Hey Kinder Friends,
You know I love counting books so I was excited to spy this book at school next door. Always fun taking a peek at your neighbor and sneaking a book or two when they are busy. This is one of those books that I have to say I love because it was discovered at just the perfect time. Who can resist a seasonal counting book anyway?
I recently had made some number lines for my class as math tools. We had only used a large class number line at this point and I wanted the kids to be able to have and use their own when needed. After I cut them apart, I had them on my desk right next to the 10 Orange Pumpkins book. I decided to use the number lines with the book during Number Talks.
Adding the clothespins to the number line kept the kids focused and busy as we learned to move up and down the number line. We counted one by one up and down the number line while focusing on each number. Eventually we began a game of "show me" with the numbers in a random order.
The "show me" session gave me a chance to take note of who was struggling with finding the numbers, who was not using any strategy to find the numbers, who was actively applying some strategy and who needed more experiences with using a number line before these tools were put into their math notebooks for independent use. This also gave me an idea of who was ready for a larger number line. Sometimes just having the children turn around and face the opposite direction, helps them focus and listen. I think they think if they can't see me, then nobody can see them and even the reluctant few give it a try on their own.
I have printed a few extra to keep with the counting books when the children independently read during math. This book is a perfect fit because it has items on each page to count and then they find that number on the number line. Having something in their hands helps keep them engaged and thinking. It is a great way to continue counting the quantities on the page and finding the number on the number line. 10 Orange Pumpkins is a countdown book so we had fun counting backwards.
Spending this time working with the number lines really made a difference because our Number Talks were lively considering how many children had something to say about what strategies they used to find the correct number.
Counting from zero.
Counting from one.
Counting backwards from 10.
Counting from a known number.
Counting and touching each number to find the unknown.
Asking a friend.
Looking at another number line.
Eventually we moved on to talking about how we could use this tool to help us in math each day. All in all, about a 15 minute session with a few materials and a lot of engagement and talk...exactly why I love Number Talking!
Number lines have been added to my unit on TeacherspayTeachers. If you have previously purchased this unit please download again to get 1-10 and 0-20 student sized number lines!
