Math Centers Archives - Page 2 of 3

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! This is a preview of my review on Angles, 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.

Printable and digital 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,

Happy Teaching!

-Annamarie

Winter-Themed Fraction Fun for Elementary Students

February 23, 2019 by Krejci Creations

If you teach fractions, chances are you teach them during the long, dreary, and cold winter months. While I’m not a huge fan of winter, I am a fan of using winter-themed fraction activities for my small group center. They bring me joy and provide instant engagement and excitement to the classroom!

Improper Fraction Snow Globe Sort

One of my favorite winter-themed fraction resources is an Improper Fraction Snow Globe Sort. It checks all the boxes: hands-on, versatile, engaging, rigorous, and purposeful!

To prepare the activity for students, spread out the improper fraction snowflakes and arrange the mixed number snow globes in order from least to greatest.

I love seeing the look on my student’s faces when they realize they’ll be working with snowflakes and snow globes. They are always curious and anxious to discover what it’s all about!

Their goal is to correctly sort the improper fraction snowflakes into the appropriate snow globes. To do this, they first convert the improper fractions to mixed numbers by either using division, mental math, or decomposing the fraction into wholes and parts. It always makes me proud to see students using more than one method!

Next, students compare the mixed numbers to the ranges labeled on the snow globes. Note: The updated snow globes now have number lines to make this step more clear.

Sorting the snowflakes is where the wheels start turning. Since many snowflake values are close to more than one snow globe range, students must think carefully about where to place the snowflake.

Hearing my students make justifications as to where they place their snowflakes, and the conversations that result gives me valuable feedback. For instance, I’ve had many students master converting improper fractions to mixed numbers but struggle to place them on a number line. Without the number line placement, I would have never discovered this gap in their learning!

Once all 48 snowflakes have been placed in the appropriate snow globes, the sort is complete. Even though students work independently with their snowflakes, it feels like a team effort. Therefore, we celebrate together when finished!

Assessing and Advancing Questions

There’s no doubt this resource can serve as a great assessment tool. Throughout the activity, I use questioning strategies to assess and advance their understanding of the skill. For instance, if I see a student place a snowflake in the wrong snow globe, I’ll simply ask them to share their reasoning. I can also give students small prompts without revealing the answer to help steer them in the right direction.

In addition, I make sure my struggling students are working with simpler fractions and my advanced students are solving more complex ones. This helps to avoid any potential frustration and allows everyone in the group to feel successful.

For my early finishers, I often take it a step further by challenging them to convert improper fractions to decimals.

That leads me to my next point…

Extension Activities

Whenever you plan a matching activity for your small group center, I highly recommend including one or two extension activities. This helps keep all students engaged and appropriately challenged.

For example, once all the snowflakes have been sorted, have each student choose eight snowflakes, create four fraction comparison problems, and insert the correct symbols. This can serve as their exit ticket from your small group table.

Another extension is to have students place the improper fractions on a number line labeled 0-4. You can easily create this number line by using a dry-erase marker on your table.

Purchase on TPT

Do yourself (and your students) a favor and try this hands-on, festive, and engaging activity in your classroom. You and your students will have “SNOW” much fun!

Until next time,

Happy Teaching!

-Annamarie

P.S. If you love using festive resources with students, read this BLOG POST all about Christmas-themed resources!

Christmas Math Crafts That Help Spread Holiday Cheer

December 9, 2018 by Krejci Creations

“O Factor Tree, O Factor Tree, your factor pairs are lovely.” I know those aren’t the traditional lyrics to the song, but they are the lyrics to my FAVORITE Christmas math song, “O Factor Tree”, by yours truly! More on the song later 🙂

A Holiday Tradition: Christmas math Ornaments

These Christmas factor tree ornaments are an annual tradition of mine. As a math teacher, I don’t get to incorporate crafts into my lessons very often–which is fine because I am the LEAST crafty person I know!

Regardless, I look forward to creating these every year with my students. It’s the perfect Christmas math craft for the not-so-crafty person.

If you’re looking for a low-maintenance, Christmas math craft that reinforces math concepts, you will LOVE these factor tree ornaments!

