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4th Grade Test Prep: How to Prepare Students for Success

April 20, 2023 by Krejci Creations

State testing can bring a mix of emotions to both students and teachers. It’s normal to feel stressed, anxious, and worried about these high-stakes tests. On top of that, planning for test prep can bring its own set of challenges. You want to review ALL THE THINGS in a fun and meaningful way…but how? Let’s just say it takes some TEAM-work!

All-Inclusive Test Prep Kit

This 4th grade math test prep kit includes ready-to-teach lessons and activities to use the week before testing.

It covers almost all 4th grade math standards with an emphasis on the more challenging skills that students need to review.

Whole Group Review Lessons

There are 4 interactive PowerPoint lessons to use for whole group instruction. These review lessons focus on heavily tested skills like multi-step word problems, line plots, and fractions. Students can use dry erase boards or math notebooks to follow along.

Take a look at the video previews below for a sample of each lesson!

Day 1 Skills:

1. Add and Subtract Mixed Numbers

2. Line Plots

3. Fractions and Decimals

Day 2 Skills:

1. 2D Figures

2. Measuring Angles

3. Units of Measure

Day 3 Skills:

1. Multi-step Word Problems

2. Place Value Relationships

3. Patterns

Day 4 Skills:

1. Factors and Multiples

2. Prime and Composite Numbers

3. Fraction Comparison and Equivalence

TEAM-Work Stations

After each mini-lesson, students break into TEAM-work stations that include a combination of independent and partner activities.

Their goal is to earn as many checkmarks as possible by completing the assigned tasks.

An editable spreadsheet is provided to help group students. The letters E, A, and M are moveable, so you can rotate the letters each day and easily move students to a new station.

What Do TEAM-Work Stations Look Like?

⭐Teacher Check Station:
Your job is to check in with students and help as needed. Your students will be working on challenging concepts, so they will need your help. Because of this, I do not recommend pulling small groups during this time.

✎ When you witness students working hard and staying on task to complete assignments, check the box in their “Teacher Check” column.

✎ In addition, you can use this time to check their work for accuracy using the provided answer keys.

⭐Electronics Station: Self-Checking Boom Cards
This is an independent station. Students have 4 sets of Test Prep Boom Cards on the topics listed below.

Boom Card Decks:
✎ Area and Perimeter

✎ Long Division

✎ Factors and Multiples

✎ Add and Subtract Fractions and Mixed Numbers

⭐At Your Seat Station: Printable Worksheets (all word problems)
This is another independent station. Students have 4 practice worksheets on the topics listed below.

Skills Include:
✎ Area and Perimeter

✎ 1 and 2-Digit Multiplication and 1-Digit Division

✎ Multiplicative Comparisons

✎ Interpret the Remainder

⭐Math with a Partner Station: Printable Worksheets
This is a partner station. Students have 4 practice worksheets on the topics listed below.

Skills Include:
✎ Add and Subtract Mixed Numbers

✎ Place Value Relationships

✎ Rounding Whole Numbers

✎ Multiply Fractions by Whole Numbers

Additional Test Prep Resources

Test-Taking Strategy Posters
Students can become overwhelmed if there are too many test-taking strategies to remember. Therefore, I have students focus on these 5 simple test-taking tips. These posters are included in the test prep kit…but click the button to grab them for free!

Tips For The Teacher

Tip #1: Set high expectations for your students, and make it clear that rushed and inaccurate work won’t earn them a check mark. I did not check the box if there were two or more errors on one activity. I instead circled the box and had students go back and correct their mistakes. Once the mistakes were fixed, they earned their check.

Tip #2: It’s important to set goals for students to work toward. For instance, if they complete 5 activities, they get a piece of candy. If they complete 10, they get a prize from the treasure chest. If they complete all 16, they get extra recess…whatever works for you! This will help motivate students to persevere when things get tough.

More teacher tips are included to help your TEAM-work stations run smoothly!

You Can Do This!

I used these math test prep lessons and activities with my 4th graders for many years and can tell you firsthand how well they work to prepare students! Grab this 4th Grade Math Test Prep Kit now and let the fun begin!

