- Math monsters are an innovative way to teach addition and subtraction. Make a large D in black marker on paper plates, enough so that each student has one. Provide craft materials -- such as googley eyes, yarn, markers, and pipe cleaners -- and encourage the children to make monster faces on the plates. Cut the curved section of the D, which now becomes the wide open mouth of the monster.
Provide the children with manipulatives, such as candy pieces. Give them a worksheet with simple addition or subtraction problems.
Addition: The monster eats 2 candies. Then the monster eats 3 more. How many candies did the monster eat all together? The students will place 2 candies in his mouth and then place 3 more before counting them all together. The process can also be reversed.
Subtraction: I have 5 candies. The math monster ate 3 pieces. How many candies are left? - To prepare for this activity, write the answers to each series of multiplication families on index cards. Use different colors to distinguish each family. Next, tape the index cards on the floor in a trail that weaves in and out of desks and through the room. You should use multiplication families on which the class can skip count, such as 2s, 3s, 4s, and 5s.
Break the students up into four groups and have them line up at the start of each trail. Call out multiplication problems for each group. You may ask the person standing at the front of the 5-trail, "What is 5x8?" That student then needs to skip count as they jump from index card to index card until they reach the answer.
Alternatively, you can also have the children hop through the mazes while skip counting. You can call on students to be "game pieces" as other students solve problems. The more that children practice skip counting, the better they will be at multiplication, and ultimately division. - Cut out a large cardboard circle and decorate it like a plain pizza. Cut out construction paper mushrooms, peppers, pepperoni, and other typical pizza toppings. Provide pieces of string that can be stretched across the entire cardboard to help kids separate the toppings. On index cards, write different percentages, as in 25%, 33%, 50%, and more. If you are also studying decimals, put the decimal equivalent on the backs of each card. Acquire a clean pizza box to store the pieces.
Have one student act as the customer, the other as the cook. The customer chooses a card and selects a topping. The cook must put the requested topping on the percentage of the pizza shown on the card. To make it more challenging, have the customer choose two cards with two different toppings. Then the students switch roles. - Providing students with a constant reference for math rules is an excellent method of helping with retention. Request that students bring a three-ring binder specifically for their Math Journal. When learning a new math skill, provide students with detailed step-by-step instructions. Include samples, drawings, or other details that will help the students understand. Print the instructions on paper with holes, ready to be inserted into the binder.
After handing out the instructions, begin teaching the new skill. Encourage students to write inside their journal any notes that help them understand the concept. Also, insist that students reread the instructions prior to beginning homework with the new math skill until they are confident with it.
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