ARTSEDGE: Picture Perfect Facts

This Lesson at a Glance:

Grade Band:

Integrated Subjects:
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Materials:

For the student:

		Word Problems
		Comic Book Word Problem

Targeted Standards:

The National Standards For Arts Education:

Visual Arts (K-4)
Standard 1: Understanding and applying media, techniques, and processes

Visual Arts (K-4)
Standard 2: Using knowledge of structures and functions

Other National Standards:

Mathematics I (K-2) Standard 3: Uses basic and advanced procedures while performing the processes of computation

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Picture Perfect Facts

Lesson Overview:

Students will listen to word problems that illustrate the concepts of addition and subtraction, focusing on the words that represent the elements of the related number sentence. They will compose a word problem based on a number sentence provided by the teacher, and will illustrate the word problem in the form of a comic strip.

Length of Lesson:

One 45-minute period

Notes:

This lesson is particularly suitable for students in grade 2.

Instructional Objectives:

Students will:

draw pictures representing addition or subtraction facts, based on a number sentence.
translate an illustration of a simple addition or subtraction word problem into a number sentence.
be able to solve problems using arithmetic operations.

Instructional Plan:

Warm Up

Read a book that illustrates the concept of subtraction, such as Ten Sly Piranhas by William Wise.

Introductory and Developmental Activities

Provide each student with a bag of Unifix cubes. Together, model several different mathematical addition and subtraction sentences. Have individual students write the appropriate number sentence on the chalkboard for each story.

Guided Practice Activities

Write several addition and subtraction sentences on the board. Read the first sentence aloud, and demonstrate the process of addition or substraction using felt cut-outs. Discuss the words that indicate whether something has been added or subtracted. (For example: John, Mark, and Katie were sitting in the theater. Mark left to get some popcorn.) List these words on the board. Have the students write down the appropriate number sentence. Repeat this process for each sentence. Distribute the Word Problems Handout. Instruct the students to circle the words that indicate a number in the problem (ex: Mary and her brother, five fish, the seven dwarves, etc.) and underline the words that represent the addition and subtraction processes (got in, jumped out, etc.)

Independent Activities / Meaningful Use Activities

Show the class an example of a comic strip and explain that it tells a story in stages, with each frame representing a significant point in the story. Tell students that they will be drawing a a comic strip to represent an addition or subtraction number sentence. If necessary, work on a practice comic strip together as a class.

Have ready a stack of index cards with one number sentence written on each card. Distribute one card to each student. Distribute the Comic Book Word Problem Handout. Students should draw a three-frame comic strip that illustrates the addition or subtraction problem in the number sentence. Students should include a sentence under each frame to describe what is going on in the picture.

Closure

Have students switch their papers with a partner. The partner should write the number sentence represented in the comic strip.

Assessment:

Evaluate the students' success in meeting the following criteria:

creating a comic strip that accurately represents the number sentence.
accurately translating his or her partner's comic strip into the correct number sentence.

Sources:

Print:

Wise, William. Ten Sly Piranhas: A Counting Story in Reverse. Dial Books for Young Readers, 1993.

Authors:

Christine Sweger-Miller, Teacher
Thomas Pullen Arts Magnet School
Landover, MD