Math
Throughout the year, students are required to learn how to collect data and how to make graphs. There are plenty of graphs to look at and questions to answer in their math book or math workbook as practice however it is important to show students how we can relate it to their daily lives. Instead of using the material given to them, students made their own surveys to give to the first, second, and third grade students at our school. They collected the data themselves in a chart they made and then used that information to make a graph.
When we learned about double bar graphs and double line graphs, I found information that was valuable to my students. I recorded the number of pages each student had read from the reading competition we were doing in class and compiled it in a data chart. They then compared their number of pages read to an assigned classmates. Finally, they reflected on what they saw in the graphs and wrote a few sentences describing it. Not only did this show them how to graph but it also proved that they can graph anything information they want from their life.
Multiplication is a skill that I make sure all of my students have before leaving 4th grade. We spent ample time practicing this skill since it is such an important one to have. As a way to improve their multiplication facts, students complete "mad minutes" twice a week to see how many problems they can solve in one minute. We immediately check the drill as a class and students then graph their results in their math notebook so they can chart their growth. We also play games such as a baseball multiplication to reinforce these facts in an innovative way using dice.