Math

Lego Math

 Who doesn't love Legos? This is a fun way for students to practice their addition while doing something fun. I hope your class loves this as much as mine did! 

http://www.swagbucks.com/?t=i&p=1&b=0&q=pre+k+math+ideas

Enjoy!

Don't feed the Raccoon!

http://stayathomeeducator.com/dont-feed-the-raccoon/

This is one of the games that I used with my students during my student teaching! They LOVED it. It's a great way to work on number recognition! 

Creating the raccoon isn't as hard as it looks! Just get a pasta box that has the circle window in front and once you use the pasta, carefully cut the plastic window out. Give the box a couple layers of grey paint (I just mixed my black and white paint until I got the color I wanted) Then when it dries, paint on your face, paws, tail, and eyes. 

The other supplies of on the link under the photo, just cut them out and get started! She also has the rules for the game listed on her website as well. I gave my raccoon a name -Ricky, and every day my kids would ask if Ricky was coming or not. So fun! 

Enjoy!

Division Headaches - NO MORE!
This is a fun website I found to teach that tricky division! She has so much good information on her blog, and there is a ton of cool resources. Be sure to check out every cute project she has here.

Think YOU don't need math? Think again!

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product
/Think-you-dont-need-Math-FREE-poster-318067

This is a poster I found on Pinterest that explains the importance of math to students - and even some teachers- that don't know why it's important. It helps put the importance of math in perspective for students who may be struggling and think that going to math class is pointless. 

Enjoy!

Subtract It

 I'm so excited about this! I found this idea on Pinterest and I followed the link to find that not only does it have pictures and instructions but also has a FREE download! That's right! The lovely person who created this fun subtraction game wanted you lovely people to have your own copy for free! Here are some pictures of the game itself being played by her children: 

This game is a great way for visual learners to practice their subtraction skills with hands-on experience! And all you have to do to get a copy of this game is follow this link! 

The link contains materials, full instructions, and tells you everything you need to know! If you have any other questions about the game, or want to check out more ideas from this blog, follow this link: 

http://www.confessionsofahomeschooler.com/blog/2010/04/subtract-it-math-game.html

Enjoy!

Greatest Common Factor

This video shows students how to find the greatest common factor by showing the step by step directions on screen. It would be great for students to be able to follow along with this as it goes, use it for practice, or even use it to introduce the lesson! 

Here's the link for the video if it doesn't work right from the blog: 

                                        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvYcWYbZhKA

Enjoy!

Popsicle Stick Counting

http://mytwohappyhomeschoolers.blogspot.com/
2010/04/right-start-math-activity.html

This activity is pretty self explanatory, but it teaches kids how to do tallies. This could be done with the homemade cards like in the picture, or you could use a regular deck of cards without the face cards. Then the kids take the cards and chose the number, then represent that number with the right amount of Popsicle sticks. Making sure that once they reach five sticks, they do it across the first four. What a great hands-on tool! 

Enjoy!

Number Cups

I love these! Just write the numbers 1-9 on the side of one cup, then take the second cup and repeat the process but then ad a 0 after each one except not on the very edge. This will be the middle cup. The last cup is the same thing except adding two 0's. Students can move the cups then push them together to do addition problems. For example, in this picture 600 + 50 + 3, when you push the cups together, they read 653. It's such a great idea! 

http://neuronetlearning.com/blog/math-activities-for-kids-place-value-notation/

Enjoy!

Prime numbers

Prime numbers, composite numbers, perfect squares, all of these things can be confusing, but this awesome rap helps kids learn about prime numbers! Check it out. 

Enjoy!

Getting to know you - the math version!

http://kaitlyn-smiles.blogspot.com/2013/06/workshop-wednesday-pinterest-math.html

Everyone knows there are a million and one "get to know you" games, but I love this one! This one uses math while letting everyone get acquainted. This project involves using a plain sheet of white paper divided into eight equal sections. The first section is the student's name. The second is the number part of their address. The third can be their phone number at home, or the school phone number. The fourth is their birthday, fifth is how many days in a year there are, and then multiplied by their age. The sixth and seventh can be random facts that involve numbers, and the eighth is how many people are in their families. 

This activity would be great for students to teach them that numbers are everywhere, which could potentially lead into a discussion about the importance of numbers/math. Students can decorate these and even add a picture of themselves as shown below. I really liked this idea, and I hope you do too!

Enjoy!

Do you have the time?

Today in my math class we were talking about teaching students how to tell time. We talked about why it's so difficult for students to learn this because it's an abstract concept that is becoming more and more obsolete with the presence of digital clocks and watches. 

However, teaching students how to tell time is very important.

Flower Clock:
http://independenceinlearning.blogspot.com
/2011/12/telling-time.html

This picture is one way to display a clock in the classroom. This is a great visual so students understand that the long hand is the minute hand, and the short hand is the hour hand. Then the petals are conveniently placed so students can visualize the time.

 Another way to display time, which takes care of a hard aspect of time telling is to label the clock. By this I mean, put labels by the 3, 6, 9, and 12 on the clock. The labels would read: quarter after, half past, quarter to, and ___ o'clock. This helps students learn these different labels that we use to tell time.

One activity my math teacher told us to try is called "Be Ready for the Bell." In this activity students are given a worksheet with blank clocks. Then at random parts of the day, the teacher rings a bell (or does something

 to get the kids attention) and has them draw the minute hand and the hour hand. Then the students will write the time in the way it would appear on a digital clock. This activity gives students a visual, and it allows them to be able to switch between analog and digital with few problems. Teachers can check for understanding by looking at the worksheets at the end of the day. Make sure to check that the minute hand is longer than the hour hand!

Enjoy!

The human clock is also a great activity!

Human Clock
http://www.cynical-c.com/2004/03/01/

In this activity, students go up to a clock that is drawn on the board, or made out of a big sheet of paper. The teacher (or the class) gives them a time to make using their arms. This really gives a visual way for students to visualize, while doing a physical activity!

It's a great way to get the whole class involved  while having them learn at the same time!

I hope you found these clock activities to be helpful!

Enjoy!

Pet Shop Game

Everyone remembers learning how to use money in school. For this game, students can use change, dollars, or a combination of both! The game can be changed depending on what the students are learning. I played this game today with my math class (of college students) and everyone really enjoyed it!

(The only warning I can give you is that it does take a while to cut everything out.)
The link to the website is:

http://finallyinfirst.blogspot.com/2011/03/pet-shop-coin-game.html

This is what the game looks like. All you have to do is download the PDF file (for free!!). 

This is what the game looks like. You can download this file and print off everything. 

She also provides a set of directions for students as well as a set for teachers!

Pet Shop

               I am not taking credit for creating this game! All credit goes to the owner of the blog:

http://finallyinfirst.blogspot.com/

I hope you like this game as much as I did!

Enjoy!

So many math games!

http://mathwire.com/games/addsubgames.html

This website is full of math game ideas, my favorite one is probably this M&M probability game. What kid (or adult) doesn't like playing a game with candy?! This is a great way to start or wrap up a unit. I think I will definitely be saving this for my future classroom. Be sure to look at all of the math games and add this website to your list of favorites! I know I did. 

http://mathwire.com/games/addsubgames.html 

Enjoy!

Fun Math Rhyme

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/578637_319630434826158_1785761620_n.jpg

Here's a fun way to remember how to find the mean, median, and mode! 

Enjoy!