All six modules in this unit emphasize concrete and pictorial activities to ensure mastery of each topic. Time is stepped-off from hours to half-hours. Money proceeds from pennies to quarters, including counting coins. Length includes measuring with a variety of everyday classroom objects and pictures, plus longer/shorter comparisons. Data teaches information gathering with simple objects and pictures, beginning charting and graphing, and comparing basic information. Geometry includes identifying basic 2 and 3-D shapes, as well as basic fractional parts of shapes.
Module Details:
Module 1: Time and Money
In this module, the concept of time is introduced in a fun and engaging way that is relatable to first graders. Analog clocks are presented to show a 12-hour day with the hour and minute hands presented for tracing on the pages. The learning is scaffolded to correlate analog and digital clocks, while the content is scaffolded from hour to five-minute intervals. Skip counting by fives is presented to transfer to the intervals on the clocks and additional visual cues in the form of stars are included on the five-minute intervals. Students progress to mastery of telling time to the hour and the half hour with foundational work in greater detail within five minutes. Students will learn to identify coins and the one-dollar bill, counting the values of multiple coins of the same type, counting the values of mixed coins, finding the coins to represent given values, and finally problem solving with money. To ensure learner success, one coin is presented with multiple activities before introducing a new coin. Instruction is encouraged using actual or plastic coins, demonstrating the fronts and backs of the coins, writing the coin names, and matching the coin values. Both cent and dollar values are represented, as students count and record the value of coins.
Module 2: Length
All activities in this module are designed to be completed by pairs of students. As students learn to measure with same-size units placed end-to-end with no gaps or overlaps, the activities begin using large paper clips to measure lengths of lines. After measuring, students compare the line lengths using long, longer, and longest. Students transfer measuring line lengths to measuring lengths of pictorial objects. Measuring “units” are included on the FlipCards Measuring Objects Using Objects which should be cut out and used to measure the pictorial objects on the activity pages. All of the activities are designed to complement actual hands-on measurement of concrete objects. When students finish this module, they will have had many experiences that build understanding of ordering objects by length and expressing the lengths of objects as whole number of length units.
Module 3: Data
The activities in this module cover organizing, representing, interpreting, and comparing data. The skills in this module are scaffolded with increasing number of categories and data points, and the activities are presented in both horizontal and vertical formats. Students begin with coloring, cutting, sorting, and pasting pictures into graphs on the page, eventually progressing to doing the same on templates provided for easier representation of the data. These activities are followed by interpreting pictorial graphs and then graphs with shading for data points. Finally, students apply the above identified skills and compare the data. When students finish this module, they will have had many experiences that contribute to understanding graphs.
Module 4: Defining 2-D Shapes
This module begins with a brief introduction of lines (parallel, intersecting, and perpendicular). The defining attributes of 2-D shapes are then presented, including the numbers of edges and the number of corners. Different sizes and orientations are incorporated on the pages throughout the module to distinguish between defining and non-defining attributes. The shapes that are used include circles, triangles, squares, rhombuses, rectangles, trapezoids, and hexagons. The activities progress to composing 2-D shapes by cutting and pasting parts of the shape to build the shape and conclude by using the composite shapes of various sizes and orientations to build new shapes.
Module 5: Defining 3-D Shapes
The activities here mirror those used in Module 4. The numbers of faces, edges, and corners are identified as the defining attributes of 3-D shapes. Distinguishing between defining and non-defining attributes is presented, with shapes including cones, cylinders, cubes, and 3-D rectangles (right rectangular prisms). FlipCards Defining Geometric Shapes 2-D and 3-D provide additional practice and extend the learning. Interactive classroom activities have students cut, paste, and compose shapes for additional practice.
Module 6: Fractional Parts of Shapes
Circles and rectangles are used for the scaffolded activities in this module. Emphasizing same-size parts, the activities begin with tracing the fractions and coloring the corresponding numbers of parts, and cutting and pasting the parts into a whole. The presentation progresses from writing the fractions for the shaded parts, to using one part of a new shape that is labeled and shaded, and finally to naming and shading all fractional parts. Halves, fourths, thirds, and fifths are taught as students develop critical concepts of more parts correlating to smaller parts. FlipCards Fractions in Geometric Shapes reinforce and extend the learning of the basic concepts. When students finish this module, they will have had many experiences partitioning rectangles and circles into equal shares and describing the shares.
Click here to download FREE sample pages for the Standards-Based First Grade Unit 4.
Click here to see how the TouchMath Standards-Based First Grade Program meets or exceeds the First Grade standards.
