Title: The Very Hungry
Caterpillar
Author and Illustrator: Eric
Carle
Recommended Grade Level:
Kindergarten
Common Core Mathematics Standard:
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.OA.A.1
Represent addition and subtraction with objects, fingers, mental images, drawings1, sounds (e.g., claps), acting out situations, verbal explanations, expressions, or equations.
Represent addition and subtraction with objects, fingers, mental images, drawings1, sounds (e.g., claps), acting out situations, verbal explanations, expressions, or equations.
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.CC.A.3
Write numbers from 0 to 20. Represent a number of objects with a written numeral 0-20 (with 0 representing a count of no objects).
Write numbers from 0 to 20. Represent a number of objects with a written numeral 0-20 (with 0 representing a count of no objects).
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.CC.A.2
Count forward beginning from a given number within the known sequence (instead of having to begin at 1).
Count forward beginning from a given number within the known sequence (instead of having to begin at 1).
Common Core Standards for Mathematical Practice:
Model with mathematics.
CCSS.MATH.PRACTICE.MP4
Mathematically proficient
students can apply the mathematics they know to solve problems arising in
everyday life, society, and the workplace. In early grades, this might be as
simple as writing an addition equation to describe a situation. In middle
grades, a student might apply proportional reasoning to plan a school event or
analyze a problem in the community. By high school, a student might use
geometry to solve a design problem or use a function to describe how one
quantity of interest depends on another. Mathematically proficient students who
can apply what they know are comfortable making assumptions and approximations
to simplify a complicated situation, realizing that these may need revision
later. They are able to identify important quantities in a practical situation
and map their relationships using such tools as diagrams, two-way tables,
graphs, flowcharts and formulas. They can analyze those relationships
mathematically to draw conclusions. They routinely interpret their mathematical
results in the context of the situation and reflect on whether the results make
sense, possibly improving the model if it has not served its purpose.
Make sense of
problems and persevere in solving them.
CCSS.MATH.PRACTICE.MP1
Mathematically proficient
students start by explaining to themselves the meaning of a problem and looking
for entry points to its solution. They analyze givens, constraints,
relationships, and goals. They make conjectures about the form and meaning of
the solution and plan a solution pathway rather than simply jumping into a
solution attempt. They consider analogous problems, and try special cases and
simpler forms of the original problem in order to gain insight into its
solution. They monitor and evaluate their progress and change course if necessary.
Older students might, depending on the context of the problem, transform
algebraic expressions or change the viewing window on their graphing calculator
to get the information they need. Mathematically proficient students can
explain correspondences between equations, verbal descriptions, tables, and
graphs or draw diagrams of important features and relationships, graph data,
and search for regularity or trends. Younger students might rely on using
concrete objects or pictures to help conceptualize and solve a problem.
Mathematically proficient students check their answers to problems using a
different method, and they continually ask themselves, "Does this make
sense?" They can understand the approaches of others to solving complex
problems and identify correspondences between different approaches.
Summary:
The life cycle of a
butterfly from an egg. When the caterpillar hatches from an egg, he becomes very
hungry. On Monday, he eats one item and as the week progresses, the number of
items the butterfly consumes increases until he develops a stomachache by
Saturday. On Sunday, he consumes one leaf making him feel better as he
transitions into his cocoon for more than two weeks and turns into the final
stage of a butterfly.
Rating: 5 Stars
The math concept is embedded
into visuals. Instead of writing the number, food is used to represent that
number. For example: Three images of plums are displayed and below the text
states “On Wednesday he ate through three plums, but he was still hungry.” Overall,
the illustrator provides colorful imagery with supporting text to capture the
audience’s attention.
Classroom Ideas:
Incorporating Math and
Science concepts by using the four stages of the monarch butterfly’s life cycle.
Providing Addition and subtraction concepts by adding the total number of food
items the butterfly eats every day and subtracting the difference between the
total life cycle of the butterfly to determine how much time is left for the
caterpillar to become a butterfly.
Published By: Karen Monaco
Karen,
ReplyDeleteI like that your classroom idea of integrating the book for science as well by using it to touch upon the 3 stages of the butterfly life cycle.
Karen,
ReplyDeleteYou bring up a great point on incorporating Math and Science with The Very Hungry Caterpillar. Students can take away math skills such as subtraction as well as learning about the Life Cycle of a Butterfly from beginning to end.
Definitely makes a teachers life a little easier when it comes to touching on all subject matters. It easiest when they all tie into each other.
Karen,
ReplyDeleteI love that you chose this book as this was one of my favorite books growing up. I used to rent this book out of the library literarly weekly until the librarian and my mom forbade me from checking it out for atleast two weeks. I think this book works amazing for both a science and mathematical component. Science as easily shown, it demonstrates the 3 stages of life for a butterfly. However, at the same time it demonstrates numbers in images that are familiar to children. A child may not know what the number 2 looks like but he/she may know what a strawberry is. Showing two strawberry images after showing one banana shows the numerical component and the sequencing of numbers.
Great Choice!
Jeremy