Everyone looks for different things in a math center. Some teachers don’t mind cutting out bits and pieces. Others love to have activities that match their theme or the season perfectly. Me, I hate cutting out cards and game pieces. Plus I like to use my games any time of the year. After all, I may need that cute Halloween themed game… Read More
How to improve math fact fluency with bump games
Kids love bump games! I confess. I’d never heard of ‘Bump’ until a few years ago. My teaching partner said, “You HAVE to try this with the kids!” I didn’t think my class would like the idea of their answer being stolen away from them. But surprise, they did! It’s a game style they now ask for over and over. If… Read More
Setting up your Math Centers for Success
We’ve all had them. We think we have everything planned our math centers perfectly. We’ve spent ages prepping the resources we want to use – board games, card games, worksheets, technology. We have our lesson ready for our guided math group. We’ve differentiated the activities. It’s perfect …. but somewhere along the way, it all falls apart. I’m talking about… Read More
The counting on addition strategy – how to teach it
The counting on addition strategy is a great mental math strategy used to build number fact fluency. To put it simply, counting on involves adding 1, 2 or 3 to a number. 5 + 3, 6 + 2, 8 + 1 are all count on facts. So are 3 + 8, 2 + 14 and 1 + 7. What we want… Read More
The best way to use math games in your centers
Using math games in centers is a great way to consolidate your student’s learning but how well do your kids play math games together? Is it a chance for them to practice or revise concepts in a fun and motivating way? Or do they focus on just getting to the end of the game and winning? Do they spend time… Read More
How to make subtraction with regrouping fun
Have you ever handed out a subtraction with regrouping worksheet and watched your student’s eye glaze over? “Why do we have to do this! I know how to do this already!” And yes, unless you’re just beginning to teach your class how to regroup with subtraction, they probably do know what to do – most of the time. But little… Read More