What are the chances?

This week we have been learning about probability.  I have used things like spinners, dice, and bags of items to teach this concept.  

Today, my kiddos had the chance to create their own bag of items.  To begin, I gave each student a brown lunch bag.  I had several types of foam stickers that they could choose to put "in" their bag.  Once they had their items in the bags, they had to write statements about their bags using the words certain, impossible, most likely, least likely, and equally likely.  This made them really think about what to put in the bag so that they could use each term.

Here are some pictures of the activity.

Happy weekend!

Math Journals

When I first started blog stalking about a year and a half  ago, one of the first blogs I came across was Tales of Frogs and Cupcakes.  I immediately fell in love with Janaye's math journals!  She completely inspired me and I knew that I was going to have to get my kids making these notebooks!  I began midyear last year and my kids loved them!  They felt so grown-up and really used them to go back to when they couldn't quite remember something.  

So this year, we started from day one!  My kiddos are still excited to add new information and they use them all the time for reference.  "Look how thick these things are!" is something that I am hearing a lot lately.  They are not perfect, and I have already thought of some changes.  However, I am still pretty proud of them and wanted to share.  So without further ado, here's some pictures of our awesome journals.

 Overall, I am pleased with the way they are turning out.  Any suggestions?

Back to Blogging!

I can't believe how long it has been since I last posted!  Talk about slacking!  Like you all, I have been running full blast since school started in August. 

About a week before we actually started, we found out that our school was on the "low performing" list put out by the state and we would have to go an extra HOUR each day so that the students could receive extra interventions in reading.  I was thrilled to gain the extra hour since I wanted to implement the Daily 5 in my room.  Now I would have time!  However, what I didn't realize is how tired I was going to be!  I really thought that it would be no biggie and we would breeze through.  Boy, was I wrong!  I found myself dragging by the end of the day.  Now, however, we are smooth sailing and man are the kids making tremendous progress!

Check out this super cute group of kids!  This photo was taken after they recorded their "Story Elements" rap.  I am so blessed to have the opportunity to watch these kids grow and learn.  They are truly an amazing group!

Check back soon for a post on my interactive math journals inspired by Janaye of Tales of Frogs and Cupcakes.