What would a math data wall look like?

        Districts love data walls. They are a great visual that organizes kids into groups for targeted instruction and people can celebrate the movement of students along a data wall. Or- discuss options for students not moving along the data wall. Staff can use them privately. Teachers and students can use them in classrooms but with much controversy. (More on the controversy later but we are mainly talking about privacy and shame.) Let me start with a staff data wall that I created for my building.
        First, let me say I am trained in Math Recovery (MR) and MR's stages of development in 5 areas of early mathematics fit very nicely into a data wall. This is where I got my ideas and put them on a large board. My principal loved the data wall.
        But for those of you without the training, who are seeking something for your PLC or to base your goals on, you can use your standards across grades to formulate your data wall.
        Let's use the idea of counting forward and backward for students in K-1 and even K-2. A data wall for counting forward would have the levels of 1) I can't count to 10. 2) I can count to 10. 3) I can count to 20. 4) I can count to 50. 5) I can count to 75 and 6) I can count to 100. Of course you can level it in any increments you choose. Some report cards for kindergarten already have the levels with the end of year goal to be counting to 100 according to the CCSS. You can even have 7) I can count to 120 or beyond for showing students in kindergarten who are advanced and need enrichment.
        At the first data day in my building the kindergarten teachers brought data on counting to the meeting. They put sticky notes for every student showing their independent level of counting forward. We looked at who was on track to meet the card marking expectation of counting to 25 by November and who was not counting to 10 yet. Interventionists and paras were assigned students who were not yet counting to 10 independently for a tier III intervention, and the classroom teachers kept an eye on the students who could count to 10 but not 20 for a tier II intervention. The students already meeting the card marking goal of counting to 25 were not worried about and were not put into a group or assigned an intervention.
        When students in tier III moved levels, the para or interventionist moved the sticky and sent a quick email on the progress and moved that student to a tier II intervention to be in a group with the classroom teacher. Communication was quick and easy. If the teacher said the student was not counting to 10 in the classroom, the person who worked with that student was called upon to see why, when he/she did it during intervention. Sometimes it is the way things are worded from teacher to teacher. Sometimes the para needed to see how the classroom teacher expected the performance to look. No offense but sometimes paras will support or hint and not really know they are doing anything wrong. Some students just need to see that the teacher is asking them the same thing they were doing in their small group or one-on-one.
        The levels we used for counting backward for kindergarten were way less rigorous. Math Recovery only expects a first grader to count backward from any number within 100 so we decided for kindergarten we would look for counting down from 10 by mid-year and counting down from 20 by end of year. This is not a CCSS but we thought it a goal worth fighting for and kindergarten said they count backward anyway in regular instruction.
        The first grade team used this same data wall but their levels for counting backward were 1) I can't count back from 10. 2) I can count back from 10. 3) I can count back from 20. 4) I can count back from 50. 5) I can count back from 100. Again, you can level it in any increments you choose. You can even have 6) I can count back from 199 or beyond for showing students in first grade who are advanced and need enrichment.
        Counting back by ones is not specifically stated in the CCSS but we all know students who can't subtract, can have issues with counting back. It also translates to one more/less and ten more/less.
        Here is a table (click here) to show what all this means. I hope this makes sense and gives you an idea on how to make a data wall that can be used for instruction, intervention and celebrating growth. Just pick an area, level it out in increments, and you will have a data wall!