Getting Started with Christmas Factor Trees

First, I teach my students about prime factorization. Since they’ve already learned about prime and composite numbers, this is a fun extension for them. After modeling a few examples, I introduce the lyrics to “O Factor Tree”, and we sing the song to an instrumental version. It’s my favorite part of the whole activity!

Next, I give students the first page of factor trees, which we complete together. Then, on the second page, they have the option to choose their own numbers. It’s always fun to see them challenge themselves with really large numbers! Once both pages are complete, students glue them into their math journals for future reference.

Next, I go through the instructions on how to create their Christmas factor trees. I’ve learned it’s best to design and color the trees and ornaments before cutting everything out.

Finally, I assemble all of the materials on my teacher table and have students grab what they need. To save time, I copy the trees double-sided so one side is blank and one side includes the lyrics.

As a result, each student only needs one tree, 6-12 (two rows) of ornaments, and presents, which can be optional.

Another option is to copy the trees single-sided. In this case, each student needs 2 trees, one blank and one with lyrics that they will glue together. Either way works well!

Now they are ready to create their factor tree. During this time, I play festive music as it lessens the desire to talk and adds to the overall excitement of the activity.

How to Differentiate Christmas Factor Trees

There are several ways to differentiate this activity. Allow students to choose their own number. This is differentiation in itself! In addition, challenge your students to create presents under the tree showing the standard form of prime factorization, with or without exponents. Each tree will be unique, and students will take pride in their creations.

Want to cut down on materials and class time? Use the low-prep version where all student materials are on one page. Students can complete their factor trees in under 30 minutes, making it a perfect fit for tight schedules.

I switched to this version during my last few years, and they turned out great!

Teacher Tips

It’s important that students tell you what number they are factoring before they begin. Some factor trees will be too large to fit on the tree, and some might look too small. Therefore, students should consider the number of ornaments they will need before beginning.

Also, because the ornaments can be a challenge for some to cut out, I prepare a handful of them beforehand just in case.

Christmas math ornaments

Once students have cut, colored, and glued their factor trees together, the trees are ready to be made into ornaments. To do this, I hole-punch the star and tie a piece of string, yarn, or pipe cleaner around the hole.

I then display the finished products outside my classroom for the weeks leading up to Christmas Break. It’s always so fun to see the unique and creative designs each student comes up with! That’s why I recommend doing this activity in early December—perhaps after a math test or in place of your usual math workshop routine.

On the day before break, they take them home to hang on their own Christmas trees for years to come.

Version #2: Factor Pair Trees

If you love the idea of factor trees but want a simpler version, you can use the factor pair trees instead!

The same steps apply, but instead of writing the prime factorization, students record factor pairs on the ornaments.

This version of Christmas Factor Trees is perfect for students in grades 3 and 4. And of course, it comes with its own edition of “O Factor Tree”!

Ready to start your own tradition of making Christmas factor trees? I hope the answer is YES!

For more holiday-themed ideas, check out Episode 21 of Elementary Math Chat where I share 10 holiday party and gift ideas for upper elementary students. Listen using the link below or through your favorite listening app!

Episode 21: 10 Holiday Party and Gift Ideas for Upper Elementary Students

Until next time,

Happy Teaching!

P.S. Find even more 4th grade holiday resources in my TPT store!

4 Reasons Why Teachers and Students Love Boom Cards!

September 19, 2018 by Krejci Creations

The first time I discovered Boom Cards, I was in utter shock. I had never seen anything like them before. I was giddy with excitement as I worked through a few preview cards. Digital resources that were meaningful and graded themselves? Sign me up!!

However, I didn’t jump on board right away because I wasn’t exactly sure how to use them. If you’ve ever felt that way about Boom Cards, keep reading to discover 4 reasons why you need these digital resources, and most importantly, how to use them in your classroom.

Reason #1: Students Love Digital Activities

Years ago, I attended a conference where the speaker referred to today’s students as the “Nintendo Generation.” At first, I thought, Wait—that’s me! I grew up in the ’80s and definitely identify with that term. But I understood their point. Our students have grown up surrounded by technology and can’t imagine life without it.

As a result, this generation of students is naturally drawn to digital resources, and they genuinely enjoy using them. That’s why tools like Boom Cards are so effective: you have their buy-in right from the start.

So, what exactly are Boom Cards?

