Just a Minute!

I used this book with first graders last week in the Vestal School District in Upstate New York. I followed the Marilyn Burns activities suggested in the back of the book. The activities seem simple, but they are carefully designed. The lesson went very well and was easy to use. I was amazed that none of the children peeked when they closed their eyes for one minute so that they could feel how long a minute really is. We also stood on one leg for one minute, clapped our hands for one minute, and drew stars for one minute. We then counted the stars in different ways. We practiced the various ways of counting off a minute in time, and the children discussed with me what kinds of activities take more than a minute and which ones take less. I believe that every child in that classroom now has a fairly clear understanding of the length of a minute. The children liked the story and they related to Fred who is told, "just a minute." This is a great way to begin the study of time measurement.