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Lesson Plan

Whole Body Subtraction

Students will be jumping with joy after this lesson that helps them practice their subtraction skills with physical activity.
Need extra help for EL students? Try the Froggy Subtraction pre-lesson.
Grade
First Grade
Subject
Math
English Learner
English Learner Content
View aligned standards
1.OA.C.5
1.OA.C.6
Need extra help for EL students? Try the Froggy Subtraction pre-lesson.

Learning Objectives

After this lesson, students will have a better grasp on subtracting from 20.

The adjustment to the whole group lesson is a modification to differentiate for children who are English learners.
EL adjustments

Introduction

(5 minutes)
Easy Subtraction Under the SeaNumber Lines
  • Invite the students to come together.
  • Explain to students that today they will be exploring subtraction during math.
  • Ask the students what subtraction means. Call on a few students to explain.
  • Introduce the movement of bringing your hands in front of your chest in a clasp and bringing your hands behind your back in a clasp using a fluid movement as you say “Subtraction means taking away.” Invite the students to participate in this choral chant and movement.

Beginning

  • Create a chart titled "Subtraction" and record student ideas as they explain the meaning of subtraction. Include examples of situations that require subtraction with subtraction equations.
  • Allow students to share their understanding of subtraction in their home language (L1) if possible.

Intermediate

  • Prompt students to compare and contrast addition and subtraction.
  • Define subtraction as finding the difference between two numbers. Remind students that with subtraction the whole and one part are known, and we solve for an unknown part. Provide a "whole-part-part" visual to illustrate this concept.