Concepts

Gaining a conceptual understanding of fractions early on with visual models is critical. To avoid students memorizing rules like “ magic tricks” to come up with the answers and then forgetting or misremembering them it is important to help them understand where these rules come from. Teachers provide visual models …

One of my favorite activities to do in class is to give students task cards with different arrangements and ask them how they see/count the objects. This activity offers a great opportunity for discussions. I later ask the students to write the equations or just the expressions for the arrangements, …

Grades 1-3 Scales are a great hands-on tool for comparing numbers and learning about equivalence and it is a lot of fun for students to use. These printable and digital activity cards aim to help practice equivalence and addition/subtraction using the concept of the scale. The students can use a …

Grades 3 and up Decimal Fractions to Decimals Decimals are a challenging concept and many students find it confusing. The key is to provide a lot of visuals and make sure students understand fractions. Decimals include a decimal point to represent a whole number plus a fraction of a whole number (tenths, hundredths, …

Arrays are a great way to introduce multiplication in grades 2 and 3. Playing with arrays will help students model multiplication as repeated addition and understand the properties of multiplication. It is very important that we help students visualize and understand multiplication early on so that we build a strong …

Dragon Times is an educational fantasy card game that aims to motivate children to practice multiplication and division facts while saving Dragons and casting magic spells. Goal: Save and free the Dragons of Times and become the Wizard’s apprentice. While playing Dragon Times children improve their mental maths skills and …

A few days back I gave my students a few”numbers crosses” to solve as part of an escape room activity. I call them number crosses because instead of words you write numbers on the tiles and you describe those numbers in words. They work like puzzles and they can get …

In how many different orders can the 3 Binions sit in their spaceship? If the blue Binion sits in the first seat then there are two ways for the three Binions to sit. If the purple Binion sits on the first seat there are two ways for the three Binions …

Symmetry surrounds us. People, animals, plants, everything on the earth and outside is symmetrical. Symmetry is nature’s artwork that creates harmony and balance. So why not have a symmetry lesson outside, in nature. Spring and fall are the best seasons for this activity. Finding symmetrical objects with students while on …