Summer Professional Development Opportunity!

 I am so excited to be presenting at the summer Play & Possibility Virtual Conference! 

Register here and use code joyfulmath10! 

Bringing Math to Life: Sparking Joy and Curiosity through Play

On April 16, 2025 I had the pleasure of presenting my workshop Bringing Math to Life: Sparking Joy and Curiosity through Play for Early Childhood Investigation Webinars! With over 3000 registrants it was my largest audience to date! I absolutely love inviting educators into my kindergarten classroom and sharing the rich math learning that children experience through play and inquiry! Connecting with others drives my practice and inspires me greatly! A big thank you to all who attended! A copy of the presentation slides are available and can be found at this link.

The presentation was recorded and is available for viewing if you are interested in revisiting the information I shared, or did not have a chance to view it live. You can access it here:

Stand Up Sit Down

Due to the great feedback I've received I have turned the 'Stand Up Sit Down' slides into a video that educators can use in their physical or virtual classrooms. This fun activity can be an icebreaker for a new group of students, a minds-on activity before a main lesson, or used during transition times.  

 

Check it out on YouTube: Stand Up Sit Down

 

Math-ercise Videos

Interactive videos can be a great way to engage children in virtual learning spaces, or can be used in the physical classroom as warm ups to lessons, during transition times, or even during lunch times when children are finished eating (especially during Covid when only half the children can be eating at once and the other half of the class requires something to work on).

I have created some simple math-ercise videos that educators and families can use to help engage children in exploring math concepts. These ask children to look at a math equation and complete the exercise that corresponds to the answer they feel is correct. Children complete the exercise for 20 seconds and then get 5 seconds of rest as the correct answer is displayed. I feel that the physical nature of the videos will be engaging for children and add a kinesthetic feature to math learning. Videos can be paused and mini number talks can occur if educators wish.

The first video explores adding to 10.

 Math-ercise Workout - Adding up to 10

The second video explores adding to 20.

 Math-ercise Workout - Adding up to 20

 

The third video explores subtracting from 10.

 Math-ercise Workout - Subtracting from 10

 

The third video explores subtracting from 20.

Math-ercise Workout - Subtracting from 20

 

I will continue to create videos and add them to this blog post over time. I am hoping to explore subtraction, multiplication and division facts.

Educators may wish to create their own videos/presentations to explore other math concepts (e.g., number patterns, doubles). 

Get a copy of the files here to use at your own pace in your physical or virtual classroom. This gives you the option to pause the power point and explore each slide or personalize it to best meet the needs of your students. Music and transition times are embedded within the presentation so all educators need to do is change the equations and answers on each slide. Playing the presentation should run it without the need to manually forward each slide. 

This version is not animated: PDF Math-ercise File

Get a copy of the Power Point file here: PPTX Math-ercise File.

Get a copy of the Google Slides file here: Google Slides Math-ercise File 

Feel free to share with others! Feedback in the comments always appreciated!

Stand Up Sit Down

Here is a fun activity to get children moving as they respond to a prompt. Look at the photo and respond to the 'stand up if you..." prompt accordingly. Children can then create their own statements for their peers to consider. Providing time for children to reflect upon and discuss their ideas regarding the stand up/sit down prompts can encourage rich oral language as children consider the photos and verbal prompts and make connections to their own lives and experience.

 

Get a copy of the slides to use in your classroom here: Stand Up Sit Down

Virtual Math Question

In our school hallway we have a dry erase board that asks rich, low floor high ceiling questions. Students and staff that walk by are encouraged to consider the question for a few days and then contribute their ideas using dry erase markers.

It's an excellent way to create a culture of mathematical thinking and growth mindset as we learn together with one another! I've created something similar on this blog. The padlet image below is actually an interactive virtual 'whiteboard' where you can share ideas in an online space. Our class is hoping you might consider asking your students the question "If 24 is the answer, then what might the question have been?" and then posting your ideas, along with your location, to the padlet. We can't wait to see what you discover and also the reach that our blog has!

Created with Padlet

Why Use Twitter in the Classroom?

As a teacher I've used a classroom blog to communicate the learning happening in my classroom to families and the community. I've followed other educators' blogs to get inspiration for my own practice and learn about new and exciting activities happening in the greater kindergarten world. Blogging has helped me feel connected to a greater cause in early years education.

This year I became active on Twitter - I'm now obsessed! The rich learning, networking, and sharing possibilities make this social media in my opinion essential for today's classroom. Here are the top ten reasons educators need to become active on Twitter:

1. Twitter is an effective communication tool for use with a large audience. With Twitter you can quickly share in 140 characters or less the amazing activities happening in your classroom.

2.  Twitter encourages communication between home and school as parent-followers can favourite tweets, reply to tweets, and retweet information for others. 

2. Educators can link classroom activities to other media including photos, videos, websites, other tweets, etc. in order to present a complex, multifaceted story of what's happening in your practice and embed much technology into practice.

3. Twitter creates a narrative of what has happened in your classroom. When we tell stories through various documentation we honour children's voices and record their lives in the classroom.  Going back through the Twitter feed recreates the story of our time together.

4. Twitter helps like-minded individuals connect in an easy to use format. Networking with other educators helps one feel as part of a community as ideas are shared and supported in a virtual space.

5. Twitter provides a platform where educators can contact and communicate with leaders in the educational world, creating a link between pedagogy and practice. I've been able to engage in conversations with some of the leaders in my field, inspiring me to go deeper with ideas and reach further!

6.  Twitter embeds technology into classroom practice as children co-create tweets together with an educator in a shared writing activity. Learners are empowered as they describe their activities with others and choose other media (photos, videos) to compliment their messages.

7. Twitter inspires me to do the best job I can as an educator because what I am sharing reflects upon my practice and beliefs as an educator. I will be judged by what I tweet. Tweeting gives me an empowered voice to share my experiences, knowledge, and informed opinions with others.

8. Twitter also inspires children to engage fully in the classroom as they want their explorations and accomplishments to be highlighted on the Twitter feed and recognized by others. Tweeting is published work.

9. Tweeting helps me to be a reflective educator as I review the stories behind what I have tweeted, read other perspectives on my work, and think about how what we've done can drive our classroom practice further.

10.  Tweets market educators and help advertise to potential administrators when looking for new opportunities (e.g., new school, assignments, leadership opportunities). Tweeting gives educators an online presence and helps define what our educational 'brand' is.

Online Ten Frame Game

Here's a fun, free online game that helps children practice using ten frames to count. Check it out! http://illuminations.nctm.org/Activity.aspx?id=3565