Base Ten and Counting On

When I think back to the first few weeks of school and only a handful of my kindergartners could even recognize numbers, I'm just amazed at how far they have come.  Almost all my kids know their numbers 0-20 and many know far beyond 20.  Last week we focussed on KCC.A2 Count forward beginning from a given number within the known sequence (instead of having to begin at 1).  We were working with base ten rods and cubes.  Our focus was to count on from 10.  Even my kids who are struggling with math could do it.

 To get them ready for this concept, first we explored base ten using my Read, Build & Count Mats.  The students replicated the rods and cubes using their own manipulatives.  This was a center and choice time activity a few weeks ago.

Last week they were ready for the real deal. First they had to choose a card and count.  I sat with each student to make sure they weren't trying to count each individual cube within the rod. 

Next they matched the picture on the card to the picture on their answer sheet.  It was easy for me to scan their page to see if they were counting correctly.  

If you noticed, my cards are printed in black and white.  Although the set I originally created is in color, I knew that if I wanted to just print them in black and white I could.  I've been working on creating centers that are easy on the ink.  My three latest math centers were created to print in color or black and white.  Let's face it, ink isn't cheap.

Next week we will repeat the center again, but I have raised the bar, we will be counting all the way to 30.  I know my kids can do it.  They are becoming rock star mathematicians!!!  This is currently on sale in my TpT store.

It is a short week for us as today was a no school day.  However, these short weeks always still seem long.  Hoping if goes by quickly, we have another 3 day weekend next week.