Math Centers

Low Prep, Easy to Manage Math Centers

If you teach kindergarten or have been in a kindergarten classroom for a while, you know that centers can be difficult to put into place. Young students come to us with very little independence and are not able to read directions. Hands-on activities are key to a successful kindergarten classroom.

I came from teaching high achieving first and third grade, so I was familiar with a fast paced, centers-based, independent, active math block. As I prepped for kindergarten math, I made sure I had many activities and manipulatives ready to go. BUT as I began getting into the groove of teaching math to my scholars, I reflected on what was and wasn’t working with my young students. You can read more about that here. I realized that I needed to simplify and make activities low prep for myself and predictable for my students.

Here are a few of the centers that are working WONDERFULLY for our classroom this year…

White Boards – The magical oh-so-much-more-wonderful version of paper. At the beginning of the year, students practiced writing numbers 1-30 using a number line. Currently, my students are writing as many addition sentences as they can on their own. I’m not quite sure why, but they are so engaged, and I am not complaining! About 3-6 students are at this center together.

When using white boards, I just ask that students keep their largest number 10 because I really want them practicing facts up to 10 to build their automaticity with those facts which will be a HUGE blessing to them in first grade. Other than that, students choose which facts they write and solve. However, if I know the student is above level, I will challenge them with using numbers up to 20 or beginning to subtract.

Technology – I am blessed to have quite a bit of technology at my school. We are not 1-to-1, but we currently have 5 laptops, 2 desktops, 3 iPads, and a Promethean Board. I do not tell you these things to brag. I’ve also been at schools with less technology. I just want you to realize that I have these as part of our rotation and it definitely does cut down on the overall noise level of our classroom when almost 10 students are on devices. If you do not have access to technology or certain technologies, you can always add an independent center to help cut down on the noise level while you work with a small group.

technology math center — All computers and laptops are used for i-Ready, a individualized program that our school purchased. Students are required to complete a certain amount of lessons each week.

Student technology in math centers — Our Promethean Board is used as an interactive addition center or for subtilizing practice.

This ice cream addition game is a class favorite. You can find it here. It’s great because you can differentiate it by which addition facts (1-9) it gives the students. We also use the Teacher Tools for Interactive Whiteboards from DreamBox Learning. Our favorites are the ten frames, math racks, and matching number pairs. This subtilizing practice has greatly increased my students’ number sense this year!

Here are some of our favorites: Marble Math, Splash Math, Learn with Boing, Touchtronic 123’s

Pocket Chart – About every 2-3 weeks I switch out this activity. I do not fill this center with an activity kids will need lots of help with. Most activities are strictly number sense or addition. About 4-5 students work at this center together. We loved this 1-20 number sense activity, but I can’t find where I downloaded it. 🙁 It was free.

Recently, I decided that I wanted my students to really understand the patterns that are in a 100 chart. I was also curious to see which students could quickly identify and order numbers to 100, and which needed assistance. I chose three colors of paper and cut them into fourths. I wrote all of the 5’s and 10’s on blue. Then, I alternated the horizontal rows to make it easier on little eyes as they sorted. All in all, this took me 10-15 minutes while my kids enjoyed indoor recess during a thunderstorm. Low Prep.

The results have been fantastic. The activity is time consuming for students, which allows me to truly concentrate on the students in my small group. It is also quite challenging! I have heard some fabulous conversations between students this week. When introducing the center, I explained that if you see a number in the wrong place, you must explain why it isn’t in the right place before you move it. This has helped the kids to work collaboratively with almost no arguing. Yahoooo!

As an extension, my students completed their very own hundred’s chart using this differentiated hundreds chart freebie. I love that I can print different levels of difficulty for each student! Soon, I will put these in clear sheet protectors and add them to our “white board” center for extra practice.

So, let’s talk prep. I don’t need to prep any of the technology centers. I don’t need to prep any of the white board activities. I prep the pocket chart once every 2-3 weeks. The only prep I regularly do is for my small group.

I truly love this set up because I really enjoy focusing on the 4-5 kiddos in front of me when we are in math small group. The repetitive predictable nature of the other centers leaves students feeling successful and allows for fewer teacher distractions. Although the entire arrangement may not work for everyone, you can pick and choose aspects of these centers that may be a success in your classroom as well!

Do you have any other low prep activities that your students enjoy? Share them in the comments below!

