Commas, Commas, Commas

Do your kiddos remember their commas?  Mine do!  (okay, most of the time)  I don't introduce commas by telling the kiddos the rules.  Instead, I have them come up with the rules themselves.  I give them a Comma Hunt paper and with a partner, they search through books to find three different ways that they see commas being used by real authors.  They try to find 3 examples to prove it is a rule.  Then they try to come up with a rule to present to the class. 

Once we discuss possible rules as a group, we create an anchor chart together.  I have the rules printed out and cut out already, so that I can easily glue them on.  We talk about the rules one at a time and the kiddos are THRILLED when they discover their rule is real!  I use examples the kiddos give me to record on the anchor chart.

For the next lesson, students search through books to find one example of each rule being used correctly.  They love this.  It gives them a real sense of ownership because they were involved in "making" these rules.  I tell them to make sure the authors used commas correctly, so the kiddo think they are looking for an author to make a mistake. =)

We leave the anchor chart up all year, and my little darlings refer to it often.  Enjoy!

I hope you can use this in your classroom!

Amy

Singapore Sunday: Math Resources

Hello Teaching Friends!  So, we thought it would be fun to Blog about Singapore Math Resources every Sunday.  Even if you don't teach Singapore Math, you can still use these strategies in your classroom!  To make sure you don't miss out, Follow us and make sure to follow us with your email address! Find the little form on the sidebar on the right.  Yes, that right over there!

Below you will find a little smartboard lesson you can download that teaches about Number Bonds.  This is an important Mental Math Strategy in Singapore Math that I refer to constantly with my kiddos.  We are still talking about it in third grade and we are learning about time!  I have included an anchor chart that I keep up to "Anchor" my students' thinking all year long.  This takes Number Bonds to a higher level, using Bonds to Branch.




Smartbook File

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