Here are ways some of these ideas for incorporating math into whole group reading time might play out in the classroom:

• One Is a Snail, Ten Is a Crab
  • First Read: Complete a “picture walk,” asking students to try and figure out how the author arrived at his number on each page. (A picture walk is a shared activity between a child and an adult that occurs prior to reading the book. As you flip through the pages one by one it is a way to preview the story and allows the child to become more familiar with the book before actively reading the text.)
    • You might hear a child say, “Two human feet and one snail feet is three feet! Or “Instead of a dog with four feet, you can have two humans!”
    • You might comment, “Wow, I wonder how they came up with that number!” to prompt conversation.

• Second Read: Read the story through as you emphasize the use of counting principles (e.g., one-to-one correspondence) and operations (e.g., “How many feet altogether? How do you know?”) in the story. As you begin to read, ask students to listen for your math “key word” and point to their nose or touch their ear when they hear it (you want their actions to be minimal so as to not interrupt other students as they listen.). Ask students to summarize the story and explain how math and your “key word” applies to the story.
  • For example, you might assign a target number as the key word, such as 10 (CD3.1t for preschool students) or multiples of 10 (K.3.d for kindergarten students).

• Instead of a third read, consider having students create their own math page or stories using their family, friends, classmates, etc.
  • For pre-k students: The teacher can assign each student a number or they can draw a number from a hat. The teacher can work with the student to help them select something that matches their number. Each student can create an illustration to contribute to a class-created number line.
  • For kindergarten students: The teacher can assign a target number and students come up with different ways this number can be composed for the chosen characters in their stories.

• Bonus: Have students read their personal page or stories with the class. Be prepared to ask questions that prompt them to share and justify their mathematical thinking. For example:
  • Have students share how they composed their assigned number.
    • g., “Can you tell us how you counted out 20? Is it the same or different from what [another student] shared? How so?”
  • Have students share how they represented their assigned numbers.
    • g., “How did you choose to represent the number 20? Can you show us how you know 20 is on your story page?”