Counting Back or Counting On Card Game

Do you need more activities for counting on and counting back? Here is a game I adapted from something I read in a book. I call it Zero and 100. This game can be played with one row of cards, two rows or three rows of cards depending on how hard you want to make it. These two girls I had play, were close to being secure with counting back from any number. I decided to use three rows of cards to play at the hardest level.
First- get 10 cards in a row of a counting sequence, for each row of play you want (one is easiest, two mamma bear, and three papa bear, if you get what I mean). And grab a card that is zero and the 100 card. I have a deck of 0 to 100 cards but you can make a set just for this game on card stock.
I played counting backwards Zero and 100, so I put up the top number of each counting row. Of course your starting card can be the lowest number in that sequence of 10 cards if you are playing counting up!
I actually had the cards in order of counting back but facing down so I could explain to the girls what order the cards should be in when the game is done, and to practice the counting back sequences once before playing. As we practiced the sequence I showed the girls each card and they could see what the finished game board would look like (but the zero and 100 cards would be off to the side when the game is over).
Then I left the three starting numbers face up and shuffled the rest of the cards. I replaced them in any order because they were shuffled. I hope this is all making sense to you!
This is what the game looks like before anyone starts-

The first player chooses any face down card- turns it over, reads the number and tries to figure out where it goes. As you can see my three counting back numbers are 97, 82, and 66. All of these cross over a decade so when a child picks the number 71, it is not always obvious which row it belongs in!
Oh- should I say these are first graders playing? Of course any students needing the practice will find this fun.
So, when you place your card where it goes, you pick up the card that was in that spot and figure out where that card goes. With each new card I have the student practice counting back through the entire row. Very few kids resist this and try to count up from a card that is face up. Your turn is over when you pick up the zero card or the 100. Then it's the next players turn.
Your turn can also be over when you place a card in an empty spot and there is nothing to pick up. Two ways to end your turn! Some turns are very long, some turns are very short. Kids love this game and ask to play it again and again. The last person to place the last card where it goes in the sequence is the winner!
If you have any questions, feel free to ask and watch the video on my FB page!

Help for kids who count every pip on a dice roll!

I know how heartbreaking it is to see students continuously counting all of the pips on their dice roll! Why, why, why?! Don't they play games at home? They certainly play enough games at school- right?

For starters, do these kids instantly recognize dice patterns? Simply flash dice number cards to find out. If they don't, practice flashing daily and they should learn them pretty quickly. Older students in the building or parent volunteers can flash your students daily if that works out! Free dot cards can be found here (sift through to find the dice patterns or make your own):
http://bit.ly/2GerVHb

Do your kids know one more? Practice in a number routine or number talk. Dominoes are great for this because they also have dice patterns on them! Select dominoes that have one on the second face and flash them or talk about them with the larger number on the right and the single dot on the left. After students discuss strategies for knowing one more, present the dominoes with the one dot on the left and the larger number on the right and see if they choose to start their sum with the larger side. Free domino cards (with flaps to cover the faces!) can be found here:
http://bit.ly/2FsgRsN

Next, are they comfortable with counting on? Number routines or counting circles will be your practice. Start from numbers that are not one, and continue counting. Focus on counting on from three, four, five and six. As you count on around the circle start with a new number every fifth or so student, rather than counting up into the 20s or 30s. Even roll a die as the number a student will start counting from! Now you are hitting recognizing a die roll, and counting on from it!

Last, it is the goal to transfer the three skills above to game time! Yes, may times they revert back to counting every pip so, how do you get them to stop? In small group or one-on-one, after identifying the roll, cover one of the dice with your hand. Ask the student how many dots there were on the hidden die. Then point to each pip on the second die and ask, "Four and this dot is...and this...and this. Some kids will want to show the number that is on the hidden die on their fingers. At first, let them. They are in a stage where they must see the counters so they remake them on their fingers when you hide the pips. Say, "How many did you count? Five? Ok, five (and cover their fingers and/or slightly move the fingers away/down) and this dot is...?" Again your goal is to get that first die or the fingers they bring out to be out of their vision or put away and held as a quantity with which to count on from. "Great. Five. There was five on that die. You counted five fingers. Great," and make sure there is a moment before your counting on to separate the recreation of that amount and to process the starting quantity.

