M ATH C ENTERS Kindergarten Differentiation by Cindy Schneider

P URPOSE OF THE S TUDY To find…. 1.What impact differentiated math centers will have on students’ ability to read and write numbers? 2. How students will gain a better understanding of content? 3. How differentiation will affect on-task behavior?

Subjects: 15 early childhood students ages 5-7

A SSESSMENT TOOLS USED TO DETERMINE OUTCOME Field Notes Observations Checklists Student Questionnaire Student Work Pictures

24 MATH LEARNING CENTERS IN ALL F IRST C ENTER R OTATION Center 1-6 Rice/Explore: Children use play-dough to roll or cut out numbers and read. Low level students use numbers 0-10, medium level students use 0-20 and high students use numbers Have number flashcards available for each group of students to work and play with. Use the assessment checklists for data collection. Listening: Have 6 -8 number story books on tape available. Students choose their story to listen to and share conversation after. Use the assessment checklist for data collection. Teacher: Teacher fills 3 empty jars labeled A, B, and C with a variety of items. Students predict how many items are in the jar, draw a picture of the item in the rectangle box, count how many and then write the actual number. Low level students use 1-10 items, medium level use items, high level use number of items in jar. Have empty jars available for students to fill, explore and manipulate when they have completed the activity. Block/Carpet: Students can choose to build with variety of pattern, Duplo or building blocks. Students can share conversation and building strategies as they explore and manipulate items. Use the assessment checklist for data collection. Writing: Students will create number books by stapling eleven empty pieces of paper together, writing numbers 0 through 10 or 10 through 20 on the top of each page, cutting out pictures from magazines and gluing them onto corresponding pages. Low level students use numbers 0-10, medium level 0-20 high level students 20+. Use the assessment checklist for data collection. Puzzles/Games: Students play number bingo. Low level students use numbers 0-10, medium level use and higher level students use numbers Use Checklist for data collection.

S ECOND CENTER R OTATION Centers 7-12 Rice/Explore: Teacher places a variety of coins in individual buckets of rice for each student (vary number of coins according to ability level). Students will sort coin, draw on graph and write the number of how many. Listening: Have 6 -8 number story books on tape available. Students can choose their story to listen to and share conversation after. Use the assessment checklist for data collection. Teacher: Students play double digit dice game by rolling and writing numbers. Higher students can try using three dice and create triple digit numbers on the back of paper when done. Block/Carpet: Students create a building using three dimensional blocks. Count how many of each blocks were used and name them. Use checklist for data collection. Writing: Students use two dice to roll numbers and add their sum. Write the sum of the two dice rolled on the corresponding space on grid. Continue to roll dice, add their sums and write the sum of numbers rolled until one number gets to the top of the grid. For low to average level students use dice with dots for counting. Have higher level students use dice with numbers written on instead of dots or change the grid to higher numbers and create one die with higher numbers. Puzzles/Games: Have a variety of math manipulatives or small items available for students to explore. Students grab a handful of items, count how many and write the number on sheet provided. Higher level students can grab two handfuls and count how many in two handfuls and write the number.

T HIRD C ENTER R OTATION Centers 13-18: Rice/Explore : Each student is given a bucket of blue rice with varied amounts of red, blue and yellow fish in (vary fish amounts according to ability, low 0-5, medium 0-10 and high 0- 15). Students write the number of how many red fish in the square spaces, how many blue fish in the circle space and how many yellow fish in the triangle space. Then children group the two colors of fish requested, write the numbers, add them together and write the sum. Explore fish and other buried treasures to create new groups when done. Listening: Have 6 -8 number story books on tape available. Students can choose their story to listen to and share conversation after. Use the assessment checklist for data collection. Teacher: Teacher makes up stories while students create number stories and sentences on dry erase boards with the data collected. Teacher varies the use of numbers and sentences created according to ability. The numbers 0-5 for low students, 0-10 for medium students, and 0-15 for high students could be used. Use the assessment checklist for data collection. Block/Carpet: Students explore use of shapes to make new shapes by creating variety of designs with pattern blocks. Students count how many and identify shapes. Use the assessment checklist for data collection. Writing: Students create food menus using magazine pictures and blank pieces of 12x18 inch pieces of paper. Fold paper in half. Cut out variety of pictures of food from magazines and glue onto paper. Give each food item a cents amount. Write the numbers and cents sign next to items on menus. Use the assessment checklist for data collection. Children can use menus created during choice time in the restaurant. Puzzle/Games: Use small amounts of buttons, cars, dinosaurs or other variety of small items to create visual graphs. Teacher asks students which one has the most or least or which one is taller or shorter. Use the assessment checklist for data collection.

