Common Core Math Games plus a GIVEAWAY!

One of my absolute favorite ways of increasing learning in my classroom is with math games. They are fun and engaging! They are a Quick, Easy, Effective Instructional Strategy. They also can be super cute. They should be easy to use and good games are typically able to be played again and again. 

I wanted to make some colorful, fall and winter themed math games for my 2nd grade class this year. We will be focusing on addition, subtraction, and place value the first few months of school so I made games that aligned with these standards and had adorable, seasonal things like pumpkins, turkeys, gingerbread men, and penguins. The results is my Common Core Math Game Bundle. I'm excited to get to school to print and laminate :)

I'd love to do a GIVEAWAY of these game to hopefully add some fun to other classrooms and to make your job of teaching math a bit easier. Enter below!



a Rafflecopter giveaway

Here are some of my favorite other places to get math games.

K-5 Math Teaching Resources
The Education Center
Evan-Moor

I'm planning on posting a FREEBIE from this bundle soon! Check back :)

2nd Grade Math Games and a GIVEAWAY!!

As soon as I heard I was teaching 2nd grade again, I got to work making one of my favorite things to do in my classroom, play math games!! I love when my students say, "I love math!!" and I know the way to hook them is with bright, colorful, and engaging games. 

There are lots of math games out on the market. I have a few from a big curriculum company, but a lot of the time those are a bit complicated and take more teacher instruction than I would like. I want to be able to print off a game, explain the directions once, and then have students play the game independently while I pull small groups. 

I'll be focusing on addition, subtraction, and place value in the first few months of school so I made a Math Game Bundle with fun fall and winter themes; pumpkins, turkeys, penguins, and candy canes!! Oh, and did I mention, it's aligned to common core and has a handy sheet explaining what standards each game meets :)

Here is the link to the product, I hope you find it easy to implement and useful for your upcoming year! It has 12 math games, all linked to common core, all bright and fun. Enjoy!
Math Game Bundle

Oh, and don't forget!! My GIVEAWAY of my Happy Birthday Pack ends tomorrow!! Just like my Facebook page to enter. Here's the link to my Facebook Page and a link to the Happy Birthday MEGA Pack product so you can check out the preview.

Happy Day!

ABC Quilt

Look at this adorable project I saw when I went to work in my classroom, an ABC quilt our summer school students made!! It is a quick, easy, effective instructional strategy. Students search through magazines and cut out pictures to glue onto construction paper; one piece of paper per letter. After the pages are full, glue onto a big piece of butcher paper and make a quilt (don't forget to talk about how quilt starts with Q, duh!)

When I taught pre-k I kicked this idea up a notch and assigned a little homework assignment to the kiddo's. They would be assigned a letter and then be asked to bring a picture of something that started with that letter. A magazine cutout, sticker, really anything that could be glued to a piece of paper. This increased learning because they needed parental support for this activity and anytime you hooked parents, you increase achievement. Happy Day!

The First Grade Parade: Vocabulary Can Be Fun, Too!

The First Grade Parade: Vocabulary Can Be Fun, Too!



First Grade Parade is one of my FAVORITE blogs!! She is so fun and has amazing ideas and this vocabulary idea is no different. Vocabulary is something I feel I could work on. I hate having kids simply look up words in the dictionary and write down the meanings. I want them to really work with the words. I want them to use the words in their own writing and conversations. However, it's challenging to find easy, vocabulary instructional strategies that don't require a ton of prep-work. I'm always on the look-out though and this is a quick, easy, and effective strategies for increasing student vocabulary. The only materials you need are a book, chart paper, and markers. How cool and easy is that!! I will definitely be trying out this strategy this year and will post about it when I do. Happy Day!