Math on the floor

When I went to school, I had to sit with a straight back and quietly listen to the teacher instruction and then carefully write in my journal. I couldn't even imagine that school could look different. Yet, now, as a teacher my math lessons look different. Quite often the learning happens on the floor. It's not that I don't  have  desks in the classroom. It's because the floor is more spacious to sit in a circle, use different manipulatives, and then see what others did and listen to how they explain their thinking.

Currently we are solving 2-and 3-digit addition and subtraction problems. Some simpler, some harder.

From the years of experience I have learned how important it is to take time and use hands-on materials to explore and explain concepts before writing with symbols and learning procedures.

So when you pass our classroom and see us on the floor, you can be assured that there is learning happening. Learning can be fun and challenging at the same time.