet friend Holly for her Tried it Tuesday! You can link up or read about all kinds of things that have worked or failed for other teachers. Lots of great ideas! 

Boggle is one of my FAVORITE games, but the original game can get a little loud in the classroom with all those shaking cubes! So, I made a nice, quiet Boggle Board on a pocket chart! It saves center space and it's a great visual!

My "Boggle Board" is used mostly for my fast finishers for enrichment. I sometimes also use it as  a 5 minute filler (if I ever get 5 minutes!). The letters are switched out each week. I use the amazing book below to set my letters up each week-all the work is done for me and I already know several words can be made with this pattern of letters. :O)

Do you know about this book? I ordered mine from Amazon several years ago and I love it! Click here to learn more.

I used to use this book for a center or for fast finishers, but I like my pocket chart because all students can see it in our classroom and it cuts down on copies.  

Of course, if you've played Boggle, you know how addicting it can be...and my students love "playing" this (learning) game when they finish an assignment quickly or come in early in the morning. Fun way to teach spelling patterns and new vocabulary!

 

Want to get these letters for free to make your own Boggle pocket chart? It's free for my Facebook Fans! Just click the F below to like my page!



 

Tried It Tuesday: Facebook Fan Freebie

So excited to link up with my friend Holly for Tried it Tuesday and excited to share what I "tried" today!

With the help of my friend Jivey and Mrs. Fultz's video tutorial, I have a Fans Only Freebie tab! It actually took me longer than I thought it would-there were some technical difficulties! The video tutorial was only about 9 minutes, but she's an expert! :O) Jivey's tips helped me to design my image!

I also added this feature in hopes some of my fans will tell their friends about my page. :O)

 Please click to make sure you're following so you can pick up Fans Only Freebies!

It feels good to have another thing done! Go check out what others have tried this week!

Also, linking up with Tori for her Bloglovin' Blog Hop!



 Make sure you visit my blog tomorrow for a special surprise!