Sense of number, counting in 3s and Forest School flag

Getting ready for the Maths Main Lesson

Having spent the last few weeks pondering the Maths curriculum, this week was when we began our third Maths Main Lesson block. Sense of number is paramount, this is one of the building blocks to good maths. Children need to know how much ten, twenty, thirty is and be then able to combine them. Number bonds, in other words. Counting rhythmically is also important. This time round we are doing 3, 6 and 7. Then ten and five. This is not my alchemy book nope it is planning for the Maths Main Lesson. In David Lloyds actually :-).

Gardening and Maths Main lesson

Making the link between maths and the world is extremely important. Nowhere is maths seen more obviously than in the natural world. The children would have been told the stories of the numbers through using images from the natural world. For the sense of number 10, i used sunflower seed donated by a child. We then counted the seeds, the cups used, the children...and then we were able to sing to the plantmakers as we planted the seeds. This is known as economy in teaching. Making links between music, maths, and the natural world. And then in Class Seven, we will do the Fibonacci series...and i'll say remember when we grew those sunflowers?

Here's the board from today

We also revised the roman numerals. It was really amazing to see the children remember the work we had done and then use the number bonds to total ten.

Our little window garden

Because we had been learning the song the plantmakers, i was able to ask the children, what is needed to make the plant grow? To wake the seed? Fairies of the Earth, Water, Air and Fire, was the answer from around the class.

Sewing our Forest School Flag

We did lots of preparing for our Baba Yaga play, including getting Amy the music teacher in to listen to the story so she could add music effects to the play. But today, we sewed our Forest School flag. Here are the children working hard. We are doing it on the theme of the elementals.

The flag is a work in progress and will never really be complete i guess. We will keep adding to it over the years probably.

The boys sewing very adeptly

All the children can now thread a needle and manage the blanket stitch, and running stitch. I will leave knots and finishing to next year. But it is so wonderful to see how far they have come already. I really enjoyed class today.

Our fleg!

From the Maths Main Lesson in counting in 3s and sense of number

Our Three Magic Circle

We make our own teaching aids

Triangles were very important, given it was the nunmber three. We counted each side and then wrote the number in the triangle. This make the three times table very concrete. They hopefully will remember how we count in threes.

Yep, we do worksheets too!!!

I make my own worksheets. Children who reverse numbers are given these to do. As we were doing the three times table, this fitted in well.

Detail from the fleg.

Sylph, leaf and cloud.

Fire gnome and two flowers

Sun, more leaves and clouds

Is that not the most adorable thing you've seen in ages?

The Maths Main lesson continues. Next week will be more number bonds, but minus and a revision of the other counting rhythms. It was a busy week Class One, and next week, it will be Forest School on Friday! Woo-hoo!