Every year, I forget how little kindergarteners really are when the begin school. I am quickly reminded when I have to gently coax them out of their cars at the beginning of the day or watch a napping child while the rest of their class goes to specials.
I was again reminded the other day when I was administering a Math CBM to a kindergartener. We were doing some addition, a skill to which many in K have not yet been introduced. When approaching a problem such as 3 + 4, this little boy put 3 fingers up on one hand and 4 on the other. Then, figuring out he didn't have any more fingers to point with, he proceeded to use his nose to point to each finger as he counted! He continued in this way with other questions. It definitely brought a smile to my face.
His simple strategy guided him to the correct answers, while reminding me that there are numerous ways to solve problems. They might not be the way that we expect, but they can be just as effective.
Happy Monday and remember to keep an eye out for those student-created strategies!
Colleen
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