Bridge13

Standard 6.NS.1 - Understand that the properties and behavior of matter can be explained by a model that depicts particles representing atoms or molecules in motion. Extension: Once students understand properties of different liquids, they can think how to manipulate those liquids and their properties. One example would be to heat up one liquid to several different temperatures and see how they interact. Adaptation: Teacher could split students into groups of 3-4 and have them stack liquids on their own. Students could bring in several liquids from home (all approved) and try stacking them based on the observed properties.

Extension: Students could make a "My Rock Collection Book" and include drawings and lists of adjectives used to describe the rocks

Extension: Students could make a "My Rock Collection Book" and include drawings and lists of adjectives used to describe the rocks.

Adaptation: Teacher could use leaves, toys, or any other classifiable objects in the room to practice observing and classifying based on visible and physical characteristics

Adaptation: Teacher could use leaves, toys, or any other classifiable objects in the room to practice observing and classifying based on visible and physical characteristics.

Standard: K.NS.1 - Adaptation: Teacher could use leaves, toys, or any other classifiable objects in the room to practice observing and classifying based on visible and physical characteristics

K.NS.3 - Observe living organisms, compare and contrast their characteristics, and ask questions about them

1.NS.3 - Describe objects in terms of the materials that compose them and in terms of their physical properties

2.NS.3 - Observe, ask questions about and describe how organisms change their forms and behaviors during their life cycles

K.CC.4 Understand the relationship between numbers and quantities; connect counting to cardinality.

This activity could really be adapted for many different ability levels.  For less advanced children, you could keep it simple and focus on easy to identify elements of the house/classroom, such as doors.  For more advanced children, you could have them count things that would come to a fairly high number, such as books, for example.  This would give them more of a challenge and let them practice counting to higher numbers.  The activity lends itself naturally to ELLs because of it's use of a drawing of a house to signify what is being counted.

C.C. Standard: 6.NS.5

Expansion: A game like this could be used for several types of order of operation problems, for example: multiplication.  Students could, instead of trying to add for zero, multiply to find pairs.  

ESL: Heavy repetition will help esl and native students understand a concept more concretely.  

C.C.Standard: 1.OA.5, 1.OA.6 

Expansion: This could be used with subtraction, by having students subtract the number of pins knocked down from ten. 

ESL: Visual representations of numbers using objects will help connect the numbers they hear and see to real-life objects. 

C.C. Standards: 1.MD.2, 1.MD.4, 2.MD.1, 2.MD.9, 2.MD.10

Expansion: As kicked balls could take a lot of time to measure, students could throw bean bags or jump.  For jumping they could work in pairs to measure each other's jumps and then report the data. 

ESL: Physical and visual aids in learning measurement will help ESL students retain measurement information. 

C.C. Standard: 5.NF.1

Expansion: War games such as this could be used for multiplication and division facts as well.  

ESL: Cooperative learning, as well as repetition, will build student's confidence with math facts. 

C.C. Standard: 3.OA.7

Expansion: This board game could be recreated to be longer or shorter, or to have different numbers.  In addition, larger dice with more sides could be used for practice multiplying two digit numbers.    

ESL: Cooperative games, interaction with peers and repetitive practice help esl students retain math fact information.  

5.MD.3 Recognize volume as an attribute of solid figures and understand concepts of volume measurement.

5.MD.4 Measure volumes by counting unit cubes, using cubic cm, cubic in, cubic ft, and improvised units.

4.MD.3 Apply the area and perimeter formulas for rectangles in real world and mathematical problems.

As a child, I loved making origami, and I think origami lends itself naturally to studying geometry, so I love the idea of turning making origami into a math lesson. This is a really good whole-group activity because it allows everyone to follow along and be interested in what is going on.  It is especially nice for ELLs because by seeing you work on your box simultaneously through the projector, these students are not as restricted by the language barrier.

Students who take a longer time to complete the activity could be given a number board with numbers one through ten on it, rather than one through sixteen.  This would save some time and allow slower students to finish at around the same time as the rest of the class.

3.OA.7 Fluently multiply and divide within 100, using strategies such as the relationship between multiplication and division (e.g., knowing that 8 × 5 = 40, one knows 40 ÷ 5 = 8) or properties of operations. By the end of Grade 3, know from memory all products of two one-digit numbers.

This activity could be adapted for struggling students by giving them less advanced story problems with easier to spot unnecessary information.  More advanced students could be given more detailed story problems.  Struggling students could also be given story problems with some of the unnecessary information already crossed out and some of the valuable information pre-underlined, giving them a head start

4.OA.3 Solve multistep word problems posed with whole numbers and having whole-number answers using the four operations, including problems in which remainders must be interpreted. Represent these problems using equations with a letter standing for the unknown quantity. Assess the reasonableness of answers using mental computation and estimation strategies including rounding.

This activity could be adapted to many themes based on the interests of students in your class.  The point is that they are using geometry for real-world (or in this case, fantasy-pretend-world) applications.  Also, it could be made easier or more complex depending on the age and ability levels of your students.  For example, struggling students could just focus on one aspect, such as wands.  More advanced students could run the whole store.  It really has a lot of room for creative interpretation. 

1.OA.6 Add and subtract within 20, demonstrating fluency for addition and subtraction within 10.

This game can be adapted for whichever skills a particular student needs extra work on.  For example, you could multiply the cards rather than add if that is what needs worked on, but addition also works really well with the cards.  Students struggling could have half of the cards removed so they are only playing with a few numbers.  Then the rest of the deck could be added in as they advance and grow more confident.

This activity could be made more difficult by adding negative numbers and turning it into an actual plane (x and y axes).  For example, points would be identified as (-3,4) rather than A2

5.MD.3 Recognize volume as an attribute of solid figures and understand concepts of volume measurement. a. A cube with side length 1 unit, called a "unit cube," is said to have "one cubic unit" of volume, and can be used to measure volume. b. A solid figure which can be packed without gaps or overlaps using n unit cubes is said to have a volume of n cubic units.

1.NBT.3 Compare two two-digit numbers based on meanings of the tens and ones digits, recording the results of comparisons with the symbols >, =, and <.

This activity is a great reinforcer for older students who struggle with the concept of greater than and less than, not just kindergarteners and first-graders.  The alligator analogy could really help struggling students to grasp this concept because it serves as a mnemonic device to help them to remember what the sign means.

4.OA.1 Interpret a multiplication equation as a comparison

This activity could be adapted so that rather than individual students playing against each other, groups could play the game competitively.  This would take pressure off of those students who are not as fluent in their math facts as others.  It also makes it less stressful for individual students.

This webpage has many great activities for winter math activities, and as a bonus, most of them have accommodations for lower or younger students as well as more advanced students.