Math Brothers: True or False Equations

Nicole Moorman

Subject/Topic

1st Grade Math: Recognizing if an equation is

true or false

Rationale

This lesson is being taught so students can

learn how to identify if a math equation is true
or false. This lesson is important because
students need to be able to look at a math
equation, whether it is addition, subtraction, or
a number equal to another number, and be
able to recognize if it is correct or not. This is a
basic skill and is essential for first graders to
grasp before continuing on in their mathlearning journey.
CCSS. MATH. CONTENT.1.0A.D.7
Understand the meaning of the equal sign, and
determine if equations involving addition and
subtraction are true or false.
SWBAT:
Understand the meaning of the equal sign
Determine if an equation is true or false
Math Brothers posters
Smart board
Individual dry erase boards with markers
Worksheet

Standards
Objective(s)
Materials

Lesson Design Elements

Anticipatory
Set

The teacher will begin the lesson with the

Math Brothers story. She will talk about Gus
the Plus, Linus the Minus, and Ellie the
Equal. Each character has a fun explanation of
the different math symbols. Gus represents the
addition sign, Linus represents the subtraction
sign, and Ellie represents the equal sign.
Before moving on, the teacher will ask her

Guided
Practice

Independent
Application

students to explain what each symbol means.

The students will be given a couple minutes to
talk with the student sitting next to them, and
then full attention will be brought back to the
teacher. On the white board, the teacher will
have the class give her a definition of each
symbol that will be written on the white board.
The teacher will pass out dry erase boards to
the students. If enough boards are available,
each student should have their own board, or
groups can be formed to accommodate the
ratio of students to dry erase boards. The
teacher will bring up a display of math
equations on the smart board. The symbols will
be missing from the equation. The students will
have to draw out the correct symbol on their
dry erase boards and hold up their answer to
the teacher. For example, the problems
displayed on the smart board will look like:
6___2=8, 4___3=1 , 5___5
Before sending the students off for
independent practice, the teacher will have the
students give a thumbs up if they feel like they
fully understand the symbols, a thumb to the
side if they feel like they sort of understand,
and a thumbs down if the students do not
understand. The overall goal at the end of
guided practice is to have all students give the
teacher a thumb up symbol. If students give a
thumb to the side or thumb down, then more
equations will need to be put on the smart
board for the students to write their answers
down on the dry erase boards.
For independent practice, students will be
given a worksheet that will have two parts. The
first part will be the same review that the
students practiced with the group on the smart
board. Once they complete the fill in the blank

Closure

Assessment

Differentiatio
n

equations, the second part will be circling true

or false next to completed equations. For
example, the problems will look like
8-1=7 T or F
4+4=9 T or F
7=7 T or F
Students will be allowed to quietly discuss the
problems in the groups they sit in during math,
but they will mostly be expected to complete
the problems on their own.
At the end of independent practice, the teacher
will ask for the students to hand in their
worksheets. To wrap up the lesson, the teacher
will bring up the Math Brothers. She will hold
up the posters of Linus, Gus, and Ellie and ask
the students to explain what each symbol
represents.
Students will be assessed in a couple of
different ways. During group discussion,
teacher observation will be the main form of
assessment as the teacher will be able to
observe if the students are holding up the
correct answers on their dry erase boards. The
hand signals that the students will be required
to give towards the end of the lesson will be
another form of assessment. This will give the
teacher a direct response from the students if
they are meeting the objectives of the lesson.
The worksheet will also be used for
assessment. The data from the worksheets will
be collected from the students and looked over
by the teacher. This will ensure that the
students are either meeting the goal or not and
give the teacher a direct representation of who
fully understands the concept.
Some students may grasp the concept slower
or faster than others.
For those students who give the thumb to
the side or thumb down symbol during

Other
Consideration
s

References

guided practice, it will be important for

the teacher to recognize these students
and group them together and sit down
with them at a center to work on the
worksheet with them.
Some students may grasp the concept
faster and need more of a challenge. For
these students, equations with bigger
numbers could be given out on another
worksheet.
Some students may have a hard time
reading the numbers off the smart board,
and to accommodate these students, they
will be placed closer to the smart board.
For this lesson the teacher will need to be
prepared for a number of different things.
It will be crucial that the students stay
engaged and focused. First graders tend
to struggle sitting still during group
discussion. If a student is moving a lot
and being disruptive during the guided
practice, the teacher should give them a
warning and tell them to wiggle their toes
if they feel like they need to be moving
something around. If the misbehavior
continues, then the teacher should
consider taking away the privilege of
being able to use the dry erase board.
The teacher should also be prepared for
all types of questions from the students.
Having a complete understanding of the
use of symbols is crucial because first
grade math learners might struggle with
realizing what makes the equations true
and false, and what symbol correctly
completes the blank.
www.pinterest.com
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/

Equal-Ellie-True-or-False-Equations-andNumber-Representation-Common-Core-630757
http://frugalinfirst.blogspot.com/2015/01/ellieequal-is-here.html
These websites are where I found the
Linus the Minus, Gus the Plus, and
Ellie the Equal, posters. I really liked
these posters and would definitely hang
them in my classroom. I think they would
be a fun way for first graders to
remember the symbols. Finding these
posters as well as looking over the
Common Core standards, helped me
come up with ideas for this lesson. I would
use the worksheets, but I want to add
equations that the equal sign needs to be
filled into the blank in order to fully
complete the Common Core standard.