Make Math Fact Practice Fun!
Do you have kids who groan at the idea of math fact practice? Put an end to those groans and put down the flashcards, it’s time for some math fact fun!
Whether your students need more math fact practice with addition, subtraction, multiplication, or division, here are some great ideas to practice math facts using hands-on games and activities. These math fact games can be completed in pairs, at centers, or teacher led small groups!
Addition Facts:
Egg Toss
Practice math facts with this fun addition game!
Grab an empty egg carton and write the numbers 1-12 in each space using a marker. Give a partner pair two counter chips. Place the carton on a table or desk, and ask students to stand about two feet away from it. Toss one token toward the carton and announce the number it lands on. Repeat the process in order to tell the sum of the two addends. After each partner has a turn, record the scores and play another four rounds. Have students find their total score by adding up each round. The highest total wins the game!
Math Fact Game: Hit the Target
Wondering how to memorize math facts? Work in some math fact practice with this fun game!
Grab some sidewalk chalk and get outdoors. Draw four different size circles and write an amount in each (example: 1,000; 100; 10; and 1). Give a student 4 rocks and stand behind a start point. Aim and toss the rock in order to try to get it to land (bounces count!) inside a circle. At the end of a turn, mentally add up the amount. Repeat the process with a partner and whoever has the highest score, wins! Playing indoors? Use painter’s tape or make the circles on large pieces of construction paper and use coins to toss instead.
Subtraction Math Fact Practice:
Pasta Stories
What is the best way to teach math facts? Make it hands on and visual! This math fact activity does just that.
Put your students in a small group. Provide each child with a big scoop of colorful, uncooked pasta. Share an oral subtraction story. Students should act out exactly what you’re saying. For example, you could say ten birds were in a tree (students count out 10 pieces). Four birds flew away. How many are left? After getting the hang of this hands-on-task, invite some volunteers to make up their own pasta story for everyone to follow!
Math Facts with Playing Cards: Subtraction War
Learning through play is a great way to remember math facts. This math fact game is perfect for that!
Give a partner pair a deck of cards. Remove kings, queens, and jacks, in order to leave just the numbered cards behind. Pass out the cards until the pile is gone. Playing just like war, each child throws down two cards. Students must subtract their numbers (great way to help them remember big numbers first). The student who has the highest difference takes all the cards! If there is a tie, throw down two new cards and try again-winner takes all!
Memorize Math Facts:
Bodies in Motion
Get your students up and moving to memorize math facts!
Many children need that physical, kinesthetic connection in order to practice math facts. Consider warming up at the beginning of class by doing odd or even skip count squats, or doubles jumping jacks (2 + 2 =4). The chanting and moving will really get their attention and make some long lasting math fact connections and memorization.
Math Facts for Counting:
Hula Hoop by 5’s
When it comes to counting by number grouping here is a great way to practice math facts! Hula hoops!
For younger children, counting by five’s can be a daunting task. Have a hula hoop on hand and end each class by calling on volunteers to hula hoop. Each time they are able to get the hoop around their body, the class should call out, “Five!” Continue counting until the hoop falls. The great thing about this activity is that it can be adapted, so students can count by virtually anything-ones, tens, twenties-you name it!
What is the best way to teach math facts? Make it fun!
These hands-on math fact practice activities really “add up” and will resonate with learners. Keep bodies busy just as much as their minds, so that math fact fluency time is never met with a groan again!
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Check out my math fact fluency program, Monster Math!
