There is nothing like the feel of small town kids. My school is located in a sweet little town that literally has one traffic light. One of the benefits of teaching in a small town is the community you develop with your students. We become one big family, not a family that only stays together for one year, but one that carries a piece of each other throughout the whole school experience. That bond we create in the classroom turns into hugs, high-fives, and waves as the years pass by in the hallways.
The downside of being in a small town is we are short on funding.
My school is a Title I school. We do our best to keep up and give the best to our students, but it's the kindness of others that really help boost our resources. I've been a 2nd grade teacher for the past nine years. This year I've been moved to 1st. Being in a younger grade, I will have to adjust my teaching style and materials a bit. This project is for materials I can use during math centers.
My Project
As an elementary teacher, a big chunk of my math instruction is taught during small groups. Although a great deal of learning is achieved during this time, a large portion of my students are left to engage in activities on their own without me. Thanks to technology, I am able to use educational apps as one of my rotations. However, another important rotation is hands-on fact practice. This is a time when students work with manipulatives by themselves, or with a buddy, to increase their fact fluency. It's difficult for students to check their work during this time, because I am working with another group of students. This project includes materials that students can use during this time to self check their work. The subtraction and addition machines allow students to solve facts, and check their work with a click of a button. The sums and differences will pop up in a fun typewriter like style. This project also includes addition number locks and number word locks. Students match keys to locks to solve problems. If the locks open, it indicates that they solved the problem correctly. Last, the flash cards will allow students to work with buddies to quiz each other on their facts. Not only will they able to self check, but these activities offer fact practice in fun engaging ways! I can picture my students getting so excited about this time with these new tools. I appreciate any help that can be given to help me transform my math block.
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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Ms. Preskitt and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
