Multiplication Fact Practice on Interactive Whiteboard!

Learn Your Tables is a website from the UK that works well with interactive whiteboards or Promethean ActivSlates. There are 3 different ways to practice multiplication facts: Drag and Drop, Enter the Answer, or Assessment. If you choose Drag and Drop, your screen will populate with multiplication facts on the left and the answers on the right. Use the Promethean board to have students drag and drop the multiplication fact onto the corresponding answer. (See below)

If you choose to "enter the answer", you will presented with one fact at a time, and a keypad in which to enter the answer. This view also works well with the Promethean board. (See below)

A Ruler, a Protractor, and a Compass, Oh My!

I found s great interactive ruler, protractor, and compass online the other day. The site appears to come from the UK, and has basic tools that would work well on the Promethean board. Click the Compass tool, adjust the size, and draw a circle on the screen. Click the Protractor to measure angles, and the Ruler to measure lines. Use Pencil tool will let you draw straight lines on the workspace while the pen will let you write free form. I like that the ruler actually portrays the 1/2 line accurately. As Promethean users might already know, these tools are also located within ActivInspire, but many teachers have issues with the way the ruler looks in Inspire. It is not the same ruler they expect kids to use in math class, but the ruler on this site provides a good alternative.

Interactive Numberline

Ambleside Primary has done it again! In addition to their hundreds chart and their multiplication chart, they also have an interactive number line. The number line comes with 7 colored squares that you can use to cover the numbers so that students have to calculate what number is missing. This would be great on a Promethean board, too! Notice at the bottom of the site, there are blue buttons with options for different types of number lines: 1's, 10's, 100's, 0.1's, 0.5's, -5 through 5, or create your own under the section entitled "Make a line". Just specify the number you want the line to begin at and the increments to count up by and click "Go". You end up with your own personalized line! If it the site allowed you to display more than 11 numbers at a time, it would be even better.

The Math Worksheet Site has a number line generator, but instead of it being a digital, interactive image, it creates a worksheet that you can print out. The site does not limit the values you can put into the number line, so some number lines may print out very small. This is a nice option for teachers to know about who use number lines to teach basic math. If you have a Promethean board, you can generate the number line, and then use "Annotate Desktop" to write over the number line at the board.

Interactive Hundreds Chart

Since many teachers in my schools use Promethean boards, I was interested to see if there were any hundreds charts available for them to use with math instruction. (I noticed Promethean offered an interactive hundreds chart from Promethean Planet for $7.50. I wanted a free alternative.) I found this site below:

Ambleside Primary Hundreds Chart

I really enjoy this one. Even if you do not have an interactive whiteboard, you can still project it from your computer and use it with your class. The site will allow you to add 3 different types of counters: circles, squares, and triangles. Drag them onto the chart to show multiples or practice counting.

Ambleside Scribble Table

The scribble table is multiplication chart from the same place, Ambleside Primary School. Instead of chips, use your mouse (or pen on the Promethean board) to "scribble" on the chart to make your annotations. This is a nice tool for quick multiplication or division practice.

Houghton Mifflin Hundreds Chart

The Houghton Mifflin Hundreds Chart is another option for classroom teachers. By clicking the paint can on the top left side, you can choose 4 colors to add to your numbers: red, yellow, green or blue. Now you can color code the numbers by multiples to help children see patterns. Click the empty can to erase color from a number, and finally click the broom to completely clear the board to start again. Even without a Promethean board, this can be an effective teaching tool when projected and used during math instruction.

Virtual Graphing Calculator

I had a math teacher approach me this week with a Texas Instruments TI-83 Plus graphing calculator. He is an avid user of the Promethean board and hates to change to the document camera to show his students how to enter problems into their graphic calculator. "You'd think Texas Instruments would have a virtual calculator that teachers could use on their computer so they could show students how to enter their problems," he said to me. I decided to look around, and sure enough, there IS a virtual TI-83 calculator that you can download and use with your class. It looks just like the real calculator, and you click the buttons on it just like you would on the real thing. (Don't forget to click the power button on the image, or the calculator won't turn on!)

Where did I find this? At Video Math Teacher! Check it out, secondary math teachers.

