Math Musings

I have a confession to make.  I don't *love* math.  Okay, that's not much of a confession to those who know me.  But, the funny thing is, I actually quite enjoy teaching it.  I guess it's true what they say about teachers teaching best the skills and concepts they struggle(d) with the most.  I think I spend a lot of time thinking about ways to make math engaging.  When I first started out, math was the subject I dreaded the most.  The textbooks were boring and I hated the constant worksheets and marking. It wasn't long before I broke up with my textbook and began creating my own program. Three years later, I am very comfortable with the learning outcomes for the grade 2 program. Now, I look forward to introducing new concepts because I get to search the internet for ways to make my lessons interesting and interactive.  My lessons are more hands-on than they used to be.  Differentiation no longer scares me.  I have all kinds of at-home practice materials, as well as in-class review and enrichment work available.

This year I am using:

1. XtraMath & Rocket Math (in place of traditional math drills)
2. Mathletics (2X per week for 20 minutes + at-home practice)
3. Teacher-created booklets compiled from worksheets from the Mathletics website, SuperTeacher Worksheets, Education Creations, and various teacher blogs
4. Math Centre activities downloaded from various teacher blogs and assembled by yours truly.

I'd like to thank Erica at Erica Bohrer's First Grade , Cara at The First Grade Parade, and Abby at The Inspired Apple for renewing my interest in centre activities.  Be sure to check out their blogs for tonnes of free printables!

I tend to use my projector a lot when presenting concepts to the students. You can check out my class blog for interactive games and tutorials, organized by topic (on the left-hand side).  Although my links are always a work in progress, there are many great gems I have discovered online:

Ms. Chatz's Class

What did teachers do before the internet?  They must have wasted lots of time reinventing the wheel!

What works for you? Do you use a textbook or math program?