ALEX Learning Activity

  

Balloons

A Learning Activity is a strategy a teacher chooses to actively engage students in learning a concept or skill using a digital tool/resource.

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  This learning activity provided by:  
Author: Michelle Frye
System:Blount County
School:Hayden Elementary School
  General Activity Information  
Activity ID: 2873
Title:
Balloons
Digital Tool/Resource:
Balloons Slideshow
Web Address – URL:
Overview:

This learning activity introduces a numberless word problem that asks students to write an addition word problem. The task involves students exploring combinations of numbers that make ten. The students will start with "what do we know" and end with "how many could be." The activity will allow students to have multiple correct responses.
  Associated Standards and Objectives  
Content Standard(s):
Mathematics
MA2019 (2019)
Grade: K
8. Represent addition and subtraction up to 10 with concrete objects, fingers, pennies, mental images, drawings, claps or other sounds, acting out situations, verbal explanations, expressions, or equations.
Unpacked Content
Evidence Of Student Attainment:
Students:
  • Create representations of the quantities and the actions in the situations using physical, pictorial, or symbolic representations.
  • Explain the representations of the quantities and actions in the situations using physical, pictorial, or symbolic representations.
Teacher Vocabulary:
  • Expression
  • Equation
Knowledge:
Students know:
  • how to represent addition and subtraction using models, pictures or symbolic representations.
  • how to explain representations of quantities.
Skills:
Students are able to:
  • Represent quantities and operations physically, pictorially, or symbolically.
  • Use informational and mathematical language to communicate the connections among addition and subtraction.
Understanding:
Students understand that:
  • both putting together and adding to can be viewed as addition.
  • both taking apart and taking from can be viewed as subtraction.
Diverse Learning Needs:
Essential Skills:
Learning Objectives:
M.K.8.1: Define addition as combining groups of objects.
M.K.8.2: Define subtraction as separating groups of objects.
M.K.8.3: Represent numbers with objects or drawings.
M.K.8.4: Separate sets with nine or fewer objects.
M.K.8.5: Combine objects to form sets up to nine.

Prior Knowledge Skills:
  • Notice same/different and some/all.
  • Subtract one from a set of objects (up to 10 objects).
  • Add one to a set of objects (up to 10 objects).
  • Given a group of objects (ten or less), divide the group into smaller groups in various ways.
  • Given small groups of objects, create larger groups by combining the small groups.
  • Take away objects from a large group to create two smaller groups.
  • Put together two small groups of objects to create a larger group.
  • Establish one-to-one correspondence between numbers and objects when given a picture a drawing or objects.
  • Rote count to ten.
  • Enjoy playing with all kinds of objects.
  • Point to matching or similar objects.
Alabama Alternate Achievement Standards
AAS Standard:
M.AAS.K.8 Demonstrate an understanding of addition as "putting together" or subtraction as "taking from" in everyday activities, limited to 5 objects.
Learning Objectives:

I can represent addition and subtraction up to ten using a model and by writing an equation.
  Strategies, Preparations and Variations  
Phase:
During/Explore/Explain
Activity:

The teacher will display the slideshow Balloons. The slideshow displays the problem in pieces. The teacher will read each slide, while the students listen to the problems unfold and think about what is happening and what the task might instruct them to do. The students will write answers to the questions that arise on each slide on a piece of paper or in their math journals. The teacher will ask the students to share their answers to each slide and he/she will record the answers on a whiteboard or chart paper. On slide five, the students will be asked to solve a problem by using counters (red and yellow circles or tiles) to model the possible solutions. The students will build models to represent combinations that make ten. The students will conclude the lesson by writing equations that match their models.

 

Essential questions are on each slide. A teacher slide for sample debriefing is included.
Assessment Strategies:

The teacher will observe students' responses to determine their understanding of the concept and skill. The teacher can use the following guidelines to ensure students meet the learning objective.

Check that the student:

  1. can use a strategy to add up to ten.

  2. can build a concrete model to represent their thinking.

  3. can write an equation to represent their thinking.

  4. can count on, rather than counting each object.
Advanced Preparation:

The teacher will need the following items:

  • computer and projector to display the slideshow

  • whiteboard or chart paper to record student thinking

  • counters or color tiles (2 colors)

  • paper or math journals for student responses

  • pencils for each student
Variation Tips (optional):

This activity can use a lower quantity to accommodate struggling learners or a higher quantity to extend student learning.
Notes or Recommendations (optional):

This activity can be used with the following before and after activities:

How Many More to Make Ten? (Before)

Putting It Together (After)
  Keywords and Search Tags  
Keywords and Search Tags: addition, equation, subtraction