Active Averaging

My kiddos have been extremely active in math class this week.  Students have been gathering data, measuring, and calculating average while hopping, stacking, and jumping!  We have all had a blast, and these activities have helped my little ones become masters of averaging!  They are even asking to practice calculating averages as early finisher activities :)

After a week of testing, this unit it JUST what they needed to refresh their brains and remember that math can be fun!  Here are a few pictures of my students actively averaging.

A Minute to Win It Stacking Challenge: Students stacked as many square tiles as possible in one minute. They completed three trials then took the average.

 Hop To It Challenge: Students calculated the average number of hops completed in one minute.

Today in class we completed our favorite activity so far: The Long Jump Challenge!  Students did three trials of standing jumps, measured the distance, and took the average distance jumped. So fun!

 All of these activities can be found in my newest unit on TPT. Click on the picture below to check it out :)

After Testing Art

Testing is complete!  Hooray!  My kiddos are absolutely exhausted, so today was filled with art :)  My class is taking a trip to Grand Isle at the end of April to learn about barrier islands and protecting our coast.  The students will be planting Bitter Panicum plants in order to prevent erosion!  We are super excited about this trip, and to prepare, we have been learning about Louisiana wetlands.  Today my students were inspired by looking through Marsh Mission books illustrated by CC Lockwood.  The kiddos used oil pastels to create beautiful pieces of artwork, and of course, I was super impressed!

 Oh, and I have to share the super sweet flowers that a student sent me thanking me for preparing him for testing. I'm sure you all know how wonderful it is to feel appreciated!

I do love when testing is over because we can finally relax and have fun while learning :)  Next week my kiddos will be experimenting with my new unit: Not Your "AVERAGE" Math Unit.  We will be learning how to find averages while collecting data and measuring.  Here is a sneak peek...

Have a fabulous weekend!

April Currently and Fraction Review Stations!

I just love linking up with Farley over at Oh Boy Fourth Grade for the monthly "Currently" linky.  I just cannot believe April is already here.  This year has been a wild ride but it sure has gone by super fast!

Listening:  I listen to Pandora every morning!  Music gets me going, and I honestly think it makes me more productive. One of my favorite stations is The Fray radio!

Loving:  I am LOVING this Spring weather. It is so nice to walk outside in my light weight clothes, and I am of course taking each and every opportunity to wear wedges. 

Thinking, Wanting, Needing...see below!

This week we are reviewing for the iLEAP test, which is Louisiana's third grade standardized test.  Every day I am reviewing a different math skill with my students in hopes that their brains will be rejuvenated and ready for Monday's math test!  I feel like there is so much to review, but so little time.  Yesterday was all about fractions and my kiddos loved rotating to mutiple review stations.  Check it out!

 These Fraction Review Test Prep Cards have been a lifesaver! My kiddos really love working together to solve the problems, and love coaching one another when the opportunity arises :)

 I got these How Did You Solve It? common core review cards from Lakeshore.  I like how the set includes a variety of question types, especially the questions that ask for explanations. The standards are also printed on the cards to help teachers review the exact skills needed!

 My kiddos LOVE any type of SCOOT activity. They completed the SCOOT about a month ago during our fractions unit, but loved completing the set again during review stations.  You can find this SCOOT included in my Fractions Test Prep Review Cards set.

 I bought these little gems at the end of the year last year, and I'm sure glad I did!  If your students are like mine, they love anything dry erase.  Lakeshore's Common Core Math Practice Cards are great for buddy or independent math groups. They are able to switch out cards by standards, and the kiddos can check the answers by flipping to the back.   Oh, and the Math PLINKO was a huge hit!  Students at this station were able to review a variety of concepts, and loved the game show feel of the Plinko board.  Some of the cards are challenging, so I put those into separate bags for my Challenge group.

While my students were working together, I had time to pull each of my leveled math groups to work on anything and everything fractions.  Let's hope all of these strategies pay off on Monday :) 

Hours and Last Day:
I usually leave my house at 6:30 and get to school around 7:00.  I sometimes have duty at 8:00 and my kiddos come in at 8:20.  Dismissal is at 3:20, and I usually don't get home until 4:30-5:00.  Looooong days.  I am counting down until May, of course, but we begin school the first week of August. Summer isn't as long as it should be :)