Learning to Thrive in Kindergarten Math Centers

When I taught first grade, our math centers rocked. Like seriously, it was awesome. The kids were on task while using manipulatives, journals were getting done on time, each group came to me for small group, and we finished 3-4 rotations per day in about one hour and ten minutes. I used this organization of centers and small group to make our time together as successful as it could be.

When I taught third grade, math was even more independent. We had math early finisher projects that the kids LOVED. The kids came to small group, had a computer center, and a math activity center. I pulled them for extra practice often, used lots of manipulatives to practice multiplication, and enjoyed watching them grow into upper elementary math scholars.

Teaching kindergarten is a totally different ball game. Independence is a far-fetched idea. I rarely get through more than two groups. I can no longer prep center activities that match our current skill. Centers are completely review. …And for a while, I felt awful.

Math was the one time of the day I would get anxiety. I had spent a lot of time this summer prepping and updating my math center resource so that I could use it in my classroom again. It had worked so well in first grade, and I just knew it would keep me super organized. I had the students grouped into 4 groups, storage for each day’s center, and rotation cards posted on a beautiful brand new huuuuggeeee pocket chart. $math rotation board$ People, it didn’t work. It didn’t flow at all. It was not successful like it was in my first grade classroom. It was like my math block was completely planned out, and completely broken at the same time. And that’s when I realized my mistake. For some reason, I thought that a system that worked for seven year olds would work for five year olds. It sounds insane as I write it here. Of course it wouldn’t. But I will tell you that I tried to make it work. And I will tell you that I failed, miserably. Some parts of teaching are just trial and error.I decided that I needed to stop forcing my OCD on this hour of my day, because it was just making everything crazy chaotic. As I started to let go, I began to see elements of my math block that were thriving. Kids weren’t expected to switch activities as many times throughout the hour. Students were focusing on one task for longer periods of time. I was able to spend quality time with about 8 to 15 of my 19 students each day during small group.

So…What has changed?

Switching from Small Group – This has been BY FAR the best change we have made. Students no longer switch centers on a regular schedule like they do during our literacy centers each morning. I pull a group of five students to my table at the beginning of our math block. As I see students who finish quickly or who are demonstrating the skill well, I dismiss them to the groups that are at centers. Usually, I will say, “Molly, you may go switch with Holly. Tell Holly to come to small group, and you can start working in her place.” Molly leaves small group. Holly comes to small group. If there is a student who is having trouble, this allows me to keep them with me even longer. Ta-da! (Super fancy, I know!)

Small Group Instruction – I usually meet with 8-15 students each afternoon depending on which kids are doing well and which need more assistance. Students stay at small group if they are having trouble. Kids come for five minutes if they can demonstrate the skill well.

Centers – Centers are now ALL review. (I used to change them every week or two. Now, they remain the same for our entire chapter or unit, unless I see kids beginning to work less and play more.) During these centers, I am pulling kids and swapping kids between activities as I see fit. It just seems to work for us this year.

1. One center usually includes creating addition sentences on white boards. For some reason, the kids love this. (I’ll take it!!!) 2. Another center is always ten frame fluency. Students quiz each other on how quickly they can identify the number in the ten frame as well as how many more are needed in the ten frame to make a ten. This helps them practice subtizing and addition fluency.3. The last center is a review activity. This may include ordering number cards, using links to build numbers, comparing numbers, or counting by 5’s and 10’s. You can find this popsicle center here.

4. Technology stays pretty much the same because our school requires us to use a program called i-Ready. We also have 3 iPads that students may play any math games on. Butterfly Math is my current favorite.

What’s the lesson? Do what is best for your kids. Do what is best for your classroom. Do what is best for you so that you can implement high quality instruction each and every day. What works beautifully one year, may be the bane of your existence the next…I exaggerate, but you understand. Your best instruction will be exposed when have found your groove. Be open to change. Change as you go. Find your groove, and teach on!

Want to read more?

Literacy
Decor
$elapsed time open number lines$
Math

Open Number Lines

(These examples are shown on plastic disposable plates. I just love this affordable option for student white boards! Just use a piece of felt or a tissue to wipe them clean. In class, we often also use white boards and chart paper when showing our examples.)

Students always seem to struggle with elapsed time. It’s a hard concept for them to wrap their brains around because it is so abstract.

When I taught third grade, I even found some students who have severe deficits in the basics of telling time. These students are just now mastering time to the minute, so I knew they would really struggle with elapsed time. This great way of mapping out elapsed time works like a charm. I wish I had learned it this way in school, because it just seems so obvious! Hop over to The Primary Pack to see the steps in action!

Classroom Reveal!

