Lesson Plan -­‐ Counting Money to $1.00 -­‐ Alexander, Who Used to Be Rich Last Sunday by Judith Viorst Learning Objectives The teacher will: •
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Learn to teach counting money and counting change from $1.00. See the demonstration of a literature linked lesson using real coins to show Alexander’s dwindling funds. Hear effective questioning of students to achieve deeper understanding. Tennessee Standards •
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GLE’s for all – 1.1, 1.4, and 1.7 Checks -­‐0106.1.4 and 0106.1.9 GLE 0106.2.3 Check 0106.2.7 Checks 0206.1.5 and 0206.1.15 Check 0206.2.7 Checks 0306.1.2; 0306.1.3; 0306.1.13; 0306.1.14 SPI 0306.1.3 The purpose of this lesson is to build the concept of money in an engaging context. The activities teach equivalent amounts, counting money to a dollar, and making change. Students enjoy the trade book, using real money, and technology connections. Materials •
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Alexander, Who Used to Be Rich Last Sunday by Judith Viorst Data collection sheets Coins for each child – (10 pennies, 10 nickels, and 4 dimes) Internet connection Preparation – The teacher will need to teach children to recognize a penny and be able to count by ones. Children will need to recognize a nickel as five cents and be able to count by fives. They will need to recognize a dime as ten cents and be able to count by tens. First graders may need to start with a ten frame. Place one penny in each of the ten sections. Show that the 10 pennies can be traded for one dime, and each row of 5 pennies is equal to a nickel. The 2 nickels also can be traded for a dime. •
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Launch – Review the value of a dime, nickel, and penny. Look at each closely and notice the size, thickness, and color of each. Introduce Alexander, Who Used to Be Rich Last Sunday by Judith Viorst. Read the story and talk about the starting amount of one dollar. Explore Differentiation -­‐ Real money is used to explore coins that equal one dollar. Using the rich context of Judith Viorst’s book students learning styles and abilities are considered at each step. Children organize and count their coins using the data sheet. 10 pennies are lined up and counted. How much money is this? What other coins are worth 10 pennies? Next, line up the 10 nickels. Count by fives to add this line of money. How much are the 10 nickels worth? What other coins could equal this same amount? What fraction of a dollar would these 10 nickels equal? The nickels are worth fifth cents and the pennies are worth ten cents. How much do we have so far? Line up the 4 dimes. Count by tens to add the value. How many pennies would it take to equal the value of the dimes? Read the story again and place the real coins next to the item purchased or the amount lost. Questioning should reach all instructional levels. Some children will be able to calculate change and decompose numbers while others are simply able to count the amount spent/lost. o Scaffolding – As the story progresses the students take the lead and model amounts and count money on the Elmo for their peers. Children may add total amounts, calculate the amount of change remaining, and figure the fraction of money spent at any one time. Has Alexander spent more than or less than half of his dollar? What amount is ¼ of a dollar? Questions will depend on the grade level and ability level of the class. I have used this lesson in first grade classes and just focused on counting the change for each item. The deeper questioning makes the lesson just right for third graders. o Student guided practice/activity – “Fill the Pockets” and “Burn a hole in the Pockets” are two games that provide a unique opportunity for differentiation. Rules – Take any amount of coins. Two players take turns placing either one or two coins on the Alexander board. As you place a coin you must count the change and state the amount. This is fill the pockets. Burn a Hole in the Pockets is just the opposite. Place any amount of coins on Alexander. Each player takes turns taking out one or two coins and stating how much he took out and how much money is left. The player to take out the final coin/coins is the winner. The first game should be played with 10 pennies. Place the 10 pennies beside the game board. (This is an example of what might happen. Player A adds one penny and counts one cent. Player B adds 2 pennies and counts 3 cents. Player A then adds 2 cents and counts 5 cents; Player B adds 2 cents and counts 7 cents. Player A can’t win at this point. If A adds one B will add 2 and win. If A adds 2 B will add one and win.) This game is so powerful. Teachers can make the amount fit the ability level. Some students will be able to play with all of the coins used in the story. Some may be able to add quarters to the change. Teachers can formatively assess as the games progress. I take notes on post-­‐its and add them to my grade book. Technology – These web sites are perfect for extra practice, assessment, and reaching all ability levels. o http://nlvm.usu.edu/en/nav/frames_asid_325_g_1_t_1.html?from=category_g_1_t_1.h
tml This National Library Virtual Manipulatives site provides 3 levels of games. Students can “Make a Dollar” like we did on the video, or they can play “How Much Money” or “Pay the Exact Amount”. o
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http://illuminations.nctm.org/ActivityDetail.aspx?ID=217 This Illuminations lesson “Coin Box” has a variety of levels and activities. Students can count, collect, exchange, and count change with coins. Computer labs or small groups on computers give teachers the opportunity to observe and question students individually. This is assessment in its truest form. The word assess comes from Latin meaning to sit with. Teachers need to revisit this concept and but it to work in their classrooms. A simple check-­‐list can be used to track student understanding and progress. The summative assessment will be tested with benchmark tests, end-­‐of-­‐unit tests, and standardized testing. The lesson went well. Students were engaged and thinking at a variety of levels. The “Fill the Pockets” game can be used in centers in the following weeks. Also, continue to use the technology connections in the computer lab or in centers. “Valuable Art” from the NCTM Navigation series would be an opportunity for additional learning and more practice. Money needs to be taught/used every week of the school year. Morning Meeting, calendar time, and real-­‐life occurrences offer numerous opportunities to count and take a close look at money. Art work by Kim Bohm – Wilson Elementary School – Rutherford County