F OURTH C ENTER R OTATION Centers 19-24: Rice/Explore: Have jumbo jelly beans hidden in rice. Students sort jelly beans and draw how many onto paper. Students take the data collected from the sorts to create a graph by reading color words and using different colors to represent each jellybean in corresponding spaces. Teacher conferences with students during choice time to ask which one has the most and least and to assess numbers. Vary the number of jelly beans used according to ability. Listening: Have 6 -8 number story books on tape available. Students can choose their story to listen to and share conversation after. Students have the option of writing about their book by creating number picture stories and number sentences. Use the assessment checklist for data collection. Teacher: Students play add the dice game. Roll and write the numbers that represent the dice rolled. Find their sums and write the new number. For lower level have students use dice with dots. For medium level students use one die with dots and one with numbers and for high students use to die with numbers only on. Block/Carpet: Students manipulate pattern block shapes to make new shapes and create a design of their choice. After design is complete, students count number of each pattern block shape used and write the numbers onto page. Illustrate design if time allows. Writing: Fill 6 different colors of plastic eggs with pennies, two eggs per color and leave in an egg carton. Students crack two of the same colored eggs open. Be sure to leave the two groups separate and count and write the number of pennies in each group. Add the groups together and write the sun of the two numbers. Be sure to put pennies back in eggs before opening next egg. Puzzle/Games: Students share a number chart with numbers from 1 to 100. All students start at number 1, take turns rolling a die and moving that many spaces on the chart. Students name the number they land on as they move along the chart. See who can get to 100 first.

S TUDENTS WORKING IN CENTERS. N UMBER B INGO

S TUDENTS CREATING A NUMBER BOOK ; WRITE NUMBERS AND PICTURES OF “H OW MANY ”

M ATH GAME ; F IND THE MISSING NUMBER

R OLL D IE, C OUNT AND READ NUMBERS TO 100

C OMPUTER BASED GAMES IN MATH

R EAD AND WRITE NUMBER STORIES

T HE MONEY G AME AND C OIN S ORT

T HE D ICE G AME R EAD AND WRITE NUMBERS

R EAD AND WRITE NUMBERS

T HE GRAPHING GAMES

L ISTEN TO STORIES ON TAPE AND ILLUSTRATE AN IDEA

P ATTERN BLOCK DESIGNS

C OUNT RECORD AND ILLUSTRATE

R EAD NUMBERS THROUGH GAMES

S TUDENTS WORKING IN CENTERS

C OUNT OBJECTS, CREATE NUMBER SENTENCES AND READ

S TUDENTS WORKING IN CENTERS

S TUDENTS CREATING A NUMBER BOOK

S TUDENTS WORKING IN C ENTERS

S CORING OF D ATA C OLLECTED Criterion based scoring was used to measure growth in students ability to read and write numbers. Students score as follows: Beginning: Students may have an understanding of numbers 0-10 but need much support. Developing: Students have an understanding of numbers 0-20 and need some support. Secure: Students have an understanding of numbers independently or with minimal support.

R ESULTS OF D ATA C OLLECTED FOR W RITING AND R EADING N UMBERS Writing Numbers Baseline Assessment Final Assessment Beginning Level 53% Beginning Level 7% Developing Level 47% Developing Level 7% Secure Level 0% Secure Level 86% Reading Numbers Baseline AssessmentFinal Assessments Beginning Level47% Beginning level 7% Developing Level53% Developing Level 0% Secure Level 0% Secure Level 93% Respectively, gains were made with both reading and writing numbers.

C LOSING S TATEMENTS The use of differentiated math centers had a positive affect on students’ ability to both read and write numbers in kindergarten Students were able to gain understanding of content with the use of hands-on manipulatives, exploration, and the use of multi-sensory learning opportunities Students showed growth with on-task behaviors (communicating an idea, sharing materials and cleaning up) during math centers