As the new school year approaches, I just love taking {digital} peeks into everyone’s classrooms. Teachers are so full of inspiration and bright ideas. What would we do without each other? Our classrooms would probably just look like my before picture below…how sad….how drab. I want to thank all of you in advance because you inspire me daily with your posts and ideas on social media. Thank you, thank you, thank you! Here is a little photo tour of my kindergarten classroom. I hope you enjoy!

before — Isn’t it amazing what a little bulletin board paper can do???

As you walk up to my classroom, you will see this adorable sign.

Simple, clear, to the point. I’m in love with it.

Just inside the door to the left is my rolling big book cabinet. I was sad to discover that the white front (under the drawing paper) is not magnetic, so I decided to add a sign instead! On top of the cabinet are the 1, 2, 3 collapsable bins from IKEA. This is where I keep my early finisher activities. When my kinders have “nothing to do” they can go to one of these bins. Currently, the bins are filled with snap cube letters, plastic spoons to practice number sense, and two Kaboom games (one for letter identification and one for sight words).

This is what you see as you walk in the door. I am so grateful to have a classroom with an abundance of natural light! We almost never turn our fluorescent lights on, and you almost never even notice. Thank you, south Florida sunshine! Since taking this picture, I have consolidated some of the white book containers to a lower shelf so that the right side of the counter is clear. Little things like that help my slight OCD tendencies. 🙂

If you look to your left when you walk in the door, you will see our classroom focal point – the Mary Poppins quote! I cannot get enough of huge cut out letters this year…obviously. The “Unlocking our theme” area will host our weekly/monthly themes. I attached bulletin board paper to the back of two shelves and added some borders. Soon, I will hot glue a few clothes pins to the paper so that I can hang small anchor charts and vocabulary directly from this fake bulletin board/room divider.

As you walk in and look to the right, you will see my small group area, our white boards, Promethean board, calendar math area, and writing center. You will notice that I do not have many tables in the classroom. I am focusing on alternative seating for my kinders. We spend lots of time on this large rug, and are trying VERY hard to use our own personal space.

This calendar area is a space that is near & dear to my heart because SO much growth goes on here. In just one week my kiddos know so many concepts, AND they sincerely enjoy this part of our day! Check out these month headers, 100-Chart numbers, and ten frame counting pieces. I love them!

Our word wall is located under both white boards. I LOVE this little part of our room! All of our teachers are required to have a word wall, but I decided that I wanted to really make it accessible to my students this year. I strategically placed the word wall low so that my students would be able to interact with it.

I purchased an entire roll of felt at Walmart, cut it to size in my classroom, and tacked it to the wall. The neutral ruler border ~~hiding the uneven edges~~ was found in the Target Dollar Spot. I bought these word wall headers from Kristen Smith and tacked them across in a straight line. (Don’t worry, I have since added Y and Z to the wall pictured above.) Then, I printed and laminated these Sight Words from The Clever Classroom. I used a small piece of this adhesive Velcro (the hard side) on the back of each word. Ta-da! A Velcro word wall! Students can come up to the wall, take a word they need, write the word, and then push it back onto the wall. So convenient and effective!

My huge teacher desk is a writing center this year. Students have the option of standing or using stools. Throughout the year, images and words will be added to the clothespins. The writing checklist on the right will also grow as students learn to become great writers.

The left side of the white boards, opposite the calendar, hosts our board configuration. I am not a fan of this area…it’s not too pretty. However, I am required to have these sections so there you have it folks!

Subject headers

Florida Standard “I Can” Statements

Circular Visual Direction/Specials Cards

Here is my little area. My desk is being used as a student writing center this year, so I just have this Pier 1 white bookshelf (that I scored for $25), the teal cart from IKEA, and my easel. Once my kinders are more independent, I will be spending most of my days here! I am so excited about the strategy posters from Hello Literacy and my humongous name. No more – “Mrs. Nardone, how do you spell your name?”

Here is a view of my small group area from the back of the classroom. Kindergarten is blessed to get four iPads per classroom, so the two trapezoid tables create our iPad center which will get lots of use soon! Under the table is a big teal bin that we use for backpacks. All of the boys keep their backpacks in this bin, while the girls keep theirs on the other side of the room.

The cheery reading nook is your next stop! Thank you Donors Choose for the beautiful new book display shelf! I like how it acts as a small divider between the iPad center and the reading area. The mini green chairs from Walmart have been a fan favorite this week. Plus, the alphabet rug I scored for $16 at Costco adds some coziness to the linoleum floors.

