Wednesday, October 9

Hi parents,

We had a pretty good day today all around. In the morning, I worked with the Grade 2 students on solving 2-digit subtraction problems using the Golden Beads material. This material makes it easier for students to visualize the process of 'borrowing' when they solve a problem like: "52 - 26 = __ ". I noticed that some students are already familiar with the traditional written algorithm, which made me very happy, because it is often one of the most challenging things that Grade 2 students have to learn all year! So, thank you all for the math work you do at home - it makes a gigantic difference. 

I also had a chance to work with the Grade 1 students on subtraction and number representation, also using the Golden Beads material. The kids were very quick to see the convenience of using the '10 bars' to show groups of 10, instead of painstakingly counting out 10 tiny, rolling, hard to pick up, beads. 

Retro Golden Beads footage, c. 1996

After Gym, we had a class discussion about the month of October, and all the exciting things that happen during it. We have five different students who have birthdays in October, and lots of sibling, parent, and pet birthdays too, so the class had lots of reasons why October is a fun month.

In the afternoon, we had Daily 5, Music, and some time to play a whole class math game called "Classroom of Doom". The kids did a great job with this game and kept the noise level surprisingly low!

Remember that Friday is a PD Day, so our Spelling Quiz will be Tomorrow! Good luck!

Also... I am sorry to post this again, but I am still missing a lot of coupon books / payments for coupon books... If you are not interested in buying an ADmazing Savings book, please send it back tomorrow! If you are interested in buying one, please send the $25 to school tomorrow. Thank you very much in advance! :)

Have a good night,

Zac