Lake Forest Elementary recently hosted its family math night, Making Math Matter. This successful night of family fun allowed parents and students to participate in activities specific to the students’ grade level.
Kindergarten classes created no-bake candy bars using measurements and quantity. All dressed up in hair nets and baking gloves, students measured out ingredients to make candy bars.
First-grade students used alternative methods for measuring such as fingers, arms and feet. Students walked around with a clipboard documenting their findings and comparing their numbers.
Students in the second-grade classes created a shopping experience with donated materials from Publix. Students were focused on making grocery lists and using pennies to buy all the items they wanted and needed. Students were adding, subtracting and estimating costs.
In the FCAT grade levels, the focus was driven by grade-level benchmark scores. Teachers generated activities which involved questions and math strands that students were struggling with. The goal was to enhance parent involvement and support over spring break.
Third-grade classes used Hershey bars to measure and estimate. The Hershey Bar Challenge created dialogue, competitiveness and generated questions from parents to children and staff members.
The fourth-grade classes got inventive and constructed a family Jeopardy game where parents and students sat in a game-style atmosphere answering questions based on benchmarks that were weak across the grade level.
Fifth-grade classes covered fractions and division, two areas of need. Teachers created problems for the family to work on, using manipulatives, and then parents learned about possible FCAT questions for these areas.
Students left with goodie bags filled with rulers, instructional materials and activities for spring break. Parents and students are looking forward to another math night in the future. Lake Forest Elementary staff made math matter not only in the walls of Lake Forest Elementary, but with families.
Article submitted by Marisa Guerrero.
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