Monday was a red-letter day in Room 123–three students lost teeth over the weekend! Whenever classmates lose teeth, we celebrate. First, we recite the Tooth Cheer.
Then, we use tallies to record each lost tooth each month.
These tallies offer many opportunities for math problem solving. Students count how many teeth are lost each month as well as altogether. They also compare totals for each month, and figure out the difference between the months. Students are also challenged to decide if it is probable that tooth loss in the current month will tie or beat that of previous months, and to explain their reasoning.
Lots of learning from a simple celebration!