It is easy to get carried away with all that is available these days for education. From curriculum, books, and games there is an endless supply of resources, but most of us don't have the money or space to invest in all of them. So how to you pick and choose? We like to look for versatile items that will last, not only through hard use, but also through various levels/subjects of learning. Before you think something can be used one way, do some research. (Pinterest can be great sometimes for getting ideas.) Even better, just give them to your kids without any guidance and see what they discover about it before you begin to teach them how to use it. In our home, we really don't have much storage, so while I loved all the resources I had teaching, I can't have them all or I'd go insane (and broke.) So when we really have to be picky, here's what we think are worth investing in and why: Top 3 Must-Haves:1. Unifix Cubes - Also known as Mathlink cubes or snap cubes, they are basically multicolored cubes that click together. These are great for helping prepare kids for base 10 blocks. Since they can be made into any size, Unifix cubes help with skip counting, multiplication, division, addition, subtraction, fractions, area, and perimeter, to name a few. If I had to pick between these and base 10 blocks, I actually would pick these. The colors allow kids to color code if necessary when solving problems. (A visual child may make all the cats orange, dogs blue, and birds red, to help organize their thinking.) The also make great creative building blocks and were a popular recess toy in school. I prefer the type that can be clicked together on any side to allow for more creativity. Beware when purchasing that not all sets will fit together, even if they appear to be the same. Buy a set and then stick with the same manufacturer. It will save you and the kids a lot of frustration. 2. 100 Board -These are wonderful and people forget how valuable they are. You can find all different ones including cute wood Montessori ones, which are so pretty. However, my favorite is the big plastic yellow one, because the tiles fit snuggly in each spot, and it comes with the colored highlighter tiles. The front of the board has the numbers, but the back is blank, so you can make it more challenging by treating it like a puzzle. I can't even tell you how many wonderful conversations happened between kids while racing the clock to put the board back together. They really learn a lot from exploring all the different patterns that can be seen on the chart. 3. Base 10 Blocks - Also called place value blocks, these come in various colors, plastic, foam, magnetic, and you can even print paper ones online. They're not only great for teaching place value, but can be used for plenty of other topics including counting, addition, subtraction, decimals, multiplication, division, area, and perimeter. I personally like the foam because their not noisy and don't hurt when stepped on (trust me those tiny ones go everywhere!) I like them all the same color too, because I would've been the kid that memorized value on color and completely missed the point. If there's still room for more:4. Pattern Blocks - These come in handy not only for geometry but also fractions. Many of my visual students would use these to solve word problems because they could give a value to each block and make them whatever they needed. Pattern blocks also are great for the creative outlet. Kids can create art with the blocks, work on symmetry, and plenty more. I like the wood ones, but they come in plastic as well. They honestly were the tool of choice for many kids. 5. Judy Clock - I feel like this is not as versatile, but nothing beats a Judy clock when learning to tell time. Having a clock that makes the hands move together accurately makes a huge difference, and the hands are color coded with the numbers. We used this for time, skip-counting and multiplying by five, adding up nickels, and basic fractions (1/2 compared to half hour, 1/4 compared to quarter hour.) The thing with kids is you don't know what is really going to make things click, so the more ways you can show a topic the better. My students made the nickel connection and found the clock helpful with it, not me. Whatever works! 6. Fraction Tiles - These tiles really help when visualizing and comparing fractions. This is one I may just try printing out a electronic copy and laminating it, but they come in plastic and magnetic strips, as well as click cube versions. I prefer these over the squares or circles because I feel like it is an easier visual when comparing. You can purchase decimal ones too. TEaching Resources7. Battista Books - These books are my must have instruction books. They are very teacher driven so they may be tough for the average person, but I think they are at least worth looking at. The books focus on identifying learning gaps and teaching math developmentally. If you are strictly following common core you may get frustrated because this is going on how kids naturally learn, but you can make it work. They come with tests to help identify gaps, work pages, and instruction on how to help kids get through their misunderstandings. I made myself instruction cards so I didn't have to keep flipping through the books, but there is a lot of useful information. There are books on place value, addition/subtraction, multiplication/division, fractions, and a geometry set. I'd recommend starting with place value since it is such a building block and going from there. The place value book isn't too long either and almost all my students, no matter what their grade, had to go back to basic place value because it is so important for all the other topics. There are tons of resources already out there, and as long as you are willing to pick in choose what is best for your kids, you can really get some good ideas. Some states even have good math resources available. When I was teaching we used Georgia and New York's lessons at times because they were great. My district provided curriculum, but aIso allowed us to supplement as we felt best fit our kids needs, so we pulled from a lot of different things. I've listed below what we used the most. Some are free some are not, but it gives a good idea of what is available.
Georgia State Standards - Free, organized lesson plans. We supplemented with parts of these. Engage NY - Free and organized by grade with modules for each grade. Each module will give an overview of the lesson topics Exemplars - Amazing word problems. Challenges reasoning and critical thinking through life skills. Its best to watch someone use them to teach because you have to be careful not to instruct too much. They also are really better when you have a group of kids so they can hear other ideas on how to problem solve. These used to be free so have a bunch of these I will use when my kids are older, but unfortunately they must be purchased now. Investigations - This was the old math curriculum we saved. Its common in schools here in Ohio and has some good lessons and games for kids. My husband's school uses it. Number Talks - Like Exemplars this is best with a group of kids and if you can see it modeled correctly by another teacher. It helps kids work on mental math skills and reasoning. Don't forget Teachers Pay Teachers and Pinterest for great math game ideas.
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