SamizdatMath

I know you've been holding your breaths for something to come out of the SamizdatMath laboratories, and here it is: The Fishy Addend Game! This is a "gameified" version of this activity, and I think it really rocks, for many, many reasons! a) It get players thinking "beyond the algorithm" - to fill up their tanks, they have to estimate, round off and strategize! B) It is adaptable to many levels of players: using the templates, you can make versions that are as challenging or as supported as

This is a collection of 40 different hexagonal additional puzzle cards (hence, the title above.) It includes a solution recording sheet, so your students can do them in any order they want. These would be best used for advanced first graders (who want to tackle double digit addition), 2nd graders who are practicing single and double digit addition, and assessing and remediating 3rd graders. There is also a "do it yourself" sheet where students can make up their own puzzles and share them with th

Okay, phrens, you're teaching your students how to round numbers and this is what you are NOT going to do: "Students, today we're going to learn how round numbers to the nearest hundreds. To round a number to the hundreds, start by placing your finger on the number furthest to the left (places finger on number) and then look over to the right and then sing this song, "If it's less than 4 or smaller, round it down; if it's 5 or greater, then go right up!" (If you'll pardon the pun.) Then give yo

Greetings teacher phrens, Here's the activity you've been waiting for if you want your students to become more flexible and fluent with non-routine number facts and combinations using MENTAL MATH STRATEGIES; Schools o' Fish challenges students to take 15 different numbers and arrange them in groups so that they add up to the same number (at least, in this version.) Features: • EZ Cut n' Paste Technology: the pieces have been arranged in such a way that your students can cut out all 15 in abo

This is a collection of 10 different algebra puzzles that use 3 different variables which are represented as rectangles, triangles and hexagons. Yes, we know that "adult" algebra uses X, Y and Z, but since this is designed to be appealing for our younger students (and because abstraction is still tough for them) I've used these geometric shapes instead. I've also limited the kinds of numbers students use by focusing on using 0 - 9 digit cards. This is so your students will not get frustrated wh

This activity came about because my students are endlessly interchanging the words “factors,” “multiples,” and “divisors.” Instead of just having them copy the definitions out of some dumb book, I thought it would be better to have them actually use the different terms to solve mystery number problems. So I adapted another set of activities that I developed for my younger students and came up with this! But I have another item on my agenda: one of the things I have always advocated is giving c

Are you still teaching Roman numerals? Really? Are you still living in the XIIIth century, or what? Us XXIst century teachers know that in order to teach Roman numerals, you have to have a little bit o' fun added. This packet is the best way to do that! Here's what you get: I) A sample chapter from my upcoming rant "Place Value: You're Teaching It Wrong." Yes, you are, so don't deny it. This is a look at why Roman numerals are such a pain in the neck and compares them to Hindu-Arabic numeral

Division is the most confusing operation we teach, and one of the reasons is that it comes in three dfferent formats (left to right, top to bottom, and "inside outside.") To make it even harder, the language can be confusing: we can say "28 ÷ 8 =" as "28 divided by 8," "how many 8s go into 28?", "8 divided into 28...." This is a set of 4 different activities that will help your students better understand the different formats that will appear when doing division. They will learn how to connect

This is a collection of 10 candy corn puzzles that you can print in color, cut out and put onto plates. The student takes the indicated number of pieces of candy corn and distributes them on each character so that the the sum of two adjacent characters comes out to the arrow connecting them. For example, if there is an arrow pointing between mummy and witch, and it says "4," then you can either place 4 on the mummy and 0 on the witch, 1 on the mummy and 3 on the witch, 2 on the mummy and 2 on t

This is the most complete guide you will ever own that answers each and every one of the questions you have ever had about teaching subtraction from grades K - 6. I mean, EVERY SINGLE THING YOU EVER WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT TEACHING SUBTRACTION FROM Kindergarten through 6th GRADE. How can this possibly be? Because it's over 75 pages long! This massively documented booklet includes EVERYTHING, including: • Why you should model subtraction beyond "SOAR" * What are the essential properties of subtr

You've seen photos of these store bloopers around the web, and say to yourself, "you know, this would be great to use in my class...." but you never have the photo, and you never have the time to photoshop out the brands, fix the colors, crop the image and collect it all in one place. Well, it's all been done for you, and only for the magic price of $4.95, which is nothing when you consider there are 20 different "math fails" that range from simple counting (how many nuggets are printed on that

These are among my favorite "hands on" puzzles to have my kids learn addition facts, or do remediation for those who are having problems "catching on." There are 10 different "bean puzzles" which can be cut out and glued to a paper plate. Number them 1 - 10 so kids can keep track of which ones they've completed (1 is the easiest, 10 is the most tricky.) Students complete the puzzle by taking dried kidney beans (or bean shaped counters) and distributing them in each pan so that two pans add up to