Fraction and Decimal Task Cards FINISHED!!

I finally finished!!!! I've been working on creating task cards, coloring sheets and worksheets for all of the 4.NF Common Core strands! It has taken me almost a year to finish the whole thing! I usually get a lot done during the summer time, but I hardly worked on my TpT store this past summer since I was getting married, went on a honeymoon and then was in a wedding...very busy summer! So when Christmas break started this week I work up the first 3 days at 6:30AM, when my husband got up, and started working on the task cards! I am proud to say after about a year of slowly working on it and 400 questions later...it is complete! I am thrilled and very proud of it!!

Could be another reason it took so long to finish! My cat requires a lot of my attention!

Here is just one example of what some of the task cards look like. This is for 4.NF.6

I also make a worksheet version of ALL the task cards! This one is for 4.NF.3 c&d

I have the bundle of task cards (400 questions) for a discounted price right now in my TpT store for only $3!!! That is the regular price for just one set of task cards, worksheets and coloring sheet. I want to sell it for this low price as a thank you to all my followers who have been waiting for this bundle. I will eventually raise the price up, but I hope that people take advantage of the low price and review it and then WRITE a review for my TpT store!

Here is an example of another worksheet I make for EACH strand. These can be used as extra practice or an assessment for the strand. It is 20 questions! This one is for 4.NF.4a, b & c

Here is an example of the Coloring pages I make for EACH strand! This one is for 4.NF.5

Here is the worksheet that goes along with the coloring page. These are 10 questions each! I even put a small picture of the coloring page at the top of the question page so that if you ever print them out and mix them up by accident you know what question page goes with which coloring page!  This one is for 4.NF.7

Check it out here and preview it!

I use these task cards ALL the time in centers when teaching and reviewing these skills. I think they are great and hope you do too!

Hour of Code

Hour of Code is something our students have done for the past two years and the students love it! Our entire school participates and students of all ages can do it. Whether we like it or not, times are changing and technology is becoming more and more apart of our daily lives. Our students will have jobs using technology that is not even invented yet...that is an amazing thing to think about. How can we prepare them for the future and their future education and jobs when we do not even know what type of education and jobs will be needed in the next 10-15 years!? One thing we know we can do is introduce them to coding!

We have a group of teachers get together and make the schedule to get all the teachers and students in to the computer lab in a 2 week time period. We have responsible 5th graders go to the kindergarten and 1st grade sessions with the teacher so that they can walk around and help the students and teachers. We also allow 5th grade teachers go to other classrooms too to help if a teacher requests it! (It's usually the not so "techy" teachers and that is ok!!!) 

Everything we use on a daily basis, technology wise, requiers codes to create it and make it work. As of right now those jobs are booming and there are not a lot of people to fill those much needed jobs! Hour of Code is a way that students can learn about coding and even code their own video games! It is a way to inspire children to consider learning coding and hopefully join a job that needs them to code! Students love learning that some of their favorite games are created because of coding!

I am always amazed how some children pick this up like it is nothing! To me it is like a foreign language! I have a hard time even helping...so I use this hour to help as much as I can, but to also allow the students to help one another complete each round of coding! 

Go to www.hourofcode.com

I encourage you to watch the 2 minute video on the home page of hour of code and discuss the importance of learning this new technology and take one hour out of your day just one time this school year and expose your child to this type of growing skill. 

Students do not need to log in, they just go to the site and press start and pick a game to practice with. There are videos they can watch to explain more why coding is important. I would recommend students bring head phones! You do not have to teach or explain anything, just let them click and explore! After the hour is up they can print a certificate! Students can also get on this site at home or anytime they have computer time to practice, play and learn!

The goal is to get 2 million students to code for one hour by December!!

Take a leap for your children, you will not regret it!!! 

Area and Perimeter Christmas!

I got this really great activity from a blog (Teaching in Room 6) I found on Pinterest. I was trying to come up with a fun "Christmasy" themed activity to practice area and perimeter and couldn't think of anything! So when I can't come up with my own thing...I turn to Pinterest! I know that I can always find great ideas from fellow teachers on there!

The students measure the length and width of the branches on the tree in centimeters and they then find the area and perimeter. I also had my students find the area and perimeter of any rectangle or square on their paper so that included the trunk of the tree and the gifts under the tree. Here is the link to the blog I got this idea from, from her blog you can get the recording sheet I used...and its FREE!

So to make my life easier I got four baskets and put all the paper supplies the kids might need in them. I went ahead and pre cut long green rectangles and small square pieces of paper of brown, yellow, pink, red and blue. I just put a bunch in each basket so the students could just get paper from there instead of getting up to get whole big pieces and risk waisting a lot of construction paper. The students then cut the strips of paper to the sizes they wanted for their trees!

I have a captain at each group and the capitals were in charge of the baskets and giving out the materials to the students at their group. This helped so I did't have 6 sets of kids hands in the basket at one time fighting over paper. If they needed more materials they just asked their captain and they handed them what they needed.

On the recording sheet I made the students write out the formula every single time they worked out their problem for area and perimeter. I think this was helpful so they could try to commit them to memory. Most already know it because they learned it in 3rd grade. In 4th grade we teach them to find the missing side when given the area or perimeter. This activity did not cover that skill...but I thought it was still ok since we just started this lesson on Monday and it is a week before Christmas break!

Hope this gives some ideas to fellow teachers! I played Christmas music and the students worked hard creating some adorable trees and the students did great on their math work!

Merry Christmas!!