Now, they are ready for numerals. Replace one of the dice with a numeral die. So, they are rolling a numeral die and a die with pips. I made a numeral die with numbers six, seven, and eight, and a pip die with one, two, and three. This gets very interesting. Some kids will once again want to get out their fingers for the number on the numeral die. That's ok but when working with that child, gently acknowledge the starting number they recreated, and cover it up with your hands. "You have seven here. We need three more." Direct their vision to the pips and say, "Seven was there," (gently move their fingers down or away a bit) and have them touch the pips to say, "This one makes eight, then nine, then ten."

With some gentle pushes in the direction of counting on and not representing the number that they can't see (because now it is a numeral), your pip counters, in time, will move to more advanced strategies.

Let the games begin!

Focusing a Highly Active, Distractible Student

SUCCESS with a capital S!
This school year I am going through MRIS (Math Recovery Intervention Specialist) training. It is nothing short of amazing. Finally, math intervention programing that is 100% developmentally appropriate, focused, sequential and aims to make a child a "whole mathematician" identifying gaps and getting all areas of math to line up, then advancing students along a trajectory. Enough about that.  Actually that's not enough but...this post is about working with the very lowest first graders who are hard to focus.
The first little guy I worked with in a one-on-one half hour session, was to say the least, all over the place. He repeated kindergarten and thus was starting his third year of school as a first grader and he did not have one-to-one, oral counting to 100, and he did not know how to show me 6 fingers. He would count one hand of fingers as sometimes 4, sometimes 5, sometimes 6, without noticing there was anything off.
In all truthfulness I was scared to take this boy...I was not confident that I could straighten this out. When he counted a group of counters, he used two hands and pushed the counters in every direction not knowing which he counted and which he didn't, starting and stopping and starting over many times. I should not say this but it frightened me. How, after two years of kindergarten, was he still doing this?
As I started with him, he could come down happy as a clam and once entering my room he was grabbing and noticing every single thing. "What's this? What's that up there on that shelf? Can I play with this? Ohhhh! A giant play dollar!" I wanted to strip my room bare- it was just too much for him that I had shelves and bins of stuff.
I started with activities such as counting a group of items and slowing down the count, using one hand, lining up the counters in a line or array, as you might expect. We worked next on finger flashes and that one hand was always 5, and on to subtilizing with dot cards...This little guy did the best he could but he was still very distractible and interrupting to ask questions, interject play ("this is my pizza for the homeless") notice things not on the table, and he would fall off of his chair frequently, or turn around and give me his back, ignoring me. I was trying to figure things out as his progress seemed very slow.
One day, I printed a generic board game from the Internet, and tried to do all of our little activities in the context of a game. He was excited. He chose two men to move. He was both of them. I did not even have to play. We started the game with him having to count a small group of counters and if he counted them correctly (checking by placing the counters in a 10-frame so he would then begin to recognize 10-frame numbers and how many more to make 10 or how many the number was past 5), he rolled a die, had to subtilize the die, and move his piece. After enough rolls with one-to-one practice, the next few turns were practicing finger-flashed numbers. He would finger flash the number, have to find its numeral from some number cards, and if correct, he pulled a tongue depressor that had dots on it that he had to subtilize and move. Literally the more skills he had to do before he moved, the better.
As his skills grew, his turns would be to read 2-digit numbers, tell me one more and one less, roll two die and add, then roll a final die and move that many.
THIS TOTALLY CALMED DOWN THIS LITTLE GUY'S ALL-OVER-THE-PLACENESS.
This boy never fell off of his chair again. He never looked away, laid on the table, or grabbed anything that he should not have, once I intertwined the activities. It really worked. BINGO!

So, the silly thing is that I took on a second student- a girl. This girl was physically not quite as busy as the boy (though she also falls off of her chair as a regular thing) but she would change the subject constantly any time the math got hard. Reminder after reminder...I even took her at different times of the day to see if that would help her off-task chatter, she was a happy gorgeous girl, but...a tough nut to crack.
I don't even know why it took me so long, but the other day after fretting over the slow progress with her, I was getting bored with the same session goals over and over and had to spice it up. I decided to pull out a generic game board. I did the same thing I did with the boy and for the first several turns on the game, she pulled a stick, read the 2-digit number and had to count on, then roll and move. She nailed it like she had not the day before without the game part of the session. The next few turns after that she had to count back. Nailed it. Then solve addition problems that got progressively harder, and finally missing addend problems until the game was over. Her off task chatter was MINIMUM. I don't know why I did not weave in more, sooner. When she left, my jaw was hanging open.

