rounding rhyme & games

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Archive : 2004 : October : 11

rounding rhyme & games
By Chris

Use this little rap or rhyme:

Underline the digit
Look next door
If it's 5 or higher
add one more
If it's 4 or lower
just ignore.

They look to the Right neighbor next door if they want to get the rounding
right.
Don't look to the left neighbor
Most importantly tell them why we round - to estimate and to compute with numbers more easily. Give them the example of ordering books from a book order. If parents give them $15 to spend and they want books that cost $4.95, $2.95, and $6.95, do they have enough dough?
Have kids act out rounding at the front of the classroom. Make cards

with one digit on one side and make it one digit higher on the other side. Give each kid a zero card as well. Shuffle them around, asking them to round to various place values. They can chant the rap as they decide how to round.

Imagine kids holding the numbers:
5 4 7 8
Teacher of students says "Round to the tens place."
The person holding the 7 turns it over to an 8 and the 8 holds up the zero card. 5 & 4 stay the same.

They can also play a rounding game with partners.
Each player draws blanks to represent up to the millions place (good check to see if they know) and a reject box. So 7 blanks and a reject box. Roll a 0-9 die. Players place the same die roll in any blank they strategically choose. They may reject one number. Once you place, you may not erase!!!
Player with highest number wins. Then ask them to round to a specific place value. Play for the lowest value too.