If you missed it, you may also be interested in “End-of-Year Letters and Reflecting on the School Year” and other EOY activities listed HERE. The final days of school can be hectic and full. Here are just a few low-prep creative activities that allow students to reflect, celebrate, and just enjoy one another! SNAPSHOT VIDEOS … Read more
If the outdoor activities described below seem daunting, you might consider doing indoor activities first, what I call a Mini Think-a-Thon. You can read more HERE. Kids love field days and they are a great way to celebrate the end of a school year. Several years ago, I thought it would be fun to create … Read more
Here are two more engaging NRICH activities in which students must figure out the rules! This is a continuation of a previous post which you can find HERE. STRIKE IT OUT In the video below, the game is presented and students are challenged to determine the rules and the strategies that lead to winning! You … Read more
I’ve recommended a number of math and logic puzzles and listed them by grade level on this site. I thought it might be helpful to share specifically about how I’ve used them in my classroom. These puzzles COMBINE math reasoning and critical thinking and even if they make students a bit uncomfortable at first, encouraging … Read more
Our brains love and seek out experiences that are new and different. Learning and retention are enhanced when content is presented in a unique way or is something not encountered before. It’s why we love a good plot twist, magic tricks, and surprise parties (well, some don’t love those!). Novelty is when you experience something … Read more
Let me explain that title. There are so many great puzzles and so many ways to incorporate them in the classroom! Let’s count just five ways! In this post, I’ll focus on word puzzles. FIVE WAYS TO USE WORD PUZZLES IN YOUR CLASSROOM: (1) TO INTRODUCE A LESSON ~ A word puzzle is a great … Read more
Of all the mysteries of the world, the HUMAN BRAIN is one of the most fascinating, and it literally connects to all topics of study since it is the organ devoted to LEARNING. In my classroom, a study of the brain began in 3rd grade GT class as part of our year-long unit: SYSTEMS, which … Read more
Pi Day (3/14) is one of many math holidays you can celebrate with students! If you’ve never observed it, this Pi Day website is a great place to start. You will find teacher resources, math help, merchandise, and even a countdown to Pi Day. A simple search online will result in dozens of additional ideas! … Read more
I had no idea it was a thing. In researching the topic of creative constraint, I was led to this Wikipedia article, and proceeded down a rabbit hole! Writing “with limitations” is ubiquitous. Six-word memoirs, seven-word summaries, haiku poetry, and 280-character tweets are all examples of constrained writing. I became interested in exploring more about … Read more
If your students have not yet tried Kyudoku, it’s a logic puzzle that reinforces strategies similar to those used in solving Sudoku but introduces new constraints and an entirely different goal. You can share the tutorial below with your students, and the Kyudoku puzzles can be found on Brainzilla. See also LOGIC EQUATIONS, BEYOND SUDOKU … Read more
