Mrs. Caudill’s Classroom Connection

Today was designated as “Fun Fact Friday”.  After talking to the students some more about World Maths Day (and my goal for this year’s challenge), the students spent their math time practicing their math facts.  Some chose to practice on Tutpup, some on the IXL site, and others on multiplication games that are on this blog.

We also had a little excitement this afternoon when the fire department was called due to a light fixture in the 3rd grade catching on fire.  Wow.  We had to spend a little bit of time in the gym building, but thankfully it was nothing major and we were able to return to our classrooms.

Well, we have been back to school for a week now and the fifth graders are really getting into the groove of things on the top floor!  We have continued working on routines and expectations and this week we have been working on our math class routine.

On Monday, fifth grade students registered for an account on tutpup.  On this web site, they can practice basic math skills by competing with other students in a timed game.  Sometimes that student may be in our classroom, but often it is a student in another country!  They have been very excited about this challenge.  We will be practicing our speed in order to prepare for the World Math Day Challenge!

We also began our unit on Geometry this week.  Our focus this week is on Geometry indicators #2 and #3 (please see my  Math W.A.G. page for details).  We have been working in our Coach books, taking notes, doing some classwork assignments and have worked on the first Study Island assignment for math.

Fifth graders REALLY got into the groove today when we sang and danced in math class!  I was very impressed with all three classes as they learned a song to help them remember the difference between parallel and perpendicular lines! Great job!

Today we continued with simplifying fractions.  We have been working with reducing fractions to lowest terms.  Students worked in groups to complete the first assignment.  When they were finished, their papers were checked.  Any missed problems had to be corrected before they moved on to their Coach page.  When they finished their Coach page, they worked on the Study Island lesson on Ratio and Percent Models.  Students who completed all of their work were able to challenge other students on tutpup.  They have really enjoyed this challenge!

Thanks, Cody, for the dark chocolate this morning.  It was a great mid-morning snack!  And, Katie, I’m enjoying the M&Ms now!  Thanks!

Today we took the traditional Math game “Around the World” to a new level!   I had the students register in my class at tutpup.  This is such a fun web site that makes you realize how close we really are to others in the world via computers and the internet!  They had a lot of fun creating their “screen name” and competing against students from around the world (and within our own class) with Math problems.  What a great way to get them to practice their math skills!   And FYI, anyone can join the fun at this web site.  I just had my students join in my class so that I can keep track of their progress.  This is really a great site for any age level to practice their math skills and learn a little geography, also!