{photo by Jenny Bischoff}
Now that we are well over halfway through our first trimester, we are all in the routine of practicing math facts each home day (right?). We know that habitual practice and repetition is the only way to get all the facts memorized to automaticity. And knowing the math facts solidly will serve our students well as they progress to higher levels.
That doesn’t mean you can’t change up the way in which math facts are practiced! Rather than giving your student the same worksheet every home day, mix in some other activities and games – when kids “do math” in the form of games, they hardly realize they are learning.
Beyond the Singapore mental math sheets (which are great, and we do recommend completing these as assigned), we have access to the games in the HIGs, and our teachers often send out other suggestions as well. Plus you can easily find hundreds of math games with a google or Pinterest search. Here’s one more tool you can stick in your tool belt – this handy list of variations on the classic Math Card War is from Denise Gaskins, and is a wonderful reference you’ll want to print and use over and over again:
The Game That Is Worth 1,000 Worksheets
Thanks to Denise for sharing this list on her website! You might also want to check out her Internet Math Resources for fresh ideas. Keep working with those math facts!
