Calculating Excursions Years 2 - 6

Summary Many children love to explore large numbers and love to continue patterns. We also know that 'real life' situations often captivate children - especially if the situations are their own real life. With these thoughts in mind, teachers begin looking for opportunities in the week by week activities of the school. Materials One calculator per child One Poly Plug per child Assorted classroom materials Acknowledgement The images and idea opposite is from pages 13 & 14 of the CAN Report and the example suggests many other opportunities for teachers. Quoting further from these pages: Because children who use calculators are able to handle large numbers, they can work in real-life situations in which the numbers have not been simplified. Kelly and Janice (aged 8) worked out the cost of the school trip to the farm for the 88 children who went. Their methods of calculation were very different.

Kelly's Method Janice's Method

Procedure It's easy really. Be alert to opportunities in the wider school program then offer students the chance to calculate. You might be surprised at what captivates them. Gay Lynch, Herdsmans Cove Primary School, took hold of a school initiative to collect compost. Knowing how much was collected in one day, the children began exploring how much would be collected over longer periods of time.

Content Content can vary widely in this activity, but it is likely to include some of the following. addition facts beyond 10 addition facts to 10 counting decimal calculations division estimating number exploring large numbers group (or skip) counting multiplication operations - money operations - whole number order of operations pattern recognition place value problem solving recording - written subtraction times tables Notes When a similar activity is explored in your class please send us a report to add to this page. You could link this activity to Taking A Trip which approaches excursions from a storytelling point of view.

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