What calmed down these two kiddos could be a coincidence but...I have a little feeling I am on to something.

As I reflected on the effect of blending and mixing many things at the same time, I thought about the media and games students are playing. I remember when my daughter (now 24) was little and I got her a National Geographic VHS tape. It was called GeoKids. We watched it and it made my head hurt. It changed the visual every few seconds- images were fading in and out, swiping in from the side and bam- a new image continuously with very few lasting more than 10 seconds. I never thought she would like it. I grew up with the calming images of Jacques Cousteau and the humor of Gilligan's Island. This was a totally foreign style to me. Just maybe these sessions were more appealing to today's kids? I'll run with it!

Summer plans (per June 15th). Yes- feeling quite ambitious, I selected all of these fabulous books to read:

Summer reality:

Truthfully, this is what I have been into for June and July! But, in my defense, summer is the time to work on ourselves- is it not? Don't teachers spend all year putting themselves last? So, I am pretty excited about the work I have done- I am on the pathway to adopting a vegan lifestyle (I have wanted this for YEARS) and I am super proud of myself!
My goal is to get off of the medications I am on (cholesterol, daily migraine preventive(s) and sleep aids) and to eat clean and love all animals and the earth. If I lose weight in the process- BONUS!
So, if you have wondered where I have been, I am on an incredible journey toward health and happiness!
That being said, August is right around the corner and it is nearing time to focus on my personal summer PD. More later or sooner!

Ordering Numbers for Struggling Students

A first grader came to my room today for her intervention time, with a worksheet in her hand, asking for help. I looked it over: ordering three 2-digit numbers. The good thing is that we were working on reading 2-digit numbers correctly. We could kill two birds with one stone- practice reading the numbers on her sheet and then order them.
We worked hard to read the set of three numbers and then she would look at me, helplessly, with no idea how to order them. These numbers might as well have been German. I had to find a way for this to make some kind of sense to her.
I grabbed her old vertical number line (click here to go to the product on TPT) and some paper clips and had her find all three numbers on the number line and mark them with clips.

Then we talked about where smaller numbers were (bottom) and how they got bigger going up. She did have difficulty finding the numbers but this was the start of an important goal that she will reach no matter how long or how hard. I was happy to see her doing something herself with minimal help from me after a few that we did together. I think she did well!

Numbers to 1,000

Hi all,
Please excuse my absence. I have been doing some extensive soul searching and I mean extensive. I think all educators go through this from time to time. ;)
I am back and just posted an assessment I think other interventionists and classroom teachers will find will glean some good information on students' comfort level with numbers and how well they can work numbers mentally, etc. It is pretty comprehensive and is based on 2nd grade Common Core standards. So if you have some kiddos that are just not making it in 3rd, 4th, 5th or even 6th, click HERE and see what they can do in this range of numbers.

Help for Billy- The Meat

Love, love, love.

Sounds so simple. Surely all teachers have a loving heart- especially toward children. The book Help for Billy has a reigning theme of love as the single biggest factor in what will transform Billy from an explosive child who makes poor choices and who cannot regulate his emotions or reactions to a more calm, rational child who learns and grows. Love, understanding and support. And a great deal of it.
A strong traditional classroom management plan that uses rewards and consequences does not work to change Billy's explosive behavior, poor choices and work avoidance. Love will. As well as connection and support. Remember, Billy was not cared for properly when he was an infant and toddler. He lives in survival mode only caring about the next 15 seconds at a time. Consequences and right from wrong are not part of his 'in the moment' thought process. But you can help him and guide him to feel safe and begin choosing more appropriate responses to the things that brings Billy stress. Accept and understand Billy, love him, and move him forward starting from square one. You can make a difference. Do know it is not going to be easy. Help for Billy says it can take 6 to 8 months in your loving care. Read on to hear about a super cute, different, relationship based classroom management plan great for lower elementary. I LOVED this idea!