For more information on this test prep kit, check out Episode 32 of Elementary Math Chat and watch my Instagram Reel below to see this kit in action!

I wish you all the best as you head into state testing. No matter the results, you are a ROCK STAR teacher!

Until next time,

Happy Teaching!

P.S. If you’re interested in even more test prep Boom Cards, my TEST PREP BUNDLE covers all 13 units of 4th grade math. You can also read this BLOG POST for more info!

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Holiday-Themed Math: 4th Grade Activities to Spread Cheer

November 20, 2022 by Krejci Creations

'Tis the Season for Holiday Fun!

With December right around the corner, it’s time to prepare for a month of holiday festivities! Help spread Christmas cheer by incorporating these holiday-themed math activities into your classroom.

Let’s first acknowledge how CUTE this clipart is…I am obsessed! Your students will also be as they work through these Boom Cards on comparing fractions.

Boom Cards require NO PREP–just send students the link on Google Classroom, Schoology, Boom Learning, or whatever platform you use. Since they are self-checking, students receive immediate feedback after each question. They truly do learn from Boom Cards!

Another option is to use Boom Cards in your whole group lesson or display a few questions for a warm-up activity.

There are more holiday-themed math decks on factor pairs, simplest form, and converting improper fractions and mixed numbers.

Holiday-Themed Math Games

Another way to add a touch of holiday cheer to your classroom is with games. Games work well as a math station or choice board activity. Students love playing them, especially when they are decorated in all things Christmas.

Holiday-Themed Math Crafts

Think Christmas crafts are for primary students only? Think again! These Christmas factor trees reinforce prime and composite numbers and extend into prime factorization.

This festive craft even comes with its very own “O Factor Tree” lyrics! Read this blog post for more info!

Holiday-Themed Math Centers

Finally, incorporate holiday-themed resources into your math centers. Task cards, clip cards, and matching activities are my go-to resources for small group centers.

1. Task cards are extremely versatile, easy to differentiate, and provide meaningful practice for students. Since they only solve one card at a time, task cards don’t feel overwhelming like a worksheet sometimes does.

2. Clip cards are an effective resource because of their self-checking feature. Students can use paper clips, clothes pins, a dry-erase marker, or their fingers to clip and check their answers. They can also be used for quiz-quiz-trade, one of my favorite cooperative learning structures!

3. Matching activities have a game-like feel to them, which students love. This festive activity has students match the fractions on the colored ornaments to their simplest form on the tree.

The level of difficulty varies within the trees (tree #1 is the least difficult and tree #10 is the most challenging), therefore allowing students to work at different levels. For a lower prep activity, use the digital version instead!

Want to know more about these holiday-themed math activities? Shop the Christmas section within my TPT store for detailed descriptions, previews, and teacher testimonials.

Until next time,

Happy Holidays!

P.S. Need holiday party and gift ideas for your upper elementary students? I share all of that and more in Episode 21 of Elementary Math Chat! Episode 21: 10 Holiday Party and Gift Ideas for Upper Elementary Students

Math Games – 3 Reasons Why I Switched From Printable to Digital

June 7, 2022 by Krejci Creations

Walk into my classroom on any given day and you’ll see students playing math games. Games spark instant engagement and are a great way to practice math concepts. They teach students important social skills and provide opportunities to build relationships with their peers. Simply put, games are fun…and we want students to have fun, right?

Playing Games in a Pandemic

The pandemic forced me to rethink how I implemented math games in my classroom. Early on, students were not allowed to share materials, so playing a typical board game was out of the question. I was determined to find a way to provide these activities for my students. If there was ever a need for play in the classroom, it was during the pandemic.

Once I figured out how to embed dice in Google Slides, I added game pieces and set the game board as the background. Not only was this fairly simple, but my students also loved playing digital games! As I watched them play, I began to see the benefits of going digital.

Digital vs. Printable

There are 3 main reasons why I prefer digital math games over printable ones. First, all materials (dice, game pieces) are embedded, making them a NO PREP resource and mess-free!

