Multiplication Madness!

Monday starts our multiplication and division unit. Our Fourth Grade TEKS (the Texas version of Common Core) state my kiddos need to be able to mulitply two digit by two-digit numbers and divide three digits dividends by one digit divisors. This is hard when they still struggle recalling basic facts... To remedy this, I've created several basic multiplication activities for my kids to do during math stations.

While enjoying one of my favorite past times, Pinterest, I stumbled upon The Crafty Classroom's Times Tables Folders. LOVE! Each pocket contains multiplication facts so students can study their areas of weakness.  I had to create my own IMMEDIATELY!!

The Crafty Classroom provides those cute little pocket templates and I found the perfect sized flash cards from Multiplication.com HERE.

I attempted to use our school laminator to laminate these babies (my laminator was too small to accommodate the file folders) and almost ruined all of my hard work. I had let the machine heat up for over an our but I guess the thickness of the folders was too much for the aging laminator... EVERYTHING PEALED OFF and took some of my pockets with it. I fixed my poor folders and decided to reinforce with clear packing tape instead.

Next is my super cheap up-cycled multiplication game.... Using bottle tops my dear family and friends had been collecting for me since summer time, some garage sale stickers I found at the dollar store and modge podge, I made these little guys:

FUN! I've seen a lot of these games on TPT and Teacher's Notebook. A few versions have the fact on top and the answer inside of the top... I opted for a "blind draw" so my kiddos can't get away with only answering the easy facts. 

All the bottle tops are flipped over and students draw and answer their fact. If they get it right, they keep the top. If they get it wrong, they put it back. The kiddo with the most tops wins! Easy enough, right?

There are enough for me bottle top facts for me to introduce this game whole class, then split up and make three different sets for station use. I also have wide bottle tops (from Gatorade bottles and such) that I'm thinking about using as "challenge questions". For example, "Recite your 5s Facts," and things like that... 

What are your multiplication ideas??

CAMT 2012 Rocked My WORLD!!!

Wednesday - Friday I was at a math conference... I know I've only been a teacher for a year, but I've been to enough conferences to know the majority are BORING. CAMT, the Conference for the Advancement of Mathematics Teaching (annual event for Texas teachers) was not. It was MIND BLOWING! It's not a sit-and-listen-all-day conference, it's a get-up-and-choose-what-you-want-to-learn-about (and leave-if-it's-boring) kind of conference! And the vendors... OH THE VENDORS! I spent a lot of money... SO WORTH IT.

I went to a lot of sessions on measurement since our kids struggle so much with it. All of the sessions I went to were great... Only exception was one that had us exploring grams with Sweet'N'Low... By separating the substance into milligrams.... With hotel key cards.... Are you seeing the problem?? My friend and I thought this was a great visual / concept, but very inappropriate. We decided using sand and shovels was a better idea?? Any one out there have another suggestion? ?
The activity at left is finding out how much an object weighs in pennies. SO CUTE! The idea came from the Children's Museum of Houston.

I also attended a Marcy Cook session. The Place Value activities she has created with just some simple number tiles are amazing. TEACHERS. ARE. SO. SMART. Rachel A. and I bought 4 of her activity sets. :)  (We're also smart, we went halfsies on a bunch of goodies so we share and save money!)

Next was Dinah Zike Foldables. This is one popular lady. I tried to attend her sessions on Wednesday and Thursday but they were full. There were hoards of people in line to attend.... I finally made it into a Friday session (it was for K-2 so the foldables were simple, yet still supremely cool) by getting there 40 minutes early... Of course this would be the session that was NOT full, started at 8:00 (putting me there at 7:20), and that people were walking in late to..... Blah! Oh well, better to be safe than sorry.... I bought one of her books and snapped this awesome fraction foldable idea from her booth. Rockin'!!

I also went to a Fractions without Distractions session, put on by a LoneStar Learning associate. CUTE fraction ideas. Like that PLATE! Take two different colored paper plates, cut a slit halfway through both of them, slide them together, and BAM! You have fraction circles for your kids to use.... GENIUS!

 

Finally, KIM SUTTON with Creative Mathmatics. Rachel A. and I are kinda Kim Sutton stalkers. Yes, I snapped secret pics of her. SHE'S A MATH CELEBRITY!!!

Kim Sutton spoke at our district last winter. I got a hug from her and some free stuff for helping during one of her examples. I brag about this a lot... To teachers... Because no one else understands! (or cares... Lol) Rachel is the one that kept running into her this time. They had conversations AND Rachel sat near her in another conference... They're practicall CAMT BFFs! Jealous!!

During her session we sat front and center so we got in plenty of K.S. time. LOVE HER!! If you don't have any of her stuff, GET IT. It's so fun, easy, helpful and QUICK! It takes no time to do her drills and kids love them. My suggestion? Get a random numbers CD.

As you can see, CAMT was amazing. Hooty's Homeroom was there too, but we didn't run into each other. We were SO BUSY running to-and-fro!

Question for all you fantastic teachers out there... I went to a session on Tabor Rotation. Anyone heard of it or use it? I really like the idea but I want more info... Thanks!!