You are here: Home / Archives for Math Games

Math Practice Software Kids Love

By 2 Comments

I first encountered The Quarter Mile math practice software a number of years ago at a math conference.  My sister (also a math teacher) and I sat down at computers in the Barnum Software vendor booth and tried to win a free copy of the software by being the fastest to solve the math problems.  We must have played for the better part of an hour.  It was addicting and fun!  Both of us returned to our classrooms and incorporated The Quarter Mile into our math programs.

What is The Quarter Mile?

The Quarter Mile is a math practice software program that makes kids want to practice foundational math skills.  In individual game sessions lasting from 45 seconds to 2 1/2 minutes, students select a topic, choose a car or horse, and race against their own previous best scores.  The faster they enter correct answers, the faster they finish the race.  The Quarter Mile is like flashcards on steroids, with sound effects (which can be turned down or off) and visuals. 

Level 3, which is designed for grades 6 through 9, includes 29,000 unique problems covering topics involving decimals, percents, fractions, estimation, integers, and equations.  [Read more...]

Filed Under: Math Games, Math Software Tagged With: ,

7 Ways to Energize Your Math Class

By 2 Comments

Student in Energized Math ClassroomHave you ever had a day when it felt like all of the energy and enthusiasm had been sucked out of your classroom?  I know that there are times when I feel like I am slogging through a math lesson and I am somehow vaguely disconnected from the students.  I am covering the math content standards but the energy in the classroom is low.  I know that I need to escape from the doldrums, if only for a minute or two, and then get back to the lesson after energy has been restored.

With that in mind, here are 7 ways to energize your math class and put your students in a positive frame of mind that will lead to more effective learning:

1)  Do Something Different   (Big Purple Spider)

I have a big purple spider that hangs just under the lights right when you enter my classroom.  It is attached to fishing line that runs around different light poles and attaches to a nail on the other side of my class.  On the second day of school, and at random times throughout the year, I lower the spider in front of unsuspecting students as they enter my class.  Some get scared, some smile, some act as if they never saw it, and a few have even screamed. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Classroom Management, Math Games, Math in Real Life, Teaching Math Tagged With: , , ,