Surprisingly, this is one of my favorite parts of our classroom. We are required to have a data wall each year, and I am never very excited about publicly displaying my student information. This year, I was determined to make it cute! I used a bunch of bulletin board paper and added a bit of the Mary Poppins song “Let’s Go Fly a Kite” for the title. The three kites represent counting to 20, identifying sight words, and knowing letter sounds. In the picture, you see all of my students’ names. However, I will be taking them all off and slowly putting them back up as students meet their goals. When my entire class has met the goal, I will just take the white “I Can” statement down and put up another!

Our back wall is home to blue book bins and computers. Because we do not have assigned seats or tables, I glued student name tags onto yellow construction paper and laminated them. Each chid keeps this name mat inside of his/her book bin. When they work on an assignment, they take their book bins with them and will use the name tag to assist them. The blank white chart paper will soon house anchor charts. The blue square scrapbook paper on the second bulletin board is for showcasing student work. The numbers on the blue paint sticks are for students who borrow my classroom library books in the evening. They must take their number and place it in the spot that the book came from. Then in the morning, they return the book to the correct bin and return their number.

This is our math station area. The chart shows the rotations of our math block as well as any math vocabulary for the week. Number lines hang to the left for students to use when necessary. Student white boards in the open yellow bin are available for math activities. Once we begin math stations, students will visit small group, technology, independent work, and 1 station each day. The activities for the daily stations are inside the Sterilite containers. Linking cubes and Unifix cubes are in between in kid-friendly containers. The small green container on top holds tons of dice!

$math rotations$

This is our classroom view from the reading nook. You can see two lowered tables which are a HUGE hit this year. The kids just love working there. Some kneel, some sit. Either way, the tables are perfect for active little bodies. Once literacy centers begin, the low rectangle table will be our “Listen to Reading” center and the low trapezoid table will be the “Word Work” area. The hopscotch rug and the Prince Lionheart ABC Play Mat help to define each area and provide a bit of cushion for little legs.

This small filing cabinet holds a ton of our journals and unused supplies. It is doubling as a magnetic center. These magnetic letter identification activities from Kindergarten Smiles are wonderful! The small dry erase easels are for my center labels. I like that I can move a center around the room if necessary by just moving the little easel instead of an entire table.

Our literacy center rotation chart is behind the Word Work center. The images on the cards match the images on each center label. The rotation cards are editable and perfect for little learners who are just learning to read. Once we build independence I will explain more about our rotation schedule. 🙂

Number and shape posters are on the cabinets of the closet and sink area. The real world images on both sets of posters are very beneficial to little ones. What a great lesson on environmental print!

The easel in the picture above backs up to the table seen below. The lined side will be used for an additional writing center, while the blank side holds pocket charts. Currently, our names are listed there under the wooden “Smile” sign from Target. Soon, this fluency center will focus on sight words. You can see the girls’ backpack bin below this table and our homework folder holder to the left.

Finally, when you turn around, you will see the cabinet and cubbies that I use as a room divider. Shared classroom supplies are kept in the wire and wooden bins on the top of the cabinets. Student manipulatives, dry erase markers, highlighters, erasers, and other supplies are kept in the clear bins on the left. Bulkier supplies like large foam dice and our Touchtronic letters and numbers are kept in the large cloth blue bins from the Dollar Tree. Student cubbies are on the right. Each child keeps a math book, science book, lunch number name tag, and Gold Tag pouch (the green and blue pouches) in his/her cubby. Some students keep sweaters here also because our school is always freezing cold inside!

This year, I only have one closet (Last year I had 3!) so I’m organizing like crazy in many other ways. First of all, I labeled EVERYTHING with these student-friendly labels. I put baskets under our computer table to hold bulky things and keep them out of sight, out of mind. Student Scoop Chairs from Walmart are in the teal laundry basket. Each child’s change of clothes stays in the green bucket. Additional student white boards are held in the yellow bucket.

All of my leveled readers are stored on this wooden cart next to my small group table. This keeps them handy during reading groups but also in a space that is safe from little hands that may or ~~may not~~ put books back where they belong.

The white container is called our “folder holder” because well, it’s the holder of our folders! This was originally a genius idea from (I think) Kindergarten Smorgasboard using the container meant for grocery store plastic bags. You can grab one for yourself at IKEA!

Well, that’s all folks! Thank you for joining me and adventuring through my classroom. I hope you have a supercalifragilisticexpialidocious year with your students! Be sure to check out the other beautiful classrooms linked below!

