Have you ever used glyphs in your classroom? Do you know what a “glyph” is?
A glyph is “the specific shape, design, or representation of a character”. This representation is a collection of visual objects. These visual objects are collectively called a Glyph.
Glyphs are fun activities and worksheets that keep kids engaged, focused, and help students learn to decode data .
These skills are important in math, science, and social studies. Glyphs build skills, like counting, time, directionality, and practice reading comprehension. Students read and follow directions.
Teachers Love Glyphs Because:
- They are NO PREP.
- They require students to use reading skills. It is especially helpful when the glyph legends used are written using sight words. That way students are practicing reading their sight words in context.
- Graphing glyphs by different attributes each day means several days of lessons from just 1 glyph!
Students Love Glyphs Because:
- They get to color, cut, and assemble. (Some glyphs are just color.)
- They get to post their glyph where everyone can see and they can see how many others are alike or different.
- Glyphs are interactive and the students change their glyph daily to graph for a different attribute.
How to Use Glyphs in the Classroom
So how have I used glyphs in the classroom? There are so many different ways that I could probably write a book! However, here are just a few ideas. Please note that these ideas are done over several lessons.
First, in whole group instruction, I discuss what glyphs are and why we use them. Next, I draw a picture as an example on chart paper. Then I use the students to make a graph. For example, I line all the boys up on one side of the room and all the girls up on the other side. After that, we discuss the differences in mathematical terms.
“Which do we have more of, girls or boys? How many more ____ than ___? Can we make a math sentence to show this information?”
Many times I use glyphs in my small group instruction. This of course depends on the level of students I am teaching. Other times I place the glyph in a center as a “Have-To” activity. Students can also complete their glyph as independent work and save them until math time when we begin to graph the results.
Depending on the month, I show students the glyph and explain how to follow the directions on the legend. Some months are “color only”, some are “color and cut out”, others are “color, cut out, assemble”, and then others are “color, cut out, assemble and complete a picture.”
After all students have completed their glyph, I choose an attribute for graphing. For example, “Today we are going to graph by the color of your eyes.” Each day I choose a different attribute from the legend. For about the 1st five minutes of math, we discuss the graphing information. Sometimes there is a class graph that we also fill out daily.
Depending on the level of students, I have them write statements with their data. For example, “I am a girl. I like school.”
Preschool and Kindergarten Students LOVE Glyphs Too!
Glyphs can be used with any age group. If you teach Pre-Kindergarten or Kindergarten, use glyphs in your small group instruction as a “listening and following directions” lesson. Then use title cards with pictures so they can graph their glyphs independently. I use painter’s tape so the paper doesn’t tear when they remove their glyphs.
TIPS FOR TEACHERS
In conclusion, here are some things to keep in mind when using glyphs:
- Teach students what glyphs are and how to graph results
- Preview the legend to be sure it is appropriate for the level of students you teach
- Decide how you want students to complete their glyph – small group, centers, or independently
- Choose an attribute each day to graph by
- Discuss graphing results in mathematical terms – greater than, less than, how many more, how many less, half of the class, fewer than, more than, etc.
- Depending on the level of your students, have them write statements about their data
NOTE: Unless the glyph is used as a center activity, I ALWAYS staple the legend to the back of the glyph. This is so that parents will see the educational value and not think the child is just coloring at school.
If you have never tried glyphs, grab your FREE glyph HERE!
If you and your students enjoy this, take a look to see glyphs for each month of the school year plus more! You can find individual months or you can find them all together in a money-saving bundle.
For another fun activity, check out my Fairytale Glyphs Activities and Centers here!
For more fun in the classroom, check out my post here on how to make a game spinner!
For more fun in the classroom, check out my post here on how to make a game spinner!