Promethean ActivInspire: Calculator Quick Tip

I found a cool new trick in Promethean ActivInspire today quite by accident. First, activate the on-screen calculator. Type in your problem and click "equal". Once the answer is displayed, you will also see the math problem typed out in small font along the top of the calculator. Click on this problem and drag it off onto the flipchart. You can now display the problem automatically that you entered into the calculator this way. This is great for recording multiple steps as you arrive at your answer.

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Interactive Whiteboard Links
Games for the Interactive Whiteboard
Kids and Cookies: Division online
Tic Tac Toe in 3D

Summer Math Practice

The last post was about summer reading practice, so it only makes sense to follow up with summer math practice! Parents often ask me how they can practice basic skills with their children over the summer. Begone, worksheets and workbooks! Look online for some of the best math practice and manipulatives to help you work on your math skills:

• Arcademic Skill Builders: Mostly math games for elementary kids
• Fun 4 the Brain: games for multiplication, addition, subtraction, and division
• ABCya!: Addition Games
• Ghost Blasters: Practice your multiples
• Mavin's Math Mysteries: Solve math mysteries
• Kids and Cookies: Practice division and fractions
• Base 10 Block Game: Fun!
• Primary Games: Math practice, as well as other subject areas
• Math Playground: manipulatives and games
• City Planner: Practice with fractions
• Division with 2 Digit Divisors: great for modeling to children
• Division with remainders: related to the site above, but with remainders
• Interactive Clock: Best practice for helping your child tell time
  

Teacher Led: White Board Activities!

I just came across a website called Teacher Led and it's one of the best sites I have seen to use with interactive whiteboards in a long time! One of their pages is a list of interactive activities that were designed to practice basic concepts on the interactive whiteboard. At this time, most of the activities are designed for math, but there are a few for reading and social studies. "I don't have an interactive whiteboard!" you might complain. These activities would work well on eInstruction chalkboards or Promethean ActivSlates as well. Don't have those either? If you have a computer connected to a projector in your classroom, these activities can be just as effective. Let's take a look at some of these:




The first one is an activity where you have to find common multiples using a Venn Diagram. When you have sorted all of the numbers, you can start over with a fresh batch of numbers to practice with.



The second one allows you to explore the concept of symmetry. Use shapes or draw and color with the pen tools to make a design. The activity will automatically fill in the other 3 quadrants as you draw. This makes a difficult concept very easy to illustrate.




The third one demonstrates the concept of prime factorization. You have the option of choosing a number, and the simulation will break the number down into its factors. Remove the "leaves" over each number to see if you were correct in your guess.


These are just three examples of many activities that Teacher Led has to offer. I highly recommend this site to classroom teachers looking for ways to illustrate difficult concepts.


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Kidspiration Resources from the Company

(I received this comment on an earlier post about Kidspiration 3 that is worth sharing with everyone. Thank you, Molly, for the great information and resources! ~Amy)

Amy,

We are happy to know that you are enjoying your experience with Kidspiration! If you are looking for new Kidspiration ideas, lesson plans or examples, please do not hesitate to contact us, or visit our website. You may be interested to know that we have several complimentary professional development Kidspiration webcasts that are archived and available for viewing at: http://www.inspiration.com/Educators/Trainer-Resources#archives.

We also have an upcoming Kidspiration webcast on May 14 - Keep Your Students Learning Till the Final Bell with Kidspiration 3 - http://www.inspiration.com/Educators/Events#Webcasts.

Thank you again!

Molly O'Hara

Inspiration Software

Kidspiration 3: New Features

Kidspiration 3, the primary version of Inspiration, will be coming to FCPS as of this fall! Let me sum up some of the new features that will make a good program GREAT!

• Improved Record Option (so that you an record your voice longer on every textbox, and not just one per page)
• Easier to add text boxes
• Improved Teacher Control: on the teacher enabled menu, teachers can lock items into place so that they are not accidentally moved and placed on top of other items.
• Expanded symbol library of clip art
• Symbol search: now you can search for clip art by keyword like in Inspiration
• Word Guide: Look up word for definitions, synonyms, antonyms
• 5 New Math Tool Views!! (This is my favorite part): Color tiles, base 10 blocks, pattern blocks, fraction tiles, fraction boxes
• Math Text boxes: write fractions, division, and vertical math notations
• Step Work Space: allows teachers and students to show steps of a math problem in an easy to ready format
• Cross-out stamp: allows you to "cross out" items when showing subtraction, division, or regrouping
• Multiple Page feature: Now you can click through pages easily with up and down arrows, which allow you to open multiple documents in one window at a time
• More curriculum content, lesson plans, and teacher tools

