Math at Island Avenue School

Dear Island Avenue Families,

February is a great month to think about Math, especially with the 100th day of school right around the corner! Here's how Island students will explore numbers and shapes throughout the month:

Grade K

February 13th marks our 100th day of school, and kindergartners will participate in a variety of activities centered around the number 100. In addition, our kindergarten students will begin a new unit on geometry.  They will compare and sort two and three-dimensional shapes. Through play, they will learn defining attributes of circles, squares, rectangles, triangles, trapezoids, hexagons and rhombuses as well as spheres, cones, cubes, pyramids and prisms.

TRY THIS: Go on a shape hunt! How many 2 and 3-dimensional shapes can you find?

Grade 1

Currently our first graders are wrapping up a unit on adding, subtracting and solving problems on a number line, and they'll also take time to celebrate the 100th day of school. Then they'll move into a unit on geometry.  Students love this hands-on unit and will build upon their kindergarten understanding of 2 and 3-dimensional shapes.  You will be amazed as they describe defining attributes of polygons and begin to examine how a shape is like and unlike another.

TRY THIS: Become an engineer! Have fun gathering shapes around the house.  Use empty containers to build a tower or a bridge.

Grade 2

Our second graders had a blast investigating measurement, including the culminating activity that allowed them to measure a buddy and then transform the body measurements into giant objects such as flowers, robots and snowmen! The next unit will focus on place value.  Students will learn more about our base ten number system as they solve riddles about three-digit numbers.  Time and money are also reviewed this month. And, of course, 2nd graders will join in the fun on February 13th for our 100th day celebration.

TRY THIS: Do you have a change jar at home?  Grab a handful of coins and count the total.  How many groups of hundreds, tens and ones can you make?

Grade 3

This month third graders will be exploring the metric system as part of their measurement unit. Their focus will be on solving problems involving mass, volume and elapsed time.  Students will develop benchmarks for units of measure to develop a sense of how much liquid there is in a liter, how much mass there is in a kilogram, how a gram compares with a kilogram, and so on. Students will learn that a meter is about the length of a long stride, a kilogram has about as much mass as a dictionary, and the water bottle they bring to soccer holds a liter of water. They will also discover how to use a number line to solve problems involving time.

TRY THIS: Help your child develop benchmarks for units of measure.  If an iPhone 6 is about 130 grams (the iPhone 6 Plus is about 170 grams), what other objects can you find in the house with a mass less than an iPhone, more than an iPhone, or equal to an iPhone? If you have a gram scale, test your estimates!

Grade 4

Throughout February, fourth graders will be working on multi-digit addition and subtraction along with understanding numbers into the millions.  Their unit will begin with students investigating seven-digit numbers to deepen their understanding of our number system.  They'll master the algorithm for addition and subtraction and evaluate when the algorithm is and isn't the most efficient strategy to use.  The second half of the unit will ask the students to apply their addition and subtraction skills to measurement concepts.  Fourth graders will use ratio tables to convert units of measure, including kilometers and meters, pounds and ounces, liters and milliliters, seconds and minutes, and minutes and hours.

TRY THIS: Ask your child to explain how the constant difference strategy works for subtraction and when this strategy is more efficient than the standard algorithm!

English mathematician James Joseph Sylvester said that Math is the music of reason. I hope you and your children have a chance to hum along throughout the month of February.

Sincerely,

Doreen O'Leary

Principal

Work hard.

Be kind.

Make a difference.

Island Avenue School

Island Avenue Elementary School

20 Island Avenue • Madison, CT 06443 • (203) 245-6450