Billy Needs You! Notes from Chapters 4 and 5

Billy...Billy is the name the book Help for Billy uses to describe the student placed in your classroom who you are dreading having in the fall. Hopefully my previous blog posts have given you some insight as to why Billy behaves as he does. And what to do. Hopefully now you think you may be able to work with his unpredictable behavior in a new way. You will not judge, shame and lecture him, as his teachers in the past have done, but you will strive to be a support for him. Billy was never nurtured and soothed as a baby. He did not learn to deal with his feelings and he did not have someone there who cared or who answered his cries. His neglected upbringing wired his brain to live in a state of fear and overwhelm. Understanding this you make a goal to hear him out when he gets upset, and to do your best to have a connected relationship with him- both of which he has never experienced before. This is good news for Billy. But the bad news is, Billy needs more than that.

Changing the Cycle of Unpredictable Behavior with "Billy"

Top of the morning to ya! Yesterday's blog post was about changing how we deal with the "Billys" in our classrooms. "Billy" is the child who was not tended to as a baby. His cries were not heard, and needs were not met resulting in Billy living in a state of fear and overwhelm as his normal. He comes to school as child with an unstable foundation which schools try to build upon with rigorous academic and social expectations. Billy struggles to behave, concentrate, make friends and follow along. He functions in survival mode. The part of his brain that focuses on the next 15 seconds of life dictates his actions and choices. Billy can't plan ahead and reason through his responses. Due to his upbringing, he is not wired that way. Behavior plans don't work to keep Billy in line. He needs something different.

When Billy is losing it, he needs to be understood, heard, and empathized with. He needs to know he is not alone, and he is safe. He needs his feelings to be validated- he does not need to be reasoned with or reminded of the rules he broke. It goes like this:

Billy could not find a partner and is hiding under a table. He was yelling but now has shut down. He does not worry about how he looks to the other kids in the classroom. He perceives them as a threat, anyway. He feels unloved, unwanted, and stupid.
Teacher, "Billy, I see you are upset and angry right now. I would be too. It was not a good feeling to not know who your partner was going to be."
Billy, "Go away!"
Teacher, "This is upsetting you, I can see. I will be over here when you want to talk to me. Take your time."
Billy, "I hate school."
Teacher, "That must make your stomach upset to feel hate. Does your stomach hurt?"

Keep in mind Billy's past if you feel like you are coddling. He does not have an upbringing of nurturing. Most mothers treat their infants this way when they cry out and Billy needs this foundation. He will move forward from here, eventually. He needs to learn what a connected and trusting relationship feels like, first.

This truly worked for me at home with my adult daughter. Read on for my personal story.

What Does Work for Billy- How to Reach Billy

I'm excited to be back to share with you, what will work for kids like Billy. "Billy" is the kid that you are getting in the fall, and who you were hoping was placed in another classroom. Let's be honest. No one prays they get Billy. He has an unpredictable and explosive personality and does not respond to typical behavior plans. Yes, you have a place in your heart for Billy. If you didn't you would have never become a teacher. But you know the year is going to be a challenge with him.
Billy has been imprinted with chronic stress and overwhelm due to his upbringing where he was not loved, attended to and nurtured. He frequently fights or flees and it is hard to predict when because what we see as non-threatening, Billy perceives as a threat. A simple direction can set him off. He operates from the limbic system of his brain which focuses on 15 seconds of life at a time, Billy can therefore change on a dime. So, how can we help to change this disruptive cycle?  Read on.