An InLinkz Link-up

Taste Tests!

I absolutely love fall. I don’t get much of it {FL girl, born and raised}, but it is my favorite. I incorporate many thematic units from September-December in order to keep the kids engaged and hit all of the necessary curriculum in a fun way.

In October, we spend an entire day looking at pumpkins. We write, read, sequence, create, and experiment with pumpkins. We count, practice math skills, plant, and predict with pumpkins. In November, we spend an entire day acting like the Pilgrims and Indians (Colonial Day). We write, read, sequence, create, and experiment with colonial items. We practice math with corn and design maps of the Atlantic Ocean.

Pumpkin Day!

But today, I would like to introduce you to the student favorite of both themed days – The Taste Test.

DISCLAIMER: Please, please, please check your students for allergies before including this in your classroom.

Pumpkin Taste Test

The idea is quite simple: Just buy some foods, place them on the table, print the graph, and EAT! Let me tell you, the kids have a fabulous time! It is also quite cute to hear all their Mmmmmmmmm’s and Ewwwww’s. Amidst all this excitement, the students don’t even realize that they are practicing graphing!

Thanksgiving Taste Test

You can choose whichever foods you prefer or have access to. Here is a list of ideas that I have used in the past:

Pumpkin: pumpkin bread, pumpkin donuts, pumpkin pie, pumpkin coffee cake, pumpkin ice cream.
Thanksgiving: biscuits, corn bread, popcorn, apple pie, cranberries, cranberry juice.

Thanksgiving Taste Test

You may be able to get some donations to have a fun day like Pumpkin Day or Colonial Day! Ask parents in advance! Get volunteers to come in. Make a day of it! If you are interested in the entire Pumpkin Day product, you can check it out by clicking the picture below. The Pumpkin Taste Test graphs are available in this pack.

All students can use practice graphing! Soooo…here’s a little freebie for you. Click on the image below for the graphing freebie! Also, be sure to hop over to my store to check out some fall product discounts!!! Happy Fall Ya’ll!

Thanks for stopping by the Fall Favorites Blog Hop! I hope you enjoy hopping from one blog to another to hear about many different fall lessons and activities. Maybe you can try one in your classroom. Now be sure to hop on over to my friend Kristen’s blog for more fall fun!

Mental Math Center – Freebie

I’m excited to share this little freebie with you!

Since, I don’t have a classroom this year, one of my sweet friends sent me a few pictures of her kids using this during math centers…(Pardon the cropping…I had to cut their sweet faces out!)

So, the center activity consists of task cards, soccer ball number cards, and a recording sheet.

Students read the question on the card. It may say something like “What number is 10 more than 43?”. Then they look for the soccer ball that shows 10 more than 43.

The kids then match the soccer ball to the correct task card (as you can see on the top two cards in the picture). If this game were played on the floor or at a table, students would be able to “make a goal” by putting the matching soccer ball right on top of the goal!

I’ve gotten some great feedback from teachers at my own school who are using it in 2nd and 3rd grade as a review of 5 more/less and 10 more/less addition and subtraction skills. The kids are all excited about the soccer theme and love “making goals”.

Be sure to grab a copy of this forever FREEBIE! Happy Teaching! If you like what you see, be sure to follow my blog & check out my Close Reading Mini-Series or Math Center How-To for lots of ideas! Also, be sure to grab some other freebies by heading over to Freebie Friday at the Teaching Blog Addict!

Center Storage

This week I finally printed some of the things I have created this year.

I started organizing my centers like this last year. We did literacy and math centers every day so I had A TON of activities and no where to keep them. Now I store my centers in plastic Ziploc bags. All the Ziploc bags go in a filing cabinet or the closet (depending on subject and topic). This is convenient for me & for early finishers who need to be kept busy!

I print and laminate everything. I cut any extra white or lamination off of the big direction sheets. This way, they fit perfectly inside the zipper of the Gallon bags. Each activity has an individual bag that includes:

1) Anchor Charts

2) “I Can” Statement/Direction Sheet

3) Task Cards or Activities

4) One copy of the recording sheet for easy access.

Just grab it and make copies.

On Fridays before I leave, I grab the centers for the next week, take them out of the large bags, and put them in our center bins, like the one below. I leave the task cards in the small sandwich bags.

I keep the empty Gallon bags in a bin by my desk until I need to put them away again. Easy & cheap. If a bag rips, grab a new one! How do you store and organize your centers?

