This week, we're reviewing our four processes, reciting the verses I wrote for each one and practicing word and written math problems. This is getting us in the 'mood of math', because next week I'll introduce place value! Enki has a nice story and explanation for this, which I'll be sure to share.
Today, we read the verses for Gnome Plus and Gnome Minus, and looked back on our first grade math books. (Enki uses other characters for the four processes, but I wasn't as pleased with those, so I made up my own, based on the usual Waldorf math gnomes with a twist from Donsy of Gnomes. Maybe I'll write it up.....)
I told a a few Gnome Plus stories: one was about Plus having 3 star seeds in his pouch, and then finding 2 more on a hill. (I added lots of detail, on the fly, so it was about a 5 minute story.) Lela, who is newly 8 years old, had to figure out the equation and solve it. Rather, she likes to solve it and then figure out the equation! We wrote it on the chalk board in the horizontal "first grade way" and then in the vertical, then "second grade way".
Next I told a little story about Gnome Plus going for an adventure, and leaving his house with a banana muffin in his pack. He stopped to pick two mushrooms (he's an expert mycologist!) and then crossed a creek and picked three fern fiddldheads. At the top of the mountain, he took in the view, but heard a noise that sounded like a frog (I made a tummy-rumbling noises), then a louder noise that sounded like a bear (louder tummy rumbling noises) and then one big long growling noise that finally made him realize it was his stomach asking for a snack! (I made the noises very loud and quite embarrassing and silly, and Lela found it hilarious!) Gnome Plus opened his pack and pulled out his snacks (we recounted them - 1 banana muffin, 2 mushrooms, 3 fiddleheads) and he gobbled them down. She had to figure out how much he ate in all, and once again write the equation and practice on the vertical and horizontal.
To wrap up with Gnome Plus and transition to Gnome Minus, told a story of him gathering a bouquet of flowers for Gnome Minus' birthday: 1 daffodil, 3 violets, 4 clovers and 2 tulips. Again, she solved the problem (how many flowers in the bouquet?) and we wrote the equation/number sentence in the horizontal and vertical, practicing putting the numbers back into words as we went along.
Then we moved on to Gnome Minus, and I told a story about he and Gnome Plus preparing for the birthday party at Minus' home. They put up banners and baked the cake and cleaned the house. Then Gnome Plus was hungry. Gnome Minus happened to have a little clay crock with some dried mushrooms, and so Minus shared with Plus. Minus took the crock off the high shelf and opened the lid, revealing 7 dried mushrooms. Gnome Plus, not wanted to seem greedy and remembering the party was soon, took only one and gobbled it right down. Then they went back to party preparations. Lela had to identify the equation (7-1=?) and figure out how many mushrooms were left, and again, write it on the board.
Finally, it was time for the party! All the gnomes arrived (Plus, Minus, Times, Divide and Equals) plus four river ducks (the girls decided there needed to be more party-guests!) and after celebrating, Gnome Minus brought out the cake. (Here I lined up 10 glass stones in 2 rows of 5, all touching each other.) Minus made a wish and blew out the candles, then cut the cake (I dragged my finger between the two rows, then across each row, effectively cutting the cake into 10.) Each of the 5 gnomes and 4 ducks had a piece. Lela had to figure out how many pieces were leftover, and then again, create, solve and write the equation.
I helped out here and there, so she didn't get tired. Five mini-stories, each with a several step process for solving and practicing, could get a bit much for any child, but with selective help and intervention, she could do it. (She didn't need help solving any problems, just with the "process" of creating the equation and writing it out. And she could do that, but would have gotten tired without my help.) Between the verse reading, stories and chalkboard equations, we spent an hour, and then she took another 20 minutes to make a drawing based on the last story.
It was a lot of fun for both of us. I enjoyed creating impromptu stories and filling them with detail, and she enjoyed the stories and playing with her gnomes, and writing on the chalk board.
Tomorrow, we play with multiplication and division, and all week we'll be practicing 'counting-bys' with singing.