Back on board with Help for Billy (to chapter 3)

Last June I got a tip on a good summer read, Help for Billy, which is about understanding and working with the most challenging of students- those who respond unpredictably with a fight or flight response. In short, this book has changed my entire outlook on what is going on with these kids, how to respond, and I am only half-way through the book! I can even credit this book with enabling me to have a better relationship with my 22-year-old daughter. I am so happy to be able to share what I have learned with you. Read on for my notes.

LOVE, LOVE, Help for Billy (Chapter 3, part 1)

Enough already of my LAZY behavior this morning! It is just soooooo addicting.
On to Helping Billy. Chapter 3 was sooo juicy that I have to break my notes for you up into 2 sections. I know how ADHD some teachers can be so little pieces at a time works best, right? (Speaking for myself here- and this will hardly be little!)

The human brain fascinates me. I love to read as much as I can about brain function and learning. Chapter 3 is about the 3 general parts of the brain. In short (as short as I can make it, anyway) the first part of the brain is the brain stem which runs what keeps us alive: heartbeat, breathing, etc. There is no shaping this part of the brain. It does what it does.
Next, and most important to understand as it relates to challenging students, is the limbic system which handles mood, memory, attention, emotions, pleasure, fear, relationships, fight or flight responses...The limbic system also records memories of good and bad experiences and behaviors. It is important to know that this area of the brain handles only the next 15 seconds of life and moment-to-moment survival. I'll get back to this.
Finally, the third area is what separates us from animals- the neocortex or the rational brain. This is where learning takes place, imagination, planning...Morals and ethics reside here. Hindsight, foresight, and insight. Right vs. wrong. And MUCH more.
Most and "good" students go about their day with the neocortex in charge. They can choose to delay responses after thinking them through. This part of the brain allows us to let an unimportant argument go, or to talk things out. It tells us that hard work pays off in the long run. It helps us work toward a goal. Or holds anticipated fears in check (You will be in trouble with Dad when he gets home!). Consequences are registered in the neocortex. Making decisions for the good of all happens here.
What comes next in the chapter, made so much sense! Read on for how all of this relates to challenging students.

Breakfast over Billy

Ahhhhh, summertime- when you can push the snooze three times just for fun. You are probably wondering why a teacher would even set an alarm in the summer, but I would literally sleep the morning away if I didn't.
Stumbling through my empty nest, careful not to trip over old Louie (15 in August!) who is comatose smack in the middle of the foyer, I pour my morning coffee and dislodge a small rock stuck to the bottom of my foot. Private Selection moca blend is my personal heaven. After shutting up my fat cat with a slice of turkey, and letting out my Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, I head to my recliner and wrap in a fuzzy blanket. I adore Michigan summer mornings when it is actually cold. 
Welcome to my book study series: Helping Billy.
Read on for my notes about chapters 1 and 2.

Counting and Skip Counting to 1,000

Happy April! I find springtime to be filled with happiness and anticipation (especially for Michiganders!) but also with stress as this is the last good chunk of days we have for teaching.
In the second grade classroom where I team teach, we have a pretty good number of high needs students with various issues. Two ESL brand new to America this year, two boys who are challenged to follow directions and need a great deal of support, one special ed., and she is the hardest worker I have ever seen (such a joy!), and two that are heading in that direction for the extremely slow growth they are showing, bless their hearts. Almost a Noah's Ark of a classroom, LOL. So, I have been procrastinating over taking these kiddos  into the world of 3-digit numbers when they can barely handle 2-digit. Yet, it is just a repeating pattern so why not present it as no big deal.
As I worked on gathering supports for these students, I saw the need to provide hundred charts for every hundred and I also wanted an "any hundred" chart where students see the pattern is the same as counting to 100 and can fill in the hundred they need (or just make the point and use this as a visual). 
I didn't need to use them long. And I also used them as answer keys for some of our activities- make your prediction and check your answer on the hundred chart that fits. But the most fun part of all was how big their eyes got over seeing just how many numbers there are to 1,000.
Click here to grab these on TPT and read on to hear about an extension activity I gave to my advanced students.

