Managing Math

Manipulatives
Walter Rogoza

Day One:

A. Introductions: teachers first, then yourself.

What did you like, dislike about your own math education?

What could have been done to improve your understanding?

B. Parrot Math: what it is, and why it isn’t effective.

a. Focuses on memorization
b. Children who can memorize formulas don’t know when to apply them.
C. Jean Piaget: studies in cognitive development in children
a. 4 basic stages: concrete, pictorial, symbolic, abstract
b. Each stage must be addressed in this order for learning with understanding
c. Illustrate stages on the board: i. 3 cookies + 2 cookies ii. Pictures of 3
cookies etc.
iii. Three/3 cookies + Two/cookies iv. Done in your head
1. NUMBER SENSE AND NUMERATION (apply cpsa when possible)
A. The Principles of Counting: see sheet
B. 5 and 10 frames: with cups and 2 colour counters: combinations of 10; make ten
eg. 8 + 4
C. Base 10 blocks:
a. laying the foundation of place value;
b. addition of tens; regrouping with addition to hundreds.
c. Subtraction: borrowing
D. Dot Plates (subitization) counting on, doubles
E. Patterns on the hundred chart: add two, add 10, subtract 5, etc.
a. Invisible hundreds chart
F. Multiplication: times tables using transparent bingo chips
a. Show how 3 x 4 is the same as 6 x 2
b. Record your results: pictorially and symbolically
c. Use blank 100s grid to place your bingo chips
G. Learning the times tables on a chart: what do you really have to learn.
a. Zero and 1 times; 10 times
b. Doubles
c. Five times
d. Tricks for the nine times table; using fingers / 9x2 = 18
e. RHYMES: 6 X 7 is 42, I like ice cream, how about you?
f. The six times table is double the 3 times table: model with chips
H. Division: modelling with counters, squares or bingo chips
a. 6 divided by 2
b. 7 divided by 2, results in 1 left over called a remainder.
c. 12/2 12/3 12/4 12/5 12/6
d. Modeling long division, with subtraction with a remainder.
I. Fraction Strips
a. Pre-test : which is bigger: ½ or ⅓? Add ½ + ⅔.
b. Cut strips and provide paper clip. Make observations about relationships.
c. Do activities on Fraction Strips Sheet.
d. Fractions with blocks: equivalent fraction blocks sheet
e. Operations with fractions sheet

J. Decimals with place value blocks

Wholes (flat) . Tenths 0.1 1/10 Hundredths 0.01 1/100

(rod) (unit)
3 . 4 7
 a. Sometimes when we’re given something, like money or a chocolate bar, we
don’t want to use the whole thing right away, but only a part. We can divide
a chocolate bar into 10 equal pieces, and each of these pieces can be divided
into 10 pieces, and so on.
b. Make numbers: using spinner
c. Do activities from Place Value Chart with Decimals sheet
d. Operations with Decimals sheet using 100 square
K. Per cents, Decimals and Fractions
a. Using the 100 square to teach operations with decimals
L. Make 24 Game: with the face cards removed, select 4. Using whatever operation
you like, see if you can come up with 24 as the answer.
M. The importance of the equal sign:
a. Using a balance scale, put 10 squares on one pan and 15 on the other. What
do you have to do to balance them?
b. ▬ + 3 = 5 + 2

