Mrs. Stacie Latimer's Homepage

DATE:
Teachers Note:
Oct. 4th We study multiplication and division right off the bat in third grade. It’s new territory, and challenging territory. Already this year, students have learned the words multiple and factor. They can “skip count” the numbers 2 – 12 and are beginning to make arrays to show the ways factors make a number. (Aren’t they something!)

Today, we really “went deeper” in looking at numbers that make a square when they’re drawn as arrays. (9 is 3 x 3, 16 is 4 x 4, 25 is 5 x 5, etc.) I asked if anyone could guess what the NEXT “square” number is? (We were off-script here, but really putting on thinking caps…) Several students guessed (good guesses)…then Shawn Gilbert proudly raised his hand. “36!!!” When I asked him how he knew, he responded, “My dad made me memorize all of those.” His whole table group got to put coupons in for our weekly drawing.

Moral of this story: sometimes parents DO have smart and valuable things to teach. Listen to them carefully and often!