Bridges Blog Archive for Resource

Looking for a little summer reading? I've been enjoying David Moursund and Robert Albrecht's new ebook, Using Math Games and Word Problems to Increase the Math Maturity of K-8 Students. (Follow link to view Table of Contents and Sample Chapter.)

Guest blogger, Shelly Scheafer, teaches 1st grade in the Bend-LaPine School District, Oregon. Here she suggests a wonderful idea to complete the year. It could be modified to fit a variety of grade levels and mathematical content.

It's the end of the year. What will you do with the Math Story Problems the students created?

Guest blogger Sydney Cohn is a first-grade teacher at Hopkins Elementary School in Gwinnett County, Lilburn, Georgia.

By now we've all heard of the need to reach our bodily-kinesthetic learners. It's such a treat when we are able to do this during our math lessons. Yes, there's the obvious jumping or hopping while you are skip counting, but how about a life size 100s grid outside?

Did you know that The Math Learning Center is a non-profit organization? As such, many resources are offered free online. Please visit the Free Stuff page to find Bridges Practice Books and Supplement Sets as well as a host of sample materials.

Looking for a rap to examine 3-D shapes? Pia Hansen, author of Bridges Grade 3, sent in a link to a YouTube video, 3D Shapes I Know. The rap includes four shapes--sphere, cylinder, cube and cone--with many, many "real world" examples pictured. It's catchy. "Here are the 3-D shapes that. I. know." I'm having a hard time getting it out of my head!

Where is the SMath? is a blog designed to help students recognize the Math and Science found in daily life. A description from the site:

Each post will include a picture depicting Math, Science or both (Smath). Many times the connections will be obvious to students, while other times the connections to "Smath" may be revealed as teachers facilitate discussion about the image through their questioning.

In Grade 5, Unit 7, Bridges students explore and discuss doubling patterns after reading the book, The King's Chessboard. The Paired Books Strategy would be a natural extension to this lesson.