Write a puzzle and do some math!
To begin, hop on over to Red Hen Toys and pick up the Powers of Two puzzle. Of course, this Montessori / Froebel inspired material is designed to prepare students for more complex instruction down the line—area, fractions, exponential models and more. But for our summer activity, the goal is to integrate the activity into the art of writing.
Ecouragge students to freely explore, beginning with questions, questions they will write in a journal:
How many blue pieces are needed to cover the red? or How many pieces like the blue are needed to cover the red?
Here they will discover there is more than one way to communicate a very simple question. But more importantly, they will be engaging in active learning—reflection and problem solving instead of passive direct instruction.
They will discover as they explore and document questions, that each piece is half the size of the previous piece—a limited series! This is actually calculus. And the student who enters into the activity of journalling and puzzling, will be setting the stage not only for more advanced math, but also more advanced writing. This activity of slowing down and observing relationships between the puzzle pieces, will strengthen observational skills.
After all the questions have been asked and documented in the student journal, remove all the pieces in the frame and begin the activity of writing instructions for filling the frame:
Take the red piece and place it into the frame vertically flush with the right of the frame. or Take the red piece and place it into the frame horizontally flush with the bottom of the frame. This activity, you see, provides many iterations for crafting imperative sentences.
So pick up a puzzle, a summer journal, and pencil. Let summer writing begin!
~Kimberly