What’s the big idea?

What’s the big idea?Many things in the natural and constructed world come in a predictable amount or in a recognisable sequence of numbers. Children learning the parts of their own faces learn ‘one nose,’ ‘two eyes’, ‘two ears’, ‘one mouth’. The recurrence of numbers and amounts is a pattern children recognise early. Relationships of ‘more than’, ‘less than’ and ‘equal to’ are often expressed in numbers.

Number patterns are about predicting: What will be the next number or object in a sequence? Number patterns introduce the concept of relationships among quantities (mathematical functions). Basic number patterns are: - counting by ones, twos, threes, etc. - doubling- halving- adding one more to any pattern - repeated patterns

Recognising number patterns and relationships is important in problem solving. When a number pattern is recognised we can apply it to broader solutions to problems. And number pattern recognition is important in advancing children’s skills from doing addition to doing multiplication.

One is a Snail, Ten is a Crab

OverviewIf one is a snail and two is a person . . . we must be counting by feet! Follow the sign to the beach for some mathematical mayhem. Whether you have one foot or ten, sit back on your beach blanket and enjoy counting big feet and small - on people and spiders, dogs and insects, snails and crabs - from one to one hundred! Take a look at some of the story

One is a Snail, Ten is a Crab

April and Jeff Sayre’s delightful children’s book One is a Snail, Ten is a Crab offers an opportunity for students to develop their number sense and problem solving skills. After reading the book, students search for different ways of representing numbers as animal feet. Students make drawings showing their solutions and try to come up with as many different solutions as possible. This activity allows students to be creative and to learn to think more flexibly about numbers.

Grade level and Concept FocusOne is a snail, ten is a crab is a story text that can be adapted to multiple grade levels. This text is more than a counting book. It can be used over and over, each time using different mathematical concepts and expressions, and each time becoming more complex.

One is a snail, ten is a crab highlights a set model of multiplication, adding by tens, patterns and relationships (e.g., odd and even numbers, commutativity), and alternative solutions to a problem.

Make a picture

Ask each child to draw a seaside scene with rocks, a rock pool and some sand. If possible, laminate the scene to use for number activities. Provide lots of copies of small pictures of each of the creatures used in the story. Challenge the children to make their picture ‘say’ a particular number by adding the appropriate creatures, and look at the different ways they have used. If they rely heavily on one particular creature, ask them to find another way using fewer creatures. When they are comfortable with this, invite each child to make their own chosen number and let the rest of the group work out what their number is.This activity was sourced from http://education.scholastic.co.uk/content/4294

Ways to make tenAsk the children to find all the possible ways to make ten. Provide a large sheet of paper and lots of copies of the creature pictures. Model working systematically by starting with ten snails, then exchange two snails for a person (so the next way is one person and eight snails); then replace another two snails, and so on. There are lots of possibilities to explore.This activity was sourced from http://education.scholastic.co.uk/content/4294

Make my numberGive each child an envelope containing a raffle ticket; differentiate the numbers according to the ability of each child. Ask them to look at their number without showing anyone else and then make that number on their scene. Invite the rest of the group or class to work out what the number is.

This activity was sourced from http://education.scholastic.co.uk/content/4294

At the seasideTurn a large, accessible wallboard into an appropriate beach scene. Make sure some of the pieces can be moved, for instance rocks and seaweed. Label the scene with a question such as ‘How many feet are in the picture today?’ Change the scene each day, moving rocks and seaweed, as well as adding and subtracting creatures - but always make sure at least a little of each creature is showing. Why not invite a different child to change the scene each day?


How many feet?

If you have an interactive whiteboard, clone copies of the creatures. Set up some slides with a collection of creatures, followed by a blank page. Show the creature slide for a count of two, then quickly flick to a blank page. Ask the children to write their estimate of the total number of feet they saw on their mini whiteboards. Flick back to the collection page and group the pictures to aid counting as you check the total. Use just one creature at first, then a mixture of two, three or more creatures as the children get better at estimating the amount.This activity was sourced from http://education.scholastic.co.uk/content/4294

Odds and evensLook at the numbers one to ten. Ask the children to help you list the numbers that can be made with only one creature and those that need two. What is different about your two lists? Introduce or consolidate odd and even numbers. There are lots of possibilities for discussion here. Why do creatures always have an even number of legs, except a snail? Is this true for wings? Can you make an odd number of legs by adding creatures other than a snail?


Addition & SubtractionOnce the children can quickly recognise the number each creature represents, begin to make up some addition and subtraction sentences for them to solve. Challenge more able children by making sure it isn’t always the answer that is missing.

Click on the pictures to view examples.


If you can count by feet, you

can count by anything! Invite

the children to make up an

appropriate counting system

relevant to your current

topic. For example, for a

‘wheels’ topic, one is a

unicycle, two is a bicycle,

three is a tricycle, four is a

car, and so on.

For a cross-curricular link, look at the creatures in the book. Which kind of habitat does each creature need? How are the creatures the same? How are they different? Make a class counting book showing the creatures in their natural habitats. This activity was sourced from http://education.scholastic.co.uk/content/4294

More lesson ideas – click on the link

http://www.naturalmaths.com.au/numblocks/one_is_a_snail.htm

Legs and more legsThe article, Legs and more legs explains that students can gain valuable experience in mathematical problem solving by writing their own story problems, tackling their peers' problems, and representing their thinking in various ways.

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What’s the big idea?