Teachers, Your Giftwrap May be Hiding a Secret...

It's the Sunday after Christmas, and if you're like me, you're already searching for some great clearance deals. I'm on the hunt for wrapping paper, and some of the stores I visited are offering 50-75% off this holiday staple. Wrapping paper - also called giftwrap - is great for working on activities involving volume and surface area. So, I stock up when I can. Dollar stores always have deals on giftwrap. There's another reason I like giftwrap - it is "hidden" on the side without all the bright colors and playful prints. If you have a roll of giftwrap, you may have a cost-cutting treasure on the opposite side.

Normally, a roll of coordinate grid paper costs $30 or more. For $1.00, budget-minded teachers can use the back side of giftwrap for the grids. Not all giftwrap has grids, but all of the paper I've purchased from Dollar Tree has had them. If offers an excellent alternative to basic black and white grid paper - at a fraction of the cost!



Yellow Grids Lines on Giftwrap

Kids Love Color

Even though kids will use the back side of the paper, they are excited to use educational materials that are unique and colorful. You'll never go wrong with samples of giftwrap. If you choose giftwrap with grids, you may notice that some grid lines are darker than others, but they are noticeable.

Learning about the Cartesian Coordinate system

Cut out squares of giftwrap and distribute to students. Review the Cartesian Coordinate system with students and allow them to "take notes" on the paper. Once their notes are finished, they can fold up the sides to complete the activity.

Cartesian on Giftwrap

Mystery Pictures and Scale Drawings

My favorite activities to use with wrapping paper grids are mystery pictures and scale drawings. Students work in pairs. One student receives standard grid paper and his or her partner receives a section of giftwrap. Students complete the mystery pictures and compare the pictures to find the scale. Students can also work individually to scale pictures.

One big, one small, and a great lesson!

Now, you'll never have unused giftwrap! Just flip it and use the grids for another inexpensive, yet effective classroom hack.

Favs for the Holidays

The holiday break is almost here, and Angela from Southern Fried Teachin' is asking educators about their favorite things. I love hooting about favs, so I thought I'd join in on the fun!

 

1. Favorite Holiday Song: Christmas Canon from Trans-Siberian Orchestra. It always gets me in the spirit.

2. Favorite Holiday Guilty pleasure food: my mother's creamy pork chops!

3. Favorite Holiday Tradition: Getting together with Family

4. Favorite Holiday Book: A Christmas Carol

5. Favorite Holiday Act of Kindness: Giving presents to those who need assistance.

6. Favorite Holiday Memory: There's too many; I can't choose just one!

7. Favorite Holiday Childhood Gift: That's easy; my first computer.

8. Favorite Holiday Craft: Gingerbread houses

9. Favorite Holiday Movie: Home Alone

10. Favorite Place to Shop for Holiday Gifts: Amazon. I'm wearing out my Prime membership!

11. What I want Santa to bring me: A new computer and a 3D printer.

12. Favorite Holiday Product: Prep-Less for the Holidays with Holiday Math for 6th Grade!

Classroom Hack: Tic Tac Penguin

I love, love, love dollar stores. I've found my best classroom hacks in dollar stores, and now that I'm preparing for the holidays, it's good to know I can rely on them for excellent ideas for activities.

Just $1 (plus tax) was enough to pick up this tic-tac-toe game with a penguin. My goal: to make a review activity for students.

First, I inserted labels in the spaces. Using labels allows anyone to change the format of the game at anytime. Whenever it's time to make a change, just remove the old labels and insert new labels!

Next, I selected a set of 9 task cards on topics students need to review. Task cards with QR Codes work well because they allow students to self-check their answers while working. I used triangle inequality task cards for this game, but any task cards will work. Instead of two students playing tic-tac-doe with another student as scorekeeper, only two students are needed when using QR codes. That means more engagement. Win, Win for everyone! I also downloaded a free snowman spinner from Creative Clips and added numbers. The game was ready for a math center!

Playing "Tic-Tac-Penguin" is as simple as the traditional game! Students use the spinner to determine which card to use. If the calculate the correct answer, they can place an "x" or an "o" on the corresponding number on the tic-tac-toe board. A student will lose a turn if he or she spins a number of a card that has already been solved.

Kids will LOVE this alternative to traditional review as we all prepare for the holiday break. It all started with $1!!!