A.M. versus P.M.- Never Enough Resources

Students in second grade are expected (CCSS) to learn A.M. versus P.M. yet this is something that they don't necessarily hear and see much in daily life. Thus, it can be a hard concept to teach and for kids to retain. After I taught the one single lesson that was included in the math program that my district provides, I went on a hunt for more resources and frankly there is not that much out there. Yes- believe it or not, Pinterest did not glean me much. So, I had to make something myself.

When I give consideration to retaining knowledge that is not used that often, I always revert back to REO Speedwagon. I retain (for years and years) just about every word in every hit song they made. Therefore, I set out to bring some musicality to A.M. versus P.M. in the form of a poem. Which I wrote. To share with everyone. FREE>>> Click here.

If you are interested in more A.M./P.M. activities including my pre/post test, fill in the blank, sorting activity and more, all around the same basics that second graders can relate to, grab the full version here>>> A.M./P.M., for only $1.95.
Happy trails,

Subtraction Strategies Still Lacking?

Fellow teachers- did you ever have a student do 7 - 6 using their fingers? Even worse, have you ever seen a student do 8 - 8 on their fingers? I have and all I could think was, OUCH!
Fourth and fifth grade teachers- do you ever see your students, when executing a long division problem, borrow when subtracting 12 - 7? And then after the borrowing (or trading, or whatever you call it in your area), they still have 12 - 7 and they don't even notice that they got nowhere with all of that work?  It pains me every time!
I believe the problem in both of these situations is that students have no number sense. They are not looking at and thinking about the quantities of what they are subtracting and considering what strategy to use on the numbers involved.
Anchor charts can help as well as time and attention. Though I am sure you are over and done with teaching subtraction strategies this late in the year, as an interventionist, I still have to! And if fluency is suffering maybe you can't not hit this again!
Check out the product I made for help in these situations. It is a mega-pack of 10 subtraction strategy mini-lesson mini-posters, practice, flashcards, assessments, and even some games. There is a student interview sheet to see what strategies students need or are using, as well as a student data notebook graph.
If your district has done away with dreaded timed tests, these shorter fluency practice pages can be timed for how long students take to complete, with students trying to beat their previous score. If your district still mandates timed tests (like mine!) these will bridge the gap between the impossible and the possible with gradually increasing rigor.
I hope you find it useful. Stay tuned for posts/pics of the launch in my classroom.
See it in my TPT store here>>http://bit.ly/1OGaDO3
Happy subtracting!

Long Division Woes No More!

Long division is many a teacher's nemesis. As crazy as it sounds, I do love teaching long division. It stresses students out to no end. It stresses teachers out too- you can tell when a teacher is on long division- that look on their face as you pass them in the hall tells all! But that moment when a student finally gets it- there is nothing better! I created an organizer several years ago to help in the release of the responsibility from the teacher telling students the steps, to the students taking charge. I have used it for years and have not changed it. Watch the video on my Facebook page here>> http://on.fb.me/1SsZS9l to see my tier III intervention students using the organizer on day 2 of long division. 

Grab the organizer here for 99 cents! >> http://bit.ly/1oEAktj It works!

The Enrichment Project Continues

So, what has happened to the Enrichment Project? It is nearly dead in the water- BOO TO ME! As I reflect on my goal to spend 5 minutes a day with a high student in need of enrichment (my district has cut all elementary advanced or accelerated programming leaving it up to the teacher to differentiate and enrich high students), I can think of several reasons why this project is about dead.
First, it is all about the relationships. I started out the project reaching out to fifth, fourth and third graders that I knew were at or above level and who I thought might want to do extra math on top of the regular classroom curriculum and homework. I was hoping that this project would catch on like a forest fire and I'd have a line of kids waiting for my half-page extra math sheets. I think it is called delusions of grandeur. Anyway, I was wrong about that but I do have two students in the project. What now?