“Okay Kindergarten! Today we’re going to have a math popcorn party!”
“First things first! I need your help to set our table spots! We each need a bowl, a spoon, and a cup. Here is a bowl for each of you.” Hand each group of four, four plates. “Are there enough for all of you?”
As they answer, pull up the images of the bowls and the people and have them count each bowl and each person. “Yes! There are four bowls and four students! There are enough bowls for each student in your group. Now let’s see if we have enough spoons!” Pass each group of four, three cups. “Are there enough cups for each of you?” Flip to the image of the spoons while they think and then flip to the second image as they respond. Have them count the number of spoons and the number of people to double check their answer. Ask again “Are there enough spoons?”
“No! There are only three spoons and four students. That means there are not enough spoons. How many more spoons would we need for everyone to have a spoon?” Class: “one!” “Yes! We would need one more spoon for everyone in the group to have a spoon.”
Pass out one more spoon to each group and ask again “now are there enough spoons?” Class: “Yes!”
“That’s right! Now there are enough spoons because there are four: one spoon for each person in your group. Now, let’s see if we have enough cups.”
Hand each group five cups. “Here are your cups.”
Class: “There are too many!”
Ask the class “How many extra cups do you have?” Give them time to think and then pull up the images of cups and people and have them count each. Ask “How many more cups are there than people?”
“That’s right! There is one too many cups! If I take one away, are there enough?”
Class: “yes!”
“That’s right! If I take one away, there are JUST ENOUGH cups for your group.”
“Now that each of you has a bowl, a spoon, and a cup, let’s pass out the popcorn! I hope that I have enough… Help me count the scoops of popcorn as I give each student one scoop.”
Have students help count each scoop as you go around to each student. Once each student has one scoop, have students look at the remaining popcorn and ask “Do we think there’s enough popcorn left for every student to have another scoop?”
Take student guesses and then have them help count scoops of popcorn into a bigger bowl to see if there is enough left for everyone to have another scoop. Guide students in comparing the number of scoops it took for every student to have one and the number of scoops left over to see if there’s enough! Do the same with water as you fill their cups, have students count each cup and ask if there is enough. Have students munch on their popcorn as an afternoon snack 🙂
Hi Isabella!
I love this fun exercise for your kindergarteners! I feel like they would have so much fun, especially after seeing how you would deliver the presentation. I also think the students would think it was the best day ever having popcorn in class after the lesson! Such a fun idea
This is fun exercise for your kindergarteners! I feel like they would have such a great time, especially after seeing how you would deliver the presentation. I also think the students would think it was the best day ever having popcorn in class after the lesson! Such a fun idea
Hi Isabella! I enjoyed reading the exercise you created for your kindergarteners. I think that this is a great idea to use physical objects especially since this is for a younger grade and they might need visuals to understand the concepts! This is definitely a lesson I would hope to use in my future classroom!
Isabella, A well-conceived and very creative approach. The images are well chosen and do a great job of illustrating the “word problems.”
The narrative guide is a thoughtful guide to using the lesson.
Plus Popcorn!
Isabella, I like how you used both visuals and manipulatives to aid student learning. It is very fun and engaging! You could also use a similar lesson for introducing equality and equity.