Mathematical Magic!

Thanks to a teacher from TN (Ansley), I now have ANOTHER awesome game to add to my toolbox and so will you!  Here are the directions (the gist).  I'm hoping this link will take you to a video of the game ( Magic 10 Video ).
1)  Remove the jokers.  Have someone pic a "mystery card".  This mystery card cannot be an ace or a facecard.
2)  Deal out 11 cards face up.
3)  Begin making bonds of 10 by covering two cards at a time.  10s and facecards are an exception and get covered as 10s without a pair.
4)  When all cards have been used, pick up piles that make a bond of ten.  There should be one pile left.  It will bond with the mystery card--you'll know the mystery card by seeing the last pile and how it bonds with 10.
Wow!  It's Math magic!!

Budding Organization

There are many ways to stay organized, but this one caught my eye yesterday in my buddy classroom (4th grade).  When using earbuds, each student can bring their own so there's no ear wax sharing and you can store them by their class number in a plastic organizer of your choosing.  Then, if you really want to go crazy with organization.  You can have your students learn to wrap their earbuds using their pointer finger and thumb. There are numerous versions of wrapping available on the internet. This might be a way to keep sanitary and sane all in one swoop of the earbud!

Success Breeds Success

Wow!  When a student feels success, don't you too!?  Yesterday, in my buddy classroom, a formerly reluctant Math student was overjoyed to say she was the first one to memorize all of her Math facts AND to receive a 3 in Math (proficient).  Previously, she was a student who'd been pulled out for remedial Math and who said on the first day I was in her class "I'm not very good at Math."  Her classroom teachers works diligently to build her confidence by doling out successful opportunities one at a time and this young Math cherub is taking it ALL in.   She writes about Math during her Writing Block, she takes Math home with her, she willingly shares her work (even if it's not quite right, but her thinking is good), and she's thrilled to reach goals she sets for herself (like mastering those multiplication facts).  What are you doing to provide a Math environment where "success breeds success?"

The Nerdy Notebook

Over the years, I have fine tuned a system for tracking my lesson plans (from when I was teaching) to do lists, my notes from meetings and conferences, phone calls, and upcoming/parking lot type of thoughts.  Friends and colleagues fondly refer to (and now so do I) as the "Nerdy Notebook."  Every year, I spend time decorating the cover to remind me why I work so hard (good quotes, pictures of loved ones, etc.) and then I begin to add content.  This is a place I "noodle" (notetake + doodle = noodle) and think on paper.  I tab important information by using two sticky dots on either side of the paper to create a cheap and easy tab and I refer back to these notes often!  You won't see me very many places without this essential documentation and organizational tool.