Math Difficulties

Recently someone asked the following question on my special ed forums:

“We have a student in a mainstream classroom who is diagnosed with a developmental delay and is having a lot of trouble with Math. He is in Grade 4 but operating more at a Grade1/2 level. What are some of the strategies we can use to help him? Memorizing timetables or continuously reviewing addition/subtraction is not going to work.. My thoughts were to give him visuals (timetable chart etc) and focus on using these visuals to solve math problems instead. Any ideas would be great.”

Here is my answer:

Depending on what skill he is learning, I use cue cards listing the procedure that needs to be followed to solve the problem. I list each step that students must take so they can refer to it as they solve the problem. I call it a "help sheet" and students love the idea of having a visual helper beside them.

I also teach the students to use a calculator to solve equations rather than wasting time trying to get them to memorize math facts. Sometimes, they end up learning the facts easier because they keep putting the same equation in the calculator and don't have to put some of them in anymore.

What suggestions would you give this teacher? Please share.

Photo by Chris Liverani on Unsplash

3 Printable Activities for Kids to Help With Shoe Tying

(Guest Post: Corey Doane is a digital content creator who helps Adidas create helpful and compelling stories worth sharing. Her background in digital marketing and creative writing has led her to cover unique topics ranging from business to eco to lifestyle. )

Teaching kids how to tie their shoes is an important learning milestone, but it’s not always the easiest. It might seem easy to do, but figuring out how to explain it to children in a way they’ll understand can get a little tricky. From the bunny ear method to the one-loop and swoop, teaching shoe tying takes great practice. Shoe tying requires kids to flex their fine motor skills, which for most, are still developing. This can lead to your kiddo feeling frustrated. 

So how can we take the ease off of them for a bit and make the process a little more fun? Below we’ll explain 3 different activities you can do with your kiddo that can help make tying their back to school shoes just a little bit easier—and hopefully fun, too! 

1. Shoe tying sequence activity 

This sequence activity is great for helping your child understand the steps to shoe tying before practicing with actual laces. Verbally walk through the steps with your child again and again until you feel they’re confident. Then, print out the sheet and have your child cut out the steps. Once cut out, mix them up and have your child put the steps in the correct order. Once they’ve got the steps down, it’s time to practice with laces! 

You can download the sequence activity here. 

2. Shoe tying cards 

This activity is where the shoe-tying fun starts. Print out the shoe templates and cut them out. This step is optional, but for a little more stability, glue cardboard to the back of each cutout. This can make it easier for your child to grasp the cutouts when practicing. Then, use a hole puncher to punch out the holes where the laces will go. 

Once the holes are punched out, lace the shoes up with two different colored laces. Having two colors can help your child differentiate one lace from the other, making the learning process a bit easier. Once you’ve got it all set up, verbally walk them through the steps as they practice with the laces. 

Children often get frustrated with this step, so be patient and make sure to keep encouraging and motivating them along the way!

You can download the shoe-tying cards here. 

3. Shoe tying certificate 

Once they’ve mastered shoe tying on the printable cards and on their own shoes, congratulate them on this win with a shoe tying certificate! This is a huge milestone, so let them know you’re proud of them. Fill out the certificate with their name and let them know they’re now a part of the Adidas shoe tying club! 

You can download the shoe-tying certificate here. 

Though shoe tying isn’t always the easiest concept to teach, these shoe-tying printables can hopefully make it a little bit easier on you and your kiddo. 

 

Community Project

“The NVIV (Next Vista Inspiring Video) series of posts are written by Rushton Hurley and designed to provide students and teachers with fascinating discussion prompts.”

In Cleaning the Ocean, he features a Dutch teenager who is working to remove all the plastic garbage from the ocean.

He gives the following prompts to accompany this video:

“What ideas do you have that might address a big problem in your community? Are you willing to put in the work to figure out what can come from your idea? Can you learn from the criticism of others without letting that criticism lead you to quit?

Take time to talk about the challenges your community faces. What has been tried before? What do others say is the reason it didn’t work? Can you and others at your school come up with a new approach?”

I remember as a teenager worried about all the industrial air pollution where I lived. Plus there was a lot of garbage along the highway. My science class assignment was to come up with posters to address a community problem so I made mine about pollution. I still remember doing that project after all these years.

By having students work on a problem in the community, students are using so many skills that are relevant to their daily lives. It involves research, reading, and communication. Students can work in teams to address different problems or different areas of the same larger problem.

Please check out the video and think of other prompts you might come up with. Please share.

My Birthday

Today I’m taking the day off from blogging because it’s my birthday! I turned 62 today!!

For all those people that dread getting older, I’m ecstatic that I have reached this age! My oldest sister died when she was 27 in 1974. My mother died at 59 in 1989 so I’ve lived longer than her. I’ve worked hard at trying to lead a healthy lifestyle and am proud that I have gotten here. I’ve had tough times and I’ve had wonderful times which have shaped me into the person I am today. My husband is always reminding me that I am happy to be alive.

So for my birthday, I ask that you think about the happy times in your life. Think about how great it is to be alive. Think of your friends and family that you love and are in your life. Be proud of yourself.

Celebrate today with me!

Useful Information In and Out of the Classroom 9/24/21

Here are some interesting sites that I’ve found this week, thanks to my PLN. As a teacher, I feel we have to keep up to date concerning research in our field and current issues in the education system. I hope some of these inspire you, inform you, and even have you asking questions. Thank you for coming by and visiting!

Note: Each resource is labeled with a level and subject area to make it easier to use.

Levels: E: Elementary; M: Middle; H: High; G: General, all levels; SN: Special Needs; T: Teachers

Subject Areas: LA: Language Arts, English, Reading, Writing; M: Math; S: Science; Health; SS: Social Studies, Current Events; FA: Fine Arts; Music, Art, Drama; FL: Foreign Language; PE: Physical Ed; C: Career; A: All

Icebreakers - “Explore our free instructions for over 100+ of our favorite family friendly icebreaker ideas, teambuilding activities and group games! Easy-to-follow guides are useful for classrooms, corporate training, team building, camps, churches and youth groups, parties, college events, retreats and parties! Featuring brand new September 3 post: funny icebreaker questions. Also try our new online icebreakers including corporate games for Zoom and online hybrid work settings). (L:T;SA:A)

Why Do Leaves Change Colors in the Fall? - “Autumn means leaves are turning different shades of red, orange, and yellow and falling to the ground. But why? Jessi takes you deep inside a leaf to explain!” (L:G;SA:S)

DOGONews - News articles can be chose by grade level. (L:T;SA:A)

What Causes the Seasons? - lesson by ReadWorks.org (L:E;SA:S)

Why Leaves Change Color: Untamed Science - “Every fall in the deciduous forests of the world, there is a miraculous change in the color of the leaves. They turn from green into brilliant shades of yellow, orange, red, and purple. Sometimes you can see several shades on the same leaf. But why are these color changes happening, and what is going on in the plant? Fortunately, that's the topic of this Untamed Science video. Rob explains, with the help of Canopy Biologist, Meg Lowman, that it has everything to do with the pigments in the leaves. In fact, many of those pigments have been their all year and can only now be seen. Others, like the red color are a result of pigments produced in the plant as it dies.”(L:G;SA:S)

Original photo by Pat Hensley