Tuesday, March 18, 2014

Addition Arrays and Cereal


We've been having so much fun AND learning a ton in math lately by using repeated addition to find the total number of objects in an addition array. It's taken us a while to get to this point, but the hard work has paid off. Read on for several FREE activities:

We first learned how to partition rectangles.  
Click on the picture below to get this introduction activity for free! 
{Freebie} Partitioning Rectangles: An Introduction Activity

We practiced partitioning rectangles (and circles) with two centers that are included in this product. Click on the picture and download the preview to get the Rectangular Arrays center for free! 
Math Centers for 2nd Grade (3rd Quarter - Common Core)


After that, we watched a short video on Learn Zillion that introduced using repeated addition to find the total number of objects in an array. 

www.LearnZillion.com

If you're not familiar with the AMAZING website, you need to be -- it will become your BEST FRIEND. Learn Zillion is a FREE website that hires teachers to create short videos and lesson plans for EACH Common Core Standard for ELA and Math,  from grades K-12. In addition to that, they have resources available for parents. I love this website because they have short video clips that I can show my students that teach each standard (plus it helps me learn other ways to teach and explain the standards). Check it out and share it with your teacher friends.  Click here to be taken to Learn Zillion. 

Now it was time to incorporate FOOD! 

I told students to write the following:

Then they drew lines for the rows and columns (this tied directly to the 4-minute video we watched from Learn Zillion)
    
     First the rows.                        Then the columns. 

Next we drew dots where the row and column lines intersected. This helped the students to visualize where they'd need to place the Cheerios. 

It was finally time to arrange the Cheerios into an array. 


Now I required students to write a number sentence, using repeated addition, to find the sum of the Cheerios used in the addition array.
 This equation matches the rows...

and the second one matches the columns. 

We practiced and reviewed these steps several times. When they were ready to move on, I challenged them to create the array WITHOUT using the line. Surprisingly, they did great! I think all the practice and baby steps leading up to this helped a lot. 



And since it was St. Patrick's Day on Monday, we had to incorporate some Lucky Charms. 

Every time my students correctly made an array with their cereal, I let them eat all the pieces of cereal used. They ended up having a ton of fun, we accidentally went 10 minutes into recess and they were totally fine with it. 

Click here to download the following worksheet using stickers to create addition arrays. I'm going to pass this out for homework in a few days.
worksheet border provided by: Krista Wallden
worksheet font provided by: Wizard of Boz


Create-Abilities has a  FREE assessment on TpT. Check it out!
FREE Addition with Arrays Formative Assessment for 2nd Gra


How do you teach using addition to find the total number of objects in an array? I'd love to hear about the activities you do in your classroom.

1 comment:

  1. I love this project. My students will love this hands on with the cereal. Thanks for the idea!

    ReplyDelete