My experiences in school have shaped how I approach teaching and connecting with my students. Snap cubes are one of themost used math manipulatives. I know I sound like a broken record but I cant stress this enough. While teacher supply stores have excellent quality math manipulatives, they are often expensive. Trust me, you want to avoid this! Mini whiteboards are fantastic items that I use daily. I like using individual student coin banks. Its fun to use a different bin or tub to hold each manipulative. They can be used to teach addition and subtraction through games like addition war and subtraction war. Playing cards, like these, come in traditional decks that you can find at most stores or dollar stores. I found that nothing beats clocks with actual gears. When I first started teaching second grade, I was surprised by how difficult it was to teach time. I have students recompose sticks of ten at the end of each math period. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. For struggling or disengaged learners, breaking out the fun dice is all it takes to rope them into an activity. They make those quick moments when you want students to record their findings or solve a problem easy. Give students a small pile of dominoes and have them record a number sentence and solve them by counting. When teaching basic addition, I use magnetic counters that can be used on the whiteboard to illustrate a problem (i.e., 2+5=7). Shop products from small business brands sold in Amazons store. Each size is a different color, which is pretty cool. Do you have a favorite I missed? As a teacher with many years of experience incorporatingmath manipulatives into my lessons, I appreciate how useful they are in helping me teach different math concepts. Lakeshore Learning has endless types and varieties of manipulatives and wonderful games that would fulfill your needs. A relationship is built when children see how to solve problems and given opportunities to try something using math manipulatives. I tried a few (so you dont have to) over the years. Teaching Second Grade math might be one of my favorite parts of being an educator. By entering your information, you agree to receiving email communication from me. I'd like to receive the free email course. After a quick assessment, I match the dice to a students conceptual strength and their working number. The task could be make groups and count to find out how many objects you have or something that encourages thinking and problem-solving. Dice are a simple, yet powerful second grade math manipulative to support differentiation! Download your free copy of the math book list by clicking the image below. I cant wait to set these puzzles out for stations, this year. I prefer to use hundred charts that go 0-99. They makegreat learning tools because they are consistent in shape and color. I have seen them stashed away in the math supply room, and I haveonly recently used them in my classroom. There are 20 different puzzles for both the 1-100 and 0-99 charts. I am ecstatic when children are exploringwith a tub of manipulatives, and they discover something new, a pattern, or a way of use. Read more of my story here. Dominoes are a fun math manipulative to have available for games and other activities, such as matching numbers together. It also makes it so easy for me to switch out which coins students need for math centers, making center set-up a breeze. Copyright 2022 TEACHING WITH JILLIAN STARR All rights reserved Privacy Policy Site Design by Emily White Designs. I use numerals, dots, and 3-12 sided dice. Thats right, I said it! They are an essential tool for teaching addition that I use frequently. Teachers Pay Teachers is another wonderful option for finding math resources, games, centers, and printable manipulatives for your classroom. Play money games where coins and bills are used. Read about the Mindful Math program and how it can change your math block in positive ways! Awesome! Building our students numeric understanding up to 100 is no simple task. Buying them in bulkplaying card setsand having a packfor each student is helpful. Why? Bucket balances are helpful tools in comparing different objects and volumes of liquid. Teach students where they can find each type and show them how to use them and put them away correctly. Then, as students break apart the number line, the decades move into a row formation. Use a large number lineto display on a bulletinboard for class demonstrations. I suggest you have a large bin of place value blocks similar to thosebelow with enough for each studentto represent the numbers you are learning. For many kids, neurotypical or neurodivergent, if they cant see it or feel it, forget it. Dice are a great tool to have on hand for math games and activities. This activity really helps my students connect their prior understanding of numbers to 100 to the hundred chart, setting them up for success as we move into working with larger numbers and place value. Pattern blocks are small shaped blocks that can be used in multiple ways. I have tubs, baskets, andcontainers full of math manipulatives in our math area, as well as on our math supply shelf. Children of all ages enjoy using these concrete tools to make sense of the problems they are given. This comprehensive math curriculum is available for Kindergarten, first