Haunted Math House

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Our haunted math houses are a big hit every year. They give students a creative outlet to explore and deepen their mathematical reasoning. The best part is that there is virtually no prep needed for this awesome project.

Materials:

  • Paper
  • Black marker
  • Crayons

Procedure:

We review math stories and then demonstrate how to draw a house with the rooms exposed. The class helps generates ideas for math stories in the haunted math house. Favorites have been ghosts, spiders, and jack-o-lanterns. Sometimes we even act them out.

The materials are then distributed, and the kids get to work. It is amazing to see what they come up with. Some kids make flaps and trapdoors, to make their stories more interesting, others have pop-out ghosts and ghouls.

Once we have introduced this activity we offer it as a choice during math centers.

You can find more hands-on math activities by clicking right here.

 

STEAM Education Fibonacci Numbers

 

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The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and science.

~ Albert Einstein

Leonardo Pisano Bogollo, aka Fibonacci rediscovered the number pattern that is now generally referred to as the Fibonacci sequence. Fibonacci recognized that certain numbers seem to occur in nature more frequently than chance would allow. The number sequence is also used to calculate the golden mean or golden ratio, known in mathematics by the Greek letter phi.

You can easily calculate the sequence in your classroom or at home by adding the last two numbers to make the next.

Here is the sequence:

0,1,1,2,3,5,8,13,21,34…

The first two numbers in the sequence are added and the sum creates the next number.

0+1=1. 1+1=2 2+1=3 3+2=5

We usually open our Fibonacci math enrichment unit with posting the number sequence on the board as a challenge. We ask the class to find the pattern. Surprisingly enough even the first graders usually figure it out.

One of our favorite activities is to go on a Fibonacci number hunt walk. We take the kids for a walk and try to find natural items that show numbers in the Fibonacci sequence.

Here are some example from our last walk

Bougainvillea
Bougainvillea

The Bougainvillea shows three bright pink leaves.

This California native has 5 petals.

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We had to count a lot of petals to find a perfect daisy.

We wrote in our journals and drew some of the flowers after the hike. A great way to introduce kids to the Fibonacci sequence.

 

 

 

Math Hopscotch

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We love exercising while we memorize our math facts. The benefits of movement for long term memory are well documented and you can find out more about brain-derived neurotropic factor right here. One of our favorites is math hopscotch. We first create the game with chalk and then its time to play. Our students love it and get some much needed exercise. We use liquid chalk because the colors are so vivid and it is much easier to use.

We put the kids in groups of 4 and have them design their game. Sometimes they come out a bit lopsided but that’s ok. We do check in the end that the numbers are in the correct places. Any mistakes are easily corrected by filling the area with the color of the number and then using a contrasting chalk to make the correction.

This activity can be done with any kind of math fact. We also use it to count by 2’s and 5’s. Our students love coming up with their own games and sometimes it is best to get out of the way and let the kids have fun with it. The best part is to watch the whole school use the games at recess and lunch!

Are you interested in some of our other math activities?

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