Second, if students don’t finish playing in one class period, they can pick up where they left off the next day and actually finish the game. Students often run out of time with printable games and never finish playing.

The third thing I love about digital games is that I can view their progress at any time and even comment on their game. This creates more accountability and ownership than they had with printable math games.

Bump Game - A classroom Favorite

In this factor game, students roll two dice, add them together, and locate that number on the table. They then cover a baseball which shows a factor of that number. Students love this game because of the ability to “bump” their opponent’s game piece off the board when they also play that space.

However, once a player has two game pieces covering one space, that space is locked and cannot be bumped. The first player to place all 10 of their game pieces on the board wins!

Digital > Printable

Digital games solved every single problem I had with printable games. I no longer had students playing around with materials or throwing dice across the room. Gone were the days of game pieces being spread all over the floor (and so often never put away). Games did not become damaged from poor treatment. Once I went digital, I never went back!

All math games are created using Google Slides, making them super easy to assign to students. I’ve used Google Classroom as well as Schoology, and both platforms are teacher-friendly when it comes to assigning games.

If you haven’t used digital math games, I hope I’ve convinced you to give them a shot! They are perfect for math choice boards and early finishers, and can even be sent home to play as a family.

Click HERE to visit my TPT store where you’ll find over 40 fourth-grade math games to choose from!

If games are your thing, then Episode 18 of Elementary Math Chat is a must-listen! I share 7 review games to play in the classroom, and you can listen HERE or on your preferred listening app!

Until next time,
Happy Teaching!

-Annamarie

P.S. If you like digital resources, read this BLOG POST all about digital Boom Cards!

A New Twist on Anchor Charts: QR Codes with Video Tutorials

December 1, 2019 by Krejci Creations

For years I had a love/hate relationship with anchor charts. I knew how beneficial they could be, but I just couldn’t grasp the logistics of posting and storing them. I’d scope out other classrooms and search endlessly on Pinterest for ideas, but what worked for others didn’t work for me.

Because of this, I gave up on anchor charts completely. It wasn’t until I realized how much my students needed these reminders that I reconsidered. They were learning a new math skill every single day! Of course, they were going to forget some along the way. I was determined to find a solution.

To Post or Not To Post

For starters, I didn’t know how to properly store my anchor charts, nor did I have the time and energy to figure it out. As a result, they piled up on top of my cabinets and collected dust. Ohhhhh, the dust. In addition, I’d have to pull them all down just to find the one I needed.

Another problem was wall space, or the lack thereof, so I would only post charts related to current topics. Those, however, weren’t the only skills students were forgetting. My mind went down a rabbit hole. Should I post anchor charts from earlier in the year, or should I just post them all? Would that be too overwhelming? I found faults with each option, so coming up with a solution was a challenge.

On top of all that, not every student was able to look at an anchor chart and remember what to do. They needed a thorough example worked out and explained by me. I finally came up with a solution: mini anchor charts with an interactive twist. My love for alliteration inspired me to call them “reference rings”!

Bringing Anchor Charts to Life

With the addition of a simple QR code, I’ve brought these anchor charts to life. My students no longer have to wonder how I arrived at the answer. By scanning the QR code, they now see an example modeled and explained by me.

All of my videos use manipulatives/visuals when possible and focus on conceptual learning. They have been a lifesaver! So, who exactly are these videos for?

Anchor Charts for Absent Students

Most recently, a student of mine was absent and missed my lesson on simplifying fractions. The next day, he felt behind and expressed how much he hated simplifying fractions. Statements like this are so hard to hear as a teacher!

A few days later, we did a review activity that included simplest form. He completed it with ease! I told him how impressed I was that he overcame his battle. He replied, “I watched the simplest form reference ring video a few times, and now I’m an expert.” He felt proud and relieved that he had mastered this difficult concept. I was thrilled!!!

Anchor Charts for Struggling Students

Not all students master a skill after a 30-minute whole group lesson; that’s what small group instruction is for. Even with this additional support, there are often a few students who still won’t fully understand,

I encourage these students to watch a reference ring video after they leave my group. Sometimes this is exactly what they need: one-on-one instruction. Reference rings are especially helpful when students are struggling but don’t want to interrupt my small group. We make reference rings part of our “Ask 3 Before Me” rule!