In a nutshell, they are digital task cards. With features like drag and drop, multiple select, and fill-in-the-blank, students interact with a variety of question types when working through a set.

I’ve found that students connect much more to the content and questions within Boom Cards than regular task cards or a workbook page. It’s a win-win situation!

Reason #2: Boom Cards are a NO PREP Resource

Have you ever checked off an entire to-do list? I know I haven’t. As a teacher, it’s nearly impossible. Once you get your head above water, you start thinking ahead and begin to feel like you’re drowning again. There is always something to do.

Boom Cards, however, have made planning and preparing activities SO MUCH EASIER. There’s no printing, laminating, or cutting, and I don’t have to use my beloved card stock.

All I have to do is send students a link! I can do that in less than 10 seconds.

Printable task cards would take me a minimum of 20 minutes to prepare from start to finish. (45 minutes if the laminator hasn’t been turned on, arghhh!!!) Plus, students have access to these decks outside of the classroom, and they can review them anytime or anywhere. Another teacher win!

How to Assign Boom Cards

First, you’ll need to decide if you want to choose the free or paid membership with Boom. Both work well, but you’ll have more features and data with a paid membership. From there, there are a variety of actions you can take with each deck of Boom Cards.

With a paid membership, you can assign decks directly to your class (or multiple classes) within the Boom Learning platform.

Students can access the deck in two ways. The first way is by logging in directly on the Boom Learning website. Note: If your district uses Clever, you can connect it to your Boom Learning account for a smoother login process.

The second way students can access the deck is by logging in through the Hyperplay Link you send them in Google Classroom, Schoology, etc. This link will prompt them to log in to Boom Learning to access the deck.

I preferred sending my students the Hyperplay Link through Schoology, simply because that’s where they accessed all of my resources and assignments.

Now, if you’re on the fence about choosing the free or paid version, try it out for a month before committing to a full year. Honestly, it’s so worth it—the valuable feedback you get makes a huge difference for both you and your students! I’ll be sharing more about the data features a little later.

If you’re planning to use the free version of Boom Learning, you can simply share the Fast Pin link with your students. Whether you’re using Google Classroom, Schoology, or another platform, it’s just a quick copy and paste. Students get immediate access to the deck with no login required!

As I mentioned earlier, the free version doesn’t provide data since students aren’t logging in. But they still benefit from the immediate feedback after each question.

And that brings me to the third reason I love Boom Cards…

Reason #3: Data Collection

Boom Cards provide instant feedback to students and beneficial data for teachers. Yes, paper-pencil assessments can provide this data as well. But this is immediate. There are times I don’t look over paper-pencil assessments for days, and sometimes I’m too late to intervene.

With Boom Learning, I can quickly glance through student scores and intervene on the spot. It has made my life so much easier! Here is an example of what students see when they complete a deck.

Here’s what it looks like on the teacher’s end. Of course, I would never use actual student data, so Jake is a sample account I created.

For example, I can see that Jake scored 73% and completed the deck in seven minutes and forty seconds. I’m also able to see which specific questions he missed, which helps me identify skills to revisit, either with him individually or with the whole class if I notice a common trend in the data.

The data you get from Boom is truly what sets it apart from other resources. It’s one of the main reasons I can’t stop recommending Boom Cards!

Now, let’s dive into the many ways you can use them in your classroom, which brings me to the fourth reason I love Boom Cards.

Reason #4: Boom Cards are Versatile

Not only can you assign Boom Cards as a math center, but you can also use them for whole group lessons. For instance, I will often use a few cards for a quick spiral review or include them in my lesson.

One feature in particular I love is the ability to hide cards within a deck without deleting them. Many of my decks have 20 cards, but depending on the skill, 20 questions could take a really long time to complete. Therefore, I may assign only 7-10 cards for the math center and use the other cards in my whole group lesson.

Boom Cards also come in handy when preparing for state testing. Instead of searching endlessly for review materials, you can simply reassign previous decks to students.

For a quick spiral review of several skills, consider assigning 3-5 cards of multiple decks instead of 1 deck at a time. It’s amazing how Boom Cards can actually teach and reinforce skills as students work through them. It is called Boom LEARNING for a reason!

