Subtraction

We have been learning to subtract 3-digit numbers using several different strategies. The students have practiced subtracting in parts, adding up, and subtracting back.

Students:
1. Which subtraction strategy do you think is the easiest to use?
2. If my problem was 321 - 248, how would you solve it?
3. How do you use addition to check your answer?

If you need help remembering which strategy is which, watch me explain the srategies by clicking HERE.

Guided Math

I organized my Guided Math stations a little differently this year (thanks to the inspiration from a fellow teacher at my school), and it has worked very well. We try to get to our groups 2-3 times per week. This is how it is organized on my board.

I have 5 stations.
-Small Group
-Independent Practice
-Games
-Technology (usually something on the SMART board, laptops, or ipods)
-Math Journals

The students rotate through each station, usually staying at each for about 15 minutes.

If they need anything for any of the stations, it is organized in the corresponding file folder. They know where to find the materials for each station, so management is pretty easy.

Students: What is your favorite guided math station?

Engineering Unit

The students have been working through the steps of the engineering design process for the past couple of weeks.  (Imagine, Plan, Design, Improve, Share)  We have been studying industrial engineering.  Their task was to design a subysystem for a potato chip factory to move a load a certain distance across the floor and then up to the table.  They had to think about the amount of fore it would take as well as the ergonomics.  They did a GREAT job being creative and using the data they collected when testing the simple machines to help them create their plans. 

Watch our animoto below to see the students in action!