grade, and second grade. We have math centers set up that incorporatemanipulatives to use during their work. Pairing this second grade math manipulative with our math centers has helped my students solidify their understanding of time. That way, as we ask a student to figure out an end time after time has elapsed, they can literally wind the clock forward to find the answer. Join the fun in our 1st, 2nd & 3rd Grade Facebook Group! LET ME IN! So, in addition to academically different dice, I also have a collection of giant dice. Try these foam ones for a math center. My dyslexia, ADHD, and sensory/auditory processing issues went undiagnosed for most of my educational career. Hundreds charts are important for whole-class lessons, independent practice, and games. There are many types available today, such as these dice in manycolors. This encourages the real world problem solving when they must think of the most appropriate tool and try different ones out through trial and error. Jumbo dice are great for rolling during a class game or for flashing to kids to have them call out the number shown. Cuisenaire rodscome in plastic, like these, or wood, like these. How cool is that? Now check your email to confirm your subscription to the FREE email series. The ten frame dice are phenomenal for activities involving ten frames. Loving this post? Each row starts with a new decade, which allows the action of regrouping to be connected to the action of moving to a new row. Ive found that using base-ten blocks and having to trade in can be a huge hurdle for many second graders, and unifix cubes eliminate it (especially when it comes to subtraction with regrouping!). I suggest putting pairs of dice into small clear containers that students can quickly grab and shake while playing games. They are helpful during lessons when counting, ordering, and number identification is taught. This will be a great way to practice numbers and order. Children love snapping the cubes together to make number trains.. This set of ten frames with magnetic counters would be great for many number concepts. Give students shapesto hold and feel during lessons. Hundreds charts are essential for teaching childrento count to 100 in multiple ways. Students can be taught how to solveaddition and subtraction problems by jumping up or down the number line. Why? When teaching counting or identifying numbers to 100, I use a large 100s chart and a pointer. Teach lessons and have children practice sorting coins, ordering coins by size and quantity, and creating different amounts. These transparent geometric solidsare see-through to help children visualize their features, and theyhave removable bases so students cancompare 2D and 3D shapes. In my giant dice organizer, I might have the worlds largest collection of dice. In primary grades, we often use them to observe and estimatewhich of two objects is the heaviest. It could be a tub of pattern blocks, and the instructions use all of the blocks to create a picture or a geoboard, and the instructions show me a picture using eight elastic bands.. Teaching money skills and financial literacy at an early age is essential. 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To reinforce these skills, having a clock puzzle available is helpful. Encouraging children to shop at a class made store and exchange items for money. I love this clock because as you move the minute hand around the hour hand moves appropriately, which helps with teaching the placement of the hands. But, not all hundred charts are equal. Many of you may be wondering why I prefer unifix cubes to base ten blocks. While I like base-ten blocks for third grade, I dont typically introduce them in second grade. In second grade, students are usually focused on building a foundation of two-digit addition and subtraction. Of course! Ever try to drag down a math bin full of metal coins from the top shelf of your closet? Students use math manipulatives at their workspace to complete their work. Learn strategies and gain tools to teach a particular topic with our free email courses. Dots encourage students to continue one-to-one correspondence across levels. Coins are a must-have math manipulative for second grade. Using fun math manipulatives is one of my favorite ways toquickly boost engagement. I keep pattern blocksin a few large tubs for students to grab and explore during math centers. In my classroom, I saw that second grade math manipulatives helped them go from physical, concrete understanding to abstract thinking about numbers. We use these durable hundreds boards frequently. You can find plastic ones, foam ones, and wooden ones, and they are available atmost dollar stores and teacher supply stores. When teaching concepts of time and the analog clock, using a large demo clock is a valuable tool. There are many types of math manipulatives available to teachers. As I was teaching, I quickly realized that pictures and numbers wouldnt cut it. See what math manipulatives every classroom should have. I did the work for you! When children are usingthese materials in natural ways, they are learning differently than they are when they are only listening or watching a lesson. Number lines are important formany number concepts, such as counting, sequencing, and number recognition. Use a cash register like this and