Linking up with Christina from Sugar and Spice today! Love Wordless Wednesdays…although this one isn’t very wordless…ooopps! Be sure to link back up with other teachers!

Math Centers – A How-to Guide!

Last week I put all of my math center information together into one How-To pack in order to help those of you who are interested in beginning math centers as part (or all!) of your math block. It has over 90 pages worth of math center goodness! This post will give you a bit of an inside scoop into my math center setup. Enjoy!

Before I explain each center, take a look at this overview.

I have 4 student groups. Each group has 4-7 kids depending on my class size.

My math block lasts for 1 hour and 15 minutes, so the chart matches that time frame. Tweak the time to work for you.

I teach a short mini lesson for 5-10 minutes when we first start. This may be the “We Do” pages from our math textbook or just some practice problems that I want to do with the kids. I do not keep students in whole group for a long time. I have found that most students do their best work in centers when the centers are engaging and filled with movement. Soooo, I give them what they need and send them off to do their best!

Each student goes to 4 rotations each day: Independent, Centers, Computer, and Small Group.

Independent: a workbook page or handout usually at desks

Centers/Stations: one of the 5 activities listed below usually on the carpet

Computer: i-Ready Math Online Lesson

(We have to use this program, so use whatever math program or website you prefer.)

Small Group: This is your time to teach & provide remediation!

The groups rotate through this setup using the chart above. I laminate the cards and write student names on top of the cards in permanent marker. That way, I can easily erase names (Expo on top of Sharpie works wonders!) when groups change. These cards are all available in the How-To pack.

If you have never had students complete math centers, it can be overwhelming at first. I have created a system that works for me because it is S-I-M-P-L-E. Seriously. Simple.

Like I said, students go through 4 rotations each day: Independent, Centers, Computer, & Small Group. One of those rotations is centers. I have 5 different centers – one for each day of the week. (See the “Math Centers” chart on the math block overview page above.) Below are some close up pictures to show you a few activities that may take place in each of the centers. A full description of each center with images and links to each activity are in the Math Centers – How-To pack.

Monday

1. Review Your Skills:
What do they already know but need practice in?

Tuesday

2. Currently…Day 1:

What are you teaching right now?

Wednesday

3. Fact Practice:
What facts should they practice?

Thursday

4. Currently…Day 2:
What are you teaching right now?

Friday

5. Math Journal:
What fun journal activity will help them master the topic?

Many people see math centers as “too much prep”. I’m here to tell you it is not! I have a detailed description of what you NEED to prep and what you do NOT NEED to prep each week. These ideas will help you when you are developing your own ideas.

Here’s a peek at some labels that are included in the pack. The color option has a yellow background. The labels shown below are in black and white and would look wonderful if printed onto brightly colored paper. Print, cut, & laminate the labels before attaching to your center bins to ensure that they last the entire year!

I love math centers because the kids feel free to move around. They are not stuck in their seats with a workbook. Plus, what kid wouldn’t want to play games during math. Heck! They don’t even realize they’re learning. 🙂 What more can a teacher ask for???

I hope I answered some questions about implementing math centers. Be sure to check out my Math Center How-To Guide for step-by-step instructions, student grouping ideas, detailed descriptions of each center with activity links, rotation chart labels, and center bin labels!

Please let me know if you have any questions!

Money, Money, Money

Happy Thursday!

This week my firsties began counting money. They’ve been doing pretty well because we have incorporated it into calendar math since the beginning of the school year. However, the kids often mistaken nickels and quarters and have trouble adding on with larger valued coins.

So, on Tuesday in math small group we sorted coins using these great yellow mats from my second grade friend across the hall. The kids thought this was SO fun! (which made me laugh inside…)

After they sorted all the coins in front of them, we practiced skip counting. We counted by 1’s to find the value of the pennies. We counted by 5’s to find the value of the nickels. (You get the picture.) We also compared the total amount on each child’s mat. They were very excited to discover who had the most money!

This is one of this week’s favorite math centers. It’s called Scavenger Hunt Riddles.

Kids take a recording sheet (there are 8 varieties). They then choose the cards that match the color indicated on the recording sheet. For example, the recording sheet pictured here is for the GREEN cards, so kids choose the money cards with the green background. They count the coins inside the magnifying glass and then match it to the same number on their recording sheet. They write the word on the card under the correct amount of money. If they correctly identify and count the coins, they will answer the riddle!

Let me tell you. This is a HUGE hit! You can find this adorable center for FREE here!

Enjoy!

Math Centers

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