I'm always trying to think of new ways to make learning fun, interactive, and interesting. Check out the new technology and hands-on activities that have been keeping my first graders engaged and excited about learning!
Q-ball!
The Q-ball is a new form of classroom technology; it's a microphone ball that silences while being thrown, then connects to my speakers through Bluetooth when held still. Students are encouraged to raise their hand and participate so they can catch the Q-ball and hear their response on my speakers!
Personal whiteboards!
Another new addition to our classroom is our set of personal whiteboards, which are especially useful during math. There's something special about doing math problems with whiteboard markers than plain old pen and paper and engagement has been high! Students work on the projected problem and hold up their answers for me to see. They've really been improving their ability to represent word problems with pictures and ten-frames! We've been getting lots of practice with the strategy of making ten to solve addition problems.
Hands-on Math Centers!
My students have been loving the hands-on math activities and games that we've been doing to practice decomposing numbers as well as our fluency with addition and subtraction.
Last, but not least...I wanted to share a special moment from last week --
In my classroom, we often have a "Secret Student" of the day. All day long, I carefully watch this mystery student to see if they are following our classroom rules, staying on task, doing their best, and being kind. At the end of the day, if they have been successful, I reveal who the Secret Student is and that person earns a special reward. When Sebastian was announced as the successful Secret Student of the day, many students cheered for him and went in for a group hug! I absolutely LOVE seeing when my students are kind and happy when others succeed. This was a happy teacher moment for me. 💕
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