Anchor Charts for Enrichment

On the other hand, some students learn concepts so quickly that it’s hard to keep up with them. They soak up any knowledge they can get and run with it. Those students in particular have loved watching my reference ring videos on future topics. Several have even pretested out of chapters because of this!

These interactive anchor charts can also be displayed as a bulletin board using the full-size version. I typically post only the charts related to the current unit and include a few review skills. The mini anchor charts remain posted and available at all times since they don’t take up much space.

Want to try a reference ring set for yourself? Grab the Place Value FREEBIE, or shop the BUNDLE which includes 70 tutorial videos for 4th grade math!

Until next time,
Happy Teaching!

-Annamarie

How to Make the Most of Review Days with Boom Cards

May 12, 2019 by Krejci Creations

I used to DREAD review days. The challenge of trying to keep an entire class engaged and on task left me overwhelmed and exhausted. While most of my 4th graders didn’t need to review, others required serious remediation. I tried playing review games (who doesn’t love a good game of Jeopardy?), but only a handful of students were engaged and very few benefited. In the end, I never felt satisfied and knew there had to be a better way of utilizing these days.

Small Group Review

One day it dawned on me. What I needed to do was shift my focus from whole group review to small group review. This way, I could meet with the students who truly needed remediation separately from those who did not. But how could I know with certainty which students to reteach and what skills to focus on? I needed data, and I needed it fast. Boom Cards™ immediately came to mind.

Going Digital

If you haven’t tried a set of Boom Cards, pencil them into your next unit lesson plan. These digital task cards are such a time-saver and are easy to implement in class. They provide immediate feedback for students and will give you valuable data, including which problems students answer incorrectly and how long it takes them to complete the assignment. Below is a picture of the data analysis Boom Learning does for you.

On top of that, students LOVE them! They were a game-changer for me. Learn how to use Boom Cards in the classroom in my previous post!

Chapter Review Boom Cards

I created my first set of Chapter Review Boom Cards during Chapter 7 of Go Math: Add and Subtract Fractions. My students completed this review two days before the test. The data showed me exactly who was struggling and what concepts they were struggling with.

It was obvious they didn’t need more practice adding and subtracting fractions. Their struggle was with mixed numbers. Furthermore, the data showed me who did not require additional support from me. I was AH-MAZED! Planning for review days just got that much easier. I now knew exactly who to work with and what to work on.

I first met with students who needed remediation, and we only worked on mixed numbers. In addition, I provided enrichment activities for the others, including the next chapter’s pretest. How did I not think of this sooner? Immediately, I got to work on creating a set of Chapter 8 Review Boom Cards. Before I knew it, all 13 Chapter Reviews were finished!

Less is More

From here on out, I use the phrase “less is more” to plan out review days. I meet with fewer students and cover fewer topics but accomplish more. I could not achieve this without the data from my Chapter Review Boom Cards! Below is a preview of my review on Angles and Degrees, which aligns with Chapter 11 in Go Math.

All 13 Chapter Reviews contain 3-5 questions per lesson and use a variety of question types, such as drag-and-drop, multiple choice, multiple select, and fill-in-the-blank. Questions are organized from the first lesson to the last, making it easy to read and interpret data.

If you are short on time, assign them for homework! The immediate feedback will help you plan which skills to review in whole group and which to review in small groups. In addition, you can identify which lessons you need to focus on more throughout the unit.

Digital and Printable Versions

If you have limited access to technology, I also offer printable versions. Personally, I like to use both. For example, when looking through my data I’ll pull out task cards aligning with the questions most commonly missed. I can then use these cards to review with students and discuss why they missed the questions in the first place and/or what misconceptions they had. Why reinvent the wheel when it’s already been made?

If you struggle with review days, try my “less is more” approach. Use data from Boom Cards to prioritize and plan your small group activities. Click on the links below for more information regarding my 4th Grade Math Reviews!

Digital Boom Cards

Printable Task Cards

Until next time,