Makin' it Math Mid-Month Linky -- March

Good day!  Thanks for stopping by for our Makin' it Math mid-month linky!

Wanted to share a few things that have been going on in the classroom and a few made-it to go with them...

First, we just had open house this past week and I asked my kids to reflect on their learning thus far this year with a "Glow & Grow". This is something that can be done any time during the school year.  Students simply write something they are able to do well after all of their hard work and help, and they write about something with continued effort is an area they will "grow"/improve. Loved to see some of the students' reflections about math!  Feel free to download a copy to use with your students.

Second, we explored fractions with pizzas this week.  I purchased Amy Lemons' Pizza Fractions and adapted it for my students.  We used all of the toppings and pizza template divided into fourths and added four toppings to cover one fourth, one half, three fourths, and the whole pizza.  Students began by choosing a topping to use on the whole.  Then a topping to use only on a fourth, on half, and finally three fourths.  Afterward, they completed the sheet shown below.  This really tested their understanding of equal-sized shares of a whole and how to represent fractions by adding toppings accordingly.  Not to mention, it was fun!  You can use the sheet I created with other pizza fraction activities, so snag it if you like.

Lastly, we explored fractions with foods (faux foods) this week in guided math groups.  Students are developing a solid understanding of fractions at the second grade level and LOVED using the foods.  I shared this made-it in a previous post, but I decided to share it again here.  So many possibilities for using these gems, so you will want to download them!

Hope you find this month's made-it useful!  Have a blog and want to share your math-made its in a post? We would love to have you link up below!

All the best for the coming week--

An InLinkz Link-up

2nd Grade Masterpieces: Art with Fractions

Happy Saturday! I just wanted to share something my kids did this week that turned out fabulously.  Even though it was a last minute idea, the kids created some wonderful masterpieces, learned about fractions, and had a lot of fun.  So easy!

Every year we explore fractions by folding wholes into parts (halves, thirds, and fourths) and talk about how each part represents a share of the whole, begin to use the language of fractions (halves, thirds, and fourths), and learn that two halves make up one whole (thirds and fourths as well).  I decided to do this with my kids on Thursday and go a step further and use their folded wholes to create a piece of art.  Below are directions, if you are interested in trying this with your students... 

2nd Grade Fraction Masterpieces

Materials Needed:

• 4.5" square pieces of black construction paper, 4 for each student
• oil pastels
• 11" OR 11.5" square pieces of black paper (for mounting squares--depending on how much space you ant between and bordering the folded squares.  I used 11" square pieces for mounting.

Step-by-Step Directions:

1. Give each student four, 4.5" square black pieces of construction paper.  Have students set one sheet on the corner of their desks.  This piece will not get folded and represents a whole that has not been divided into parts.
2. Have students fold the next piece from corner to corner (in half).  They may fold it to create two rectangular parts or two triangular parts.  Talks about the number of parts show after folding and opening the paper.  This piece represents a whole divided into two parts, into halves.
3. Have students fold the next piece to create three parts.  You may want to mark this piece for students where the 1/3 fold will be and demonstrate folding.  Talk about the number of parts shown after folding and opening the paper.  This piece represents a whole divided into three parts, into thirds.
4. Finally, have students fold the last piece to create four parts. They may fold it to create four square parts, four rectangular parts, or four triangular parts.  Talk about the number of parts shown after folding and opening the paper. This piece represents a whole divided into four parts, into fourths.
5. Then students use the fold lines to help guide them in coloring the parts of each piece different colors.  Oils pastels work best because they do not smear like chalk pastels and the colors really pop on black paper. 

Mounting:

• Fold each 11" or 11.5" square piece of black paper into fourths.  
• Use double stick tape to mount each student's four pieces to the black paper, starting with the unfolded whole and ending with the whole divided into fourths.
• The fold lines will help guide you in mounting the squares an equal distance apart (from the fold lines).

Display! 

AND, you will have engaged your students in an understanding of the following Common Core Standard for Mathematics:
CCSS.Math.Content.2.G.A.3
Partition (circles and) rectangles into two, three, or four equal shares, describe the shares using the words halves, thirds, half of, a third of, etc., and describe the whole as two halves, three thirds, four fourths. Recognize that equal shares of identical wholes need not have the same shape.

I can also see this same project done with wholes divided into more parts in addition to those shown (sixths and eighths).  If you decide to try this project, I would love to hear how it turned out and what your kids thought of the experience.

Can't wait for the kids to surprise their parents with their masterpieces at open house this coming week and listen to what they tell their parents. Anticipating a lot of wonderful math talk!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend and the week ahead---