SamizdatMath

This is a collection of 9 different colorful Cuisenaire Rod "make the road" puzzles which challenges your students to cover a path using exactly one of each rod. Each one has a different colorful background. This is a great activity that your students can do independently during a work time or placed in a math center. There's a handy chart you can fill in with your students' names to keep track of which puzzles they've completed, with fillable form fields. There is also an option for students

This is a set of activities that focus on helping first and second graders memorize the doubles from 1 - 10, with special focus on the "hard doubles" of 7, 8 and 9. There are two different games, and 20 different puzzles involving "number searches" where students find a number and its double nearby. Students also practice writing doubling and halving equations. There is also a set of "locate and calculate" assessments where students locate a doubling equation and then record it.

This is an activity which extends the TERC Investigation "Peas and Carrots," which is a very nice investigation, but ends way too soon. So I upgraded it by turning it into a detective game: students take a stack of cards which use different number combinations of the same two items (11 beans and cornbreads, 10 platypodes and penguins, etc.) Students take the stack of cards, remove one from the deck, and then look at the other ones to figure out which one is missing. Along the way, students lear

Great for math centers! This is 20 different "addition tower" problems: it combines Basic Set of Addition Towers and adds 10 more puzzles that use various combinations of digits to make the totals located at the base of each tower. Cut out the digit cards and place them directly on to the puzzle sheets until they get a solution and then record them on the answer sheet. Includes recording sheets so that you don't have to print up individual sets for each student, and a "DIY" sheet so that you

Here's a cool idea: give kids a set of numbers 1 - 10 and have them place them in columns so they add up to a number at the bottom of the tower. Great for practicing addition fact combinations, as well as developing problem solving skills. This is a basic set of 10 puzzles that is appropriate for K - 2nd graders. Great for math stations! Not so good for "scoot," because different kids will need different amounts of time to solve. Includes solutions AND a "do it yourself" template so you & your

Sum-o (which is a take-off on the word “sum,” in case you didn’t notice) is an addition practice game which provides young children with the opportunity to investigate different strategies to optimize their play. Like chess, it involves practicing addition and subtraction skills among the two players, and requires them to anticipate the future moves of their opponent. At the same time, there are definite outcomes that can be anticipated in the easier games which grow more complex as the numbers

Comparing Numbers, Pre-K, Kindergarten, First Grade, Second Grade Take a number tile from a bag: is it a moose or a squirrel? This activity is a fun and lively way for your kids to practice comparing numbers and classifying them as larger (moose) or smaller (squirrel.) The fun never stops: you can start with just placing the tile on the activity sheet in the correct column, or your students can use the moose/squirrel stamps provided to cut and paste the animal into the correct column. A third

Take a number tile from a bag: is it a moose or a squirrel? This activity is a fun and lively way for your kids to practice comparing numbers and classifying them as larger (moose) or smaller (squirrel.) The fun never stops: you can start with just placing the tile on the activity sheet in the correct column, or your students can use the moose/squirrel stamps provided to cut and paste the animal into the correct column. A third variation asks students to state how far the numbers is from the co

Ah yes, nice to see you back again. This is a number comparison activity I developed for my first grade teacher, but I've also used it with my kindergarteners and pre-k. It's cute, but not cutesy. Students take a number tile and place it on the game sheet at the top. They then take additional number tiles and decide whether it is an "elephant" (bigger than the number at the top) or "mouse" (smaller than the number at the top) and paste the correct stamp in the second column. A second version i

"STOP THAT ZOMBIE! is a truly "hands on" approach to working with addition and subtraction, with links to algebra, patterns and problem solving. The basic puzzle is simple: using the numbers 1- 6, distribute them around a triangle so that each side adds up to 9 (thus, trapping the zombie in his cage!) Where it gets really cool is this: you can arrange those same 6 numbers to add up to 10, 11, and 12 on each side. But the fun doesn't end there: you can differentiate this by using the numbers 2 -

These are puzzles which range from the easy to the challenging that turn into picture frames for your kiddies! Print out a page, your students cut out the stamps on the bottom and put them in the frames to complete the pattern. Then take a photo of your kid and put him or her right in the picture! 10 different puzzles, from easy to difficult, perfect for pre-K through 2nd grade. Includes printable stamps that you can use to make your own puzzles!

You're teaching the "count on" strategy to solve subtraction problems, and what do your kids do? They use it to solve ridiculously hard problems, like 12 - 5 (can you imagine? "5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12.... okay, how many was that?) This game is designed for students to practice deciding if a problem should be solved using the "count up" strategy and then solving it when it does. Please not, I only teach the "count up" subtraction strategy when the numbers are 1, 2 or 3 apart. After that, the t

I designed this for the first grade teachers at the schools where I work: they wanted something some kind of "morning warmup" for their kids which would be based on a "daily number." So, I took the name of "Our Daily Bread" bakery that used to be in my neighborhood (their slogan was "prepare to meet your baker"), and made it "our daily number" and then put in the different ways you could write the number. I made two different versions which you can mix and match. One is aligned to the "Go Math!

"Trap That Turkey" is a truly "hands on" approach to working with addition and subtraction, with links to algebra, patterns and problem solving. The basic puzzle is simple: using the numbers 1- 6, distribute them around a triangle so that each side adds up to 9 (thus, trapping the turkey in the pen!) Where it gets really cool is this: you can arrange those same 6 numbers to add up to 10, 11, and 12 on each side. But the fun doesn't end there: you can differentiate this by using the numbers 2 -

Help your students practice recognizing coins and their values, while engaging in problem solving. This collection of 10 Coin Ken Ken puzzles, as well as a "Create Your Own" page, will challenge your students while helping them develop fluency with pennies, nickels and dimes. Great for learning stations and open work time.

From the laboratories of Better Living Through Mathematics comes another high quality money game for your students. Kids play in pairs selecting combinations of coins, counting up the total and finding it on a tic-tac-toe board. Practices combinations of 2 coins (penny - nickel, penny-dime, penny, quarter, nickel - dime, nickel - quarter, dime quarter and penny quarter) as well as combinations of 3 coings (penny - nickel - dime, nickel - dime - quarter, penny - nickel - quarter, etc.) Includes 1

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