2. GEOMETRY AND SPATIAL SENSE

A. Using Geoboards: see activity pages
B. Using polydrons: (drawing 2d shapes from 3d solids)
a. Nets for a cube: how many different nets can you make from a cube.
b. How many nets do not create the cube?
c. How many nets can you make for a tetrahedron or rectangular based
pyramid?
d. What different solids can you form from the polydrons?
C. Using pop cubes
a. Using nine pop cubes, create a structure.
b. Draw the 3d structure in 2d on isometric dot paper
D. Naming 2D shapes and 3D Solids
a. Million Dollar Pyramid
b. Incorporate SLIDE for triangles and PaRRTS for rectangles
c. Is a square a rectangle??
E. Vocabulary for geometry
F. Geometer’s Sketchpad Software
G. Using MIRAS for symmetrical drawings.
H. Geometrical solids
I. Tangrams for developing spatial awareness
a. Have students recreate the square
b. Create other creatures: trace the outline and see if their classmates can
recreate the original configuration
3. MEASUREMENT
A. Linear
a. Using a metric tape measure, find out what is a mm, cm, dm and
metre.
b. How many mm in a cm, cm in a dm, mm/cm/dm in a m?
c. Locate your personal meter on your body.
d. Find out how many steps in a meter, then count out 1000 meters to get
an idea of a kilometre.
B. Temperature
a. Using a thermometer calibrated in degrees Celsius, take the
temperature inside your fridge, the freezer, the classroom, running
water, your armpit, etc.
b. Make a chart of your findings.
C. Mass
a. Using a spring scale from the science lab, weigh a variety of objects in
the classroom.
b. Using a bathroom scale, weigh heavier objects or get volunteers from
the classroom.
D. Volume
a. Using a graduated cylinder from the science lab and other unmarked
jars, glasses and bottles, determine the liquid measure of each. After
a few measures, see if students can estimate the correct measure.
E. Measuring angles
a. Use the two interlocking paper plates to show angles.
b. Show the complete circle compass to show degrees.
F. Bring in items from home with different weights and measures.

4. PATTERNING AND ALGEBRA

A. Create patterns with colour tiles. (one attribute)

a. Repeating patterns
b. Growing patterns
c. Shrinking patterns
B. Create patterns with attribute blocks (two attributes)
C. Create patterns with pattern blocks (changing orientation)
D. Create growing patterns with toothpicks
a.
b. Create a T chart
 c. The columns will read: Number of the pattern(P)/ number of
toothpicks (T)

1 4
2 7
3 10
4 13
d. How does the pattern grow? Add 3
e. How can you tell how many toothpicks will be in the 10th set?
i. P x 3 + 1 = T
ii. 10 x 3 + 1 = 31
E. Create growing patterns with pop cubes.

a.

b. Create the T chart.

Pattern Cubes
1 1
2 5
3 9
c. How does the pattern grow? +4
d. P x 4 – 3 = c
F. Create growing patterns with pattern blocks: see bag for ideas.
G. With a colour tile as your center, place tiles around for each “go round”.
a. The chart will read 1/1; 2/8 etc.
b. Create square patterns
c. Create cube patterns
H. Attribute Blocks
a. Sort blocks to determine what the attributes are
b. On grid paper, arrange blocks so the ones touching are different
by one attribute.
c. Arrange blocks so they are different by two attributes.
I. INTEGERS
a. Using two colour counters, or square tiles or algebra tiles, lay the
ground rules for integers: a positive and a negative cancel each
other out.
b. Show me +3, -3, then show me the same in other combinations.
c. Do sheet: Operations with integers.
J. Working with variables for the first time
 a. Using page with 2 “jets” on it, have students create a coloured
version with pattern blocks.
b. Find two different versions and tape the blocks to the board.
c. Write the “equation” for each
d. Begin to subtract the same items from each side.
e. Determine what equals what.
K. Algebra Tiles
a. 3x + 1 – 2x + 4
b. This process can be used with problems containing x2.
c. (2x2 + 5x – 3) + (-x2 + 2x + 5)
d. (2x2 – 2x + 3) – (3x2 + 3x – 2)
5. DATA MANAGEMENT AND PROBABILITY
A. Charts
a. Using Microsoft Office: Go to : Insert
b. Then chart: leaving the first cell blank, type your categories in each
succeeding horizontal cell.
c. Below the empty cell, list the groups who have participated in the survey
d. Fill in the data for each.
e. The chart automatically transfers to the document.
f. ADD your title after the chart has been included.

OUR FAVOURITE ICE CREAMS

6

Chocolate
3
Vanilla
Ripple
2

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Grade 1 Grade 2 Grade 3 Grade 4

B. Spinners: two types: pencil and paper clip or purchased spinners