kid walletslike thisto hold the pretend money. Themagnetic set would be helpful forwhole-class demonstrations on a whiteboard. Might you have a link for the plastic storage container for coins that is pictured in this post? Sign up for the building number sense email series filled with effective strategies, must try activities, and FREE resources to build routines in your classroom. You can find dominoes at most dollar stores, but I love these colored dominoes for the classroom. I like this balance scale because items can be easily put in and taken out by children during their exploration. This deluxe coins &bills set includes tons of play money for all your activities. Students use the cubes to compare and measure with the cubes around the classroom (i.e., my arm is 20 cubes long). They promote creativity and encourage students to create unique designs. Easy! Unifix cubes are the number one manipulative for early grades, and an especially important math manipulative for second grade. There was an error submitting your subscription. When teaching geometric solids, I use large foam 3D shapes that I can hold and point out its features. Success! Sets like the one beloware available that include activity cards for students to complete. Thank you for stopping by my little corner of the internet! I am a struggling student turned passionate educator. Filed Under: classroom organization, Math. That way I know kids have a certain amount of money when I send them off to do a coin-based task. Say it with me: ALL YOU NEED TO DO IS CHANGE THE DICE! The number one doesnt just appear! Its a good idea to have a variety of types available in your school or ready in your classroom to help with teaching a variety of math concepts. Everything you need to help kids grow their number sense and have fun at the same time! I will explain aconcept, give examples on a chart, practice orally, and demonstrate with math manipulatives. Playing cards make useful math tools because they have numbers on them. Your email address will not be published. Teachers would benefit froma set of jumbo playing cards to use for lessons and demonstrations as they provide a significant visual for kids. I hope youll find inspiration to help you teach at your best! 5 Must-Have Math Manipulatives for Third Grade Classrooms, Performative Allyship & Gatekeeping Within Our Schools, Teaching with Infertility: An Inside Look, Morning Meeting: The Most Important Part of Our Day, Back To School: How to Avoid Educational Trauma with Colleen Wilkinson. 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I recommend taking photos of your students using each manipulative correctly and attaching that to the bin as an example to students. They have many uses and help little learners learn to count, make patterns, add, and subtract. Sure. I suggest buying the majority of your items when they go on sale or when you can purchase them at affordable prices through Amazon. The hundred chart is the best second grade math manipulative for the job! -Elyse. Using a large storage area that holds bins for those types you use often is helpful. Havingactual geometric solids that can be heldhelps children learn what 3D shapes are and their features. AND (heres the key) it reinforces the idea that there is a jump from 0-1. Over the years I tried bringing in change from home. Students use smaller similar shapes to find those same features, to locate similar objects in the scavenger hunt around the class, and use them to create structures. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. Then it struck me. Enter: hands-on clocks, one of my favorite math manipulatives for second grade. With repeated practice and play with manipulatives, math fluency develops. If you happen to order one of the manipulatives from the link provided, I earn a small percentage of that sale, which goes towards the maintenance of my blog. Nothing compares when helping students develop a strong, concrete understanding of elapsed time. Please try again. How do I use all these dice to differentiate my activities? I keep sets of 20 these colored counters in small containers students to use when needed. Unsubscribe at any time. Magnetic numbers are great to have in a math center for children to play with. Students can visually see the connection of minutes passing to hours passing. Share with us! Kids have a sense of time passing. They mainly help younger learners who are learning new math concepts for the first time. I also love that cleaning up and storing unifix cubes can easily support math development. It also shows the 12 hours and the minutes around the outside. I much prefer students be able to individually build each of those two digit-numbers with unifix cubes in different colors (keeping them in sticks of ten with extra units). Check out my top five must-haves for first grade! There are also different sized dice available, such as these large foam dice. I hope this list of my five favorite math manipulatives for second grade helps give you some ideas about how to grow your own math manipulative collections! Check out this class pack of whiteboards to go along with my go-to dry erase markers that last the longest (these Expo markers). But, they need tools to make those jumps successfully. These jumbo magnetic numbers would be helpful for teachers during lessons.