It has been about two weeks since my wife and I got back from Australia.
Although it's nice to be back home, I still find myself wishing I had a
few more days in Sydney! If you follow me on Instagram
(@middleschoolmathman), you probably saw a few of these pictures along
the way, but here are a few of my favorites (and then I promise I will
get to the freebies!).
Now...on to the freebies! As many of you, and myself included, are recharging batteries and getting geared up for another school year, I wanted to take a minute and recap some of the free products available in my TpT store. These are geared towards 6th grade math, however many of the products can be used anywhere from 4th to 7th grade! Now that we have a chance to take a deep breath and prepare, I thought I few of these might be helpful.
So what is first up on the freebie cart? Why not start with one of my newest math games...
Connect Four: Multiplying Decimals. This one includes 6 Connect Four game boards and 16 playing cards. Students must solve the problem and then cover up that answer on their board. First player to connect four in a row wins!
Another free product that I recently completed is a full set of my Challenge of the Week problems for sixth grade math (although many could also be used in 5th grade!). If you click on the Challenge of the Week tab at the top of the page, you can get an idea of how I display and use these problems in my classroom. It is a great way to give my higher students a little extra challenge throughout the week. Click on the picture or link below to get a copy of all of the problems and answers! The Challenge of the Week has been a staple in my classroom for the last few years and my 6th graders love trying them out each week. I know they like them because of all the flack I get when I forget to put a new one up on Monday morning!
In my classroom I use math workshop, which you can read more about by clicking the Workshop tab at the top of the page. One of the benefits of using math workshop is that I can easily differentiate my instruction, since I am meeting in a small group with each kid. One of my favorite parts of this is that I can really push my higher students. To do this, I created math enrichment problems, or task cards, to give the students who already understand what we are doing. My first unit of these cards is free in my store, so be sure to check them out! The free unit includes topics related to decimals and exponents (I apologize for the terrible product cover in my store...this is on my to-do list, but I promise the actual product is better than the cover!). You can see how my students use these cards in the picture. I laminate the cards and then students show their work on their white board as I meet with them.
Another free one that I have available are some questions that go along with the children's book "Math Curse." If you haven't read this one, you need to find a copy! It is hilarious and engaging for the students. I usually read this one to the sixth graders on our half day before Thanksgiving Break. After reading the book, we then break into partners and they get to try to solve some of the crazy questions that come up throughout the story. For those of you that were also a part of the TpT Seller Challenge, this product cover was my "Makeover Madness" product. The new one looks much better that the old!
Once your students start learning about how to find the percent of a number, be sure to check out this next math game: Percent Scramble. This is such an important skill and one of the most applicable in the real world. From shopping to sports to business, students are going to need to know how to find the percent of a number. Percent Scramble is a fun way for students to practice this skill. This game really helped some of my lower students master this concept, when otherwise I'm not sure that they would have!
I also have a few other free memory games in my store. One of these is Equation Memory: Addition Equations. This is a fun way for students to practice solving addition equations. Like other memory games, they lay out the cards face down in a rectangle. Taking turns flipping over two cards, students try to match the addition equation with its solution. This was a fun one to use as a math center during my math workshop rotations.
The other memory game I have up in my store is Equivalent Fraction Memory. This one helps students practice finding equivalent fractions...another critical skill! This game comes with both a beginner and difficult set to help you differentiate with your students. I found this necessary the first time I tried playing it a few years ago.
As we all gear up for another school year, I hope that many, all, or even just one of these free products can help your students succeed in math! I do have a few other free ones in my store (including a scavenger hunt I recently tried for the first time!) so be sure to check those out as well. Good luck getting classrooms ready and I look forward to blogging again soon!
