First Grade

Wiggle Wiggle Worm

Empowered Learner
Worm

Overview

(Willie Wiggle Wiggle Worm (MathPickle, 2010)

Willie Worm is an enjoyable and challenging visual-spatial problem, which encourages persistence in problem-solving, as well as providing students with a purposeful reason for practicing counting and writing numbers from 1-25.

Students will:

  • Be able to place numbers in order from 1-25 in a grid without going diagonally.

Vocabulary Words:

  1. Diagonal: A diagonal is a line segment that goes from one corner to another.

  2. Counting: Counting is putting numbers in order.

To prepare for this lesson:

  • Visit the website Wiggle Wiggle Worm.

  • The teacher should watch the video on how to play Willie Wiggle Worm.

  • The teacher should print math sheets for Willie Wiggle Worm.

  • The teacher should review counting orally and writing digits from 1-25 with students to ensure that they can complete the activity.

See the Accommodations Page and Charts on the 21things4students website in the Teacher Resources. 

Directions for this activity:

  1. The teacher should watch the video on how to play Willie Wiggle Worm.

  2. The teacher should print math sheets for Willie Wiggle Worm.

  3. The teacher may choose to show the class the Willie Wiggle Worm story on the video or tell to the students.

  4. The teacher places the numbers 1 and 25 in a square.

  5. Students create the counting pattern for Willie Wiggle Worm making sure that there are no diagonals.

Different options for assessing the students:

  • Observations
  • Check for understanding
  • The teacher creates a Willie Worm puzzle for students to complete independently, on a projector or in use with number talks.
  • If 25 is too challenging for some students the square can be decreased to nine.
  • If students need to be challenged the number of squares can be increased to provide a more challenging puzzle.

MITECS: Michigan adopted the "ISTE Standards for Students" called MITECS (Michigan Integrated Technology Competencies for Students) in 2018.

Empowered Learner 
1a. Students articulate and set personal learning goals, develop strategies leveraging technology to achieve them and reflect on the learning process itself to improve learning outcomes.
1b. Students build networks and customize their learning environments in ways that support the learning process.
1c. Students use technology to seek feedback that informs and improves their practice and to demonstrate their learning in a variety of ways.
1d. Students understand the fundamental concepts of technology operations, demonstrate the ability to choose, use and troubleshoot current technologies and are able to transfer their knowledge to explore emerging technologies.

Device: PC, Chromebook, Mac, iPad 

Browser: Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Edge, ALL

App, Extension, or Add-on:

Websites:
Math Pickle's Wiggle Wiggle Worm

Wiggle Wiggle Worm Puzzle Sheet

 

CONTENT AREA RESOURCES

Students can write a Willie Worm creative writing piece or an informational one.

Students can draw pictures of worms.

Students create their own worm pattern increasing numbers.

Do research on worms and present facts to class.

CREDITS
This task card was created by Julie Hoehing, Lake Shore Public Schools, January 2019. Updated Nov, 2023.