For many students, math can be a subject they don’t really love. For some, it doesnt come easy to them and for others, they just don’t like it. Regardless of the reason or for those that do love math, it is important to do fun math activities to make it more enjoyable for everyone. Whether it is for the first day of school math or any day during the school year, math can be fun. Below are a few ideas of how you can make math more enjoyable for your students.
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Find Shapes
This is an easy activity that can be done in the classroom or out on the playground because all you need is a clipboard, a printout of shapes, and a pencil. Give a printout of shapes to each of the students and ask them to find the shapes on the paper in real life. For example, for a rectangle, they could write down the top of their desk. Finding different shapes within the classroom gets them moving around and gets their brains thinking.
Water Balloon Splash
A perfect math activity for when it is warmer outside is with water balloons and chalk. You write numbers out on the pavement outside your classroom and have water balloons ready to go for your students. Depending on what grade you are teaching, it could be as simple as giving them a number to go find and they can throw their balloon on it. Or if they are a bit older, you could give them equations and they can throw the balloon at the correct answer. Students think it is a blast throwing water balloons even if it is for math class.
Telling Time
When students start telling time it can be fun to have them make their own clock. This can be done simply by getting sturdy paper plates, putting the numbers on the rim of them, and adding some hands to the middle. This will allow them to have their own clock as you are teaching so they can practice making the clock say the times that you give them. If you want to allow them to be more creative you can allow them to color on their clocks to truly make them their own.
Simple Fractions
Fractions can be a tough one for students to grasp when they are first introduced. A super simple way to teach the basics is by bringing items for your students to make sandwiches. Once they have made their sandwiches you can show them how when you cut down the middle it makes halves and then once again turns it into fourths. This can also be done with thirds. Allowing the students to eat their sandwiches after is a great snack as well.
Activities Works Wonders
For some students, they can learn just by reading or listening to a lecture. But for many, the best way for them to learn is through hands-on activities. That’s why when it comes to a tough subject, such as math, having activities that allow the students to be truly involved can make all the difference for some students and what they learn from you.