You can also use Boom Cards for your own test prep. I’ve created Chapter Review decks for all 13 chapters of the 4th Grade Go Math curriculum. I assign these 2 days before a test. With instant data collection, I’m able to plan my small group instruction effectively the day before a test.

I hope I’ve convinced you to give Boom Cards a try! I have a feeling you’ll be wondering why you didn’t start using them sooner.

You can shop all of my Boom Cards through my TPT Store or directly on Boom Learning.

Until next time,

Happy Teaching!

-Annamarie

P.S. For even more tips and ideas, read this blog post where I explain how I use Boom Cards to review for chapter tests!

1-Digit Multiplication: Why Teach More Than One Method?

September 5, 2018 by Krejci Creations

1-digit multiplication is one of my absolute favorite skills to teach! For starters, I love that we now teach students more than one way to multiply. This is so powerful and helps students connect with the true meaning behind the skill.

In addition, once they see the patterns in 1-digit multiplication, they can go deep. I love walking around to my early finishers and adding a few digits to their problem to keep them engaged and challenged. Students begin doing this on their own to challenge themselves!

1-Digit Multiplication Method #1: Expanded Form

The first strategy I introduce is using expanded form to multiply.

I love this method because it allows students to work with friendly numbers, making the process more concrete and attainable. This work mat helps students organize their work—something many of them often struggle with!

Since they’ve already learned how to write a number in expanded form, this method comes naturally to them. However, I never assume all students will master this concept, so I use these Boom Cards as a formative assessment.

Boom Cards provide immediate feedback for students while also giving me valuable data to assess their level of understanding.

They are my go-to resource for data collection, and students really enjoy working with Boom Cards.

1-digit multiplication method #2: Area Model

I didn’t always teach the area model method with 1-digit multiplication. However, I found it so effective with 2-digit multiplication, I decided to give it a try.

As you can see in this area model multiplication work mat, this method is a natural next step after using expanded form and helps students better organize their work. The only difference is that students draw an area model to multiply the expanded form.

Begin with 2 by 1-digit multiplication and work your way up to 4 by 1-digit multiplication problems. Students will begin to see patterns and build confidence as they solve more challenging problems.

This fun and festive Halloween-themed deck combines Estimation with Area Model Multiplication. If you teach 1-digit multiplication methods in October, this set of Boom Cards would be the perfect math center!

1-Digit Multiplication Method #3: Partial Product

The next 1-digit multiplication method I teach is the partial product method. This is a bit more abstract but still allows students to work with friendly numbers. Since they already learned expanded form and area model multiplication, they have a better understanding of how partial products work.

I love using these color-coded task cards for small group instruction. Half of the cards are color-coded for guidance, and the other half are open-ended. They also progress in difficulty for quick differentiation.

By the way, does the sound of differentiating math centers intimidate you? Check out Episodes 10-12 of Elementary Math Chat for help! There was so much to cover that I had to break it down into 3 episodes!

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

1-Digit Multiplication Method #4: Standard Algorithm

The last 1-digit multiplication method I teach is the standard algorithm. Most students choose this strategy in the end, and I’m okay with that! We want students to use the most efficient strategy, and the standard algorithm is by far the most efficient.

This method is more abstract, but since students first learned with concrete strategies, they can now apply their understanding to the traditional algorithm.

If you are a fan of task cards, grab this free set of 1-digit multiplication task cards by clicking the pink button. Check your email for your freebie!

1-Digit Multiplication Formative Assessments

Boom Cards are my go-to for gathering valuable data. Since they are digital, all students need is a link and they can access the resource on any digital device. This is about as LOW PREP as you can get!

They are also self-checking, which means students know after each problem if they’ve answered correctly. That is their WOW factor! No other platform gives students immediate feedback while learning like Boom Cards do!

Another reason I love Boom Cards is that they aren’t just for small group centers. I use this set on Partial Product Multiplication in my whole group instruction. Students use a similar work mat with a place value chart, so it’s a fun and interactive way for us to check our work during the lesson.

Want to know more about Boom Cards? Read my blog post to learn how I use them in the classroom or view them in my TPT store!

If you aren’t teaching these non-traditional 1-digit multiplication methods, I hope you will consider doing so. Your students will thank you!

Until next time,

Happy Teaching!

-Annamarie