A seemingly simple question that reveals a lot about a student's understanding of fractions. In finding an answer, learners compare fractions with different denominators that are both greater and less than one. No number line is...

A great aspect of teaching math is that children have the freedom to solve problems using a variety of different strategies. The focus of this lesson is for young mathematicians to become aware of many ways of answering addition...

What if you had a design problem you wanted to solve, but were unable to draw because you were unable to see? Teach your learners with visual impairments that they can use Wikki Stix®, a braille ruler, Legos®, and Constructo Straws to...

Finding common denominators is an important strategy when adding fractions with unlike denominators. In the first two questions in this three-question task, fifth graders are asked to combine fractions and draw a picture to show their...

Division can be seen in two ways; as splitting a whole into a certain number of pieces, or splitting it into pieces of a certain size. Help your class reach this understanding with these two simple word problems. Encourage the use of...

Let's build a castle! Dennis and Cody have big plans, but do they have enough blocks between the two of them to accomplish their goal? A great context that requires students to add and compare mixed numbers. Encourage the use of pictures...

Let's use math to solve an argument. Jon and Charlie are debating about who can run farther, but who is right? That's what your class will figure out as they apply their understanding of fractions to this real-life situation. A simple,...

The object of this activity is to compute how far Rosa ran to school. Given in the exercise is the fractional number of miles between home and school and the fractional distance Rosa ran. The commentary shows several ways to have your...

This is an absolute must-have resource for early elementary teachers! Here you'll find a collection of activities and worksheets for each day of the month of June, with topics ranging from ordering numbers on a calendar or identifying...

A great hands-on activity involving adding and subtracting, beginner mathematicians determine how many games can be played with 20 tickets. Instead of tickets, youngsters use 20 counters or linking cubes to represent the amount of...

You'll feel more than prepared for the start of the school year with this collection of daily activities for the month of August! From filling in numbers on a calendar or coloring patterns to solving addition and reading...

Need an activity for teaching the Pythagorean Theorem? Geometry juniors apply the Pythagorean theorem to two triangles to determine a final calculation. 

Kids love to cook! What is a better place to learn mixed numbers than with a recipe? It is up to learners to decide how they want to divide this recipe in half. They may choose to model the mixed number and then divide the model by two....

A different-than-normal problem that allows learners to practice their reasoning to find an answer. The problem bases itself off a graph drawing of a store that needs to install security cameras. The challenge is to find which placement...

The object is to model fraction division by asking “How many are in one group?” It is a difficult concept to understand, but developing the model that shows one cup to a certain amount of container or one container to a certain amount of...

Gaining practice in translating a verbal description into a diagram and then an equation is the real point of this similar triangles exercise. Once the diagram is drawn, multiple methods are provided to reach the conclusion. An effective...

Bringing together the young artists and the young organizers in your class, this instructional activity takes that popular topic of tessellations and gives it algebraic roots. After covering a few basic properties and definitions,...

This real-life math problem concentrates on developing the understanding of dividing a unit fraction by a whole number. It allows students to draw out a solution to aid their thinking. The well-written answer sheet describes common...

The single question in this activity has multiple ways to be solved. Two boys ran a mile. Their times were similar, except one time was a fraction of the other. Who ran faster? In demonstrating the answer to this problem, upper graders...

Help your learners gain meaningful understanding of dividing fractions using fraction models. The activity includes nine problems which are sequenced to show how the fraction division algorithm evolves. Have students use graph paper or...

Hook your charges on how to solve a real-world art problem with mathematics by showing works of Christo. You can find eye-catching images on the Christo and Jeanne Claude webpage. Here, math learners help Jean Claude and Christo prepare...

This resource sneaks in the math so your learners will be adding and subtracting positive and negatives on a number line while thinking they are mapping out houses. The activity starts by putting houses the appropriate distance away from...

Mathematicians practice communicating why the sum of two multiples of a number results in another multiple of that number. Encourage learners to construct a viable argument by applying the distributive property or by drawing a diagram....

Five weeks of daily activities for the month of May! With a new activity for each day of the month, your youngsters will utilize a variety of skills and practice everything from sight words and spelling to counting by twos or coloring...