Math is such a unique subject! When you have a student come in halfway through the year, they can typically jump right in to subjects like social studies and English. However, my new math students come in with a totally different math background than my current students. This is especially true because we use a specific special education curriculum that teaches things like word problems in a different way than any other curriculum I've seen! As a math teacher, you have to "rewind" their knowledge, find out where the gaps are, and fill them! Typically, my students who struggle with two digit by two digit multiplication and division never got the basic multiplication facts down. Math truly builds upon itself! Being absent for even a day can make a student so confused when s/he returns!
So, what's my math philosophy? Fill in those gaps while teaching the new concepts (at some point, you have to move on, but keep working on those basics!), make abstract concepts as concrete as possible (Manipulatives! Graphs! Number lines! Pictures!), connect concepts to the real world (give them a purpose for learning), and make math as fun as possible, while still challenging your students.
One way I keep working on the basics is by using Mastering Math Facts/Rocket Math with my students every single day. They don't get to move onto the next test until they pass the current one! This program ensures they are getting continuous practice with those basic facts. I found a copy of the multiplication pages for free here: http://teacherweb.com/TX/BurtonAdventistAcademy/ShellyColvin/rocket-math-multiplication.pdf. I have the entire curriculum with addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division in my classroom, but it looks like with a little searching, you can find the sheets for free online.
Let us now discuss turning abstract concepts concrete! I like to use graham crackers to teach my students fractions. They are very easy to make into fourths and children of any age get excited when food is pulled out! I pass them out as whole crackers and then ask them to show me 1/2, 3/4, 1/4 and mixed numbers like 1 1/2, 1 1/4, etc. This helps them visualize why an improper fraction like 5/4 can exist! My Pinterest board has more ideas at I Teach Jr. High Math, but I will share some of the images below.
From http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Multiplication-Fact-Strategies-Sheet. It's worth the $1.00 in my opinion! This is so students don't have to memorize every single fact.
Free graphing game from http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Squinkies-Graphing-Coordinate-Points-File-Folder-Game
I just discovered an amazing website!! www.commoncoresheets.com No matter what subject you teach, check out this website! They have a lot of fraction worksheets that include visuals. Everything is FREE!
Okay, now for making math fun! So many board games already use math! Think about all the math used in Scrabble-counting up the points and multiplying letters or words by two or three when tiles are on a certain space. It is a little bit more difficult to find math games for older grades, but that's why I'm here! I have three right now on my TeachersPayTeachers store.
First, to work on area and get the students to visualize why length x width= area, I have the FREEBIE real estate game! This can be found at: http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Real-Estate-Game. You can then have them turn in the graph paper/game board for grading purposes.
This can be found at: http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Older-Grades-WAR-Math-Sheets. WAR is a fabulous game for a load of math games! Even the typical math game is all about comparing number values. For older grades, students can multiply more than one card together to get a new product to compare with a partner. They can also turn cards into fractions and compare fractions. This FREEBIE product includes recording sheets (for grading purposes) and explicit directions (for your students to use when playing).
Found at: http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Dice-Math-Game-for-Older-Grades . This FREEBIE game has students roll a target number in the beginning and then get creative with how to add/subtract/multiply/divide to get to that target number throughout the game.
My math Pinterest board has loads more games at: I Teach Jr. High Math . I'll include some links and images here, as well.
Tons of free, creative math games from http://www.math-salamanders.com/free-kids-math-games.html .
You can download a 70 page book with math games using cards for FREE at: http://pepnonprofit.org/mathematics.html .
What about those students who finish early and ask, "What do I do now?" It's so hard sometimes to give everyone a chance to finish and think through their work, but keep the faster students busy and engaged! You don't want to "punish" them for finishing early with more work, but you want them to be working! This is where some fun math activities come in that you can print out and leave in the back of the classroom. Perhaps call them extra credit activities?
I saw these books in Michael's and got super excited! They're dot-to-dot pictures, but they are very complicated and numbers go up into the hundreds! What great practice keeping those large numbers straight! You can get four pages for FREE from http://www.impact-books.com/fun-fun-fun by signing up for their newsletter. There are also supposed to be four free coloring pictures, but they weren't downloading for me. By the way, the pictures you create are so COOL! Dragons, mythical monsters, etc. Stuff that Jr. Highers love!
Again with my new favorite website! http://www.commoncoresheets.com/FunStuff.php has multiplication mazes. To get to the other side, students have to color in only the multiples of a certain number. They have sheets for numbers 2-9 and a ton of sheets in each packet.
I am still on the lookout for additional FUN activities that relate to math for my early finishers! Please, feel free to share any fun math activities you have discovered or created!
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