The best improvement by far is the addition of the math tools. You can easily model equivalent fractions, or multi-step addition and subtraction with regrouping. The base 10 blocks can be color coded to show the top and bottom number of an addition problem. Use the "group" tool to group 10 ones together to make a rod. Use the "break apart" tool to separate rods into ones and flats into rods. No need to use physical manipulatives when you are teaching! Think of how easy it would be to clean this up after math!

I summarized some of these features from Peggy Wood, a Technology Resource Specialist from Cecil County, that I saw speak at MICCA this week. She has resources on her page. Thanks, Peggy, for one of the best sessions that I attended at MICCA!

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Base 10 Block Games

Base Ten Block Games

Learning Box has wonderful base 10 block games that work well with your Promethean Board, Polyvision Board, or chalkboard. The first one practices making numbers between 1-999 using base 10 blocks. The student drags the blocks onto the mat, and when the correct number is made, the website cheers and the blocks dance around. (See picture above)

Learning box also has an estimation game with base 10 blocks. As you know, estimation is a difficult concept to teach to elementary school kids, but this is a nice way to show another strategy to master this concept.

Another base 10 block website to practice adding or subtracting numbers is from Arcytech. Even though the graphics are not as refined as the websites from Learning Box, this site has something that Learning Box does not: a hammer a glue bottle. Use the hammer to break apart a hundreds flat into ten rods, or use the glue bottle to glue them back together again. This lends itself to teaching addition and subtraction with regrouping. Check it out!

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Tic Tac Toe in 3D

Tic Tac Toe in 3D

So you think you are an expert at the child’s game Tic Tac Toe? Now try it in 3D at MathsNet Interactive! This game was designed in 3D to prevent the first player from always winning. Instead of connecting three in a row to win, you have to connect two rows that meet at a right angle to form an “L”. You are the blue marbles, and the computer plays the part of the red. By clicking and dragging the 3D shape, you can rotate and spin the cube so that you can see your game board from all angles. Check it out! This would be a great follow-up activity to teaching about 3D solids in Geometry, not to mention it would also work well with an Interactive Whiteboard.

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“Kids and Cookies”: Easy Division Site for Kids

Check out this cool “Kids and Cookies” site!

Students are presented with a problem: they have friends coming over and cookies to share. You can choose how many friends you have and how many cookies you want to share among all of them. If your cookies don’t divide out equally, you can put the cookie on the cutting board and chop it into fractions to share equally among your friends. The best part is there are printable “friends” and “cookies” that go along with the site so that kids can follow along at their desks. Kids and Cookies would be a great supplemental resource to use with the book The Doorbell Rang.

Try using Kids and Cookies with your Interactive White Board as well!

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Interactive Whiteboard Links

If you have an interactive whiteboard (Promethean, SMART, or Polyvision), it’s always nice to know where you can find websites that work especially well with your board. A site that may not be suitable to use with your class in the computer lab could be very valuable once you use it with your interactive whiteboard in a whole group instructional setting.

As I was searching for interactive whiteboard links, I came across this site by ETTC (Educational Technology Training Center). The site has tons of links suitable for your interactive whiteboard. But the best part of the site is that the links are broken down by elementary sites, middle school sites, and high school sites. ETTC also separates the links by subject area: math, language arts, science, social studies, music, PE, art, software, tutorials, and other.

It’s the best list I have seen to date. I looked at about 70% of the sites under “elementary” and was astonished that the sites were of high quality. There is nothing worse than a hotlist of sites that stink.

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GAMES FOR THE INTERACTIVE WHITEBOARD

Math Step-by-Step Help

Struggling with solving your math homework? Sometimes you have most of the problem figured out, but the last step is where you get stuck. Where do you turn to for help especially if you are working on Algebra, Calculus or Trig? Chances are that mom and dad forgot how to do this once they left a formal schooling environment. Try mathaway.com!

Using Mathaway, you can type in your problem ranging from Basic Math through Calculus (no option for Geometry at this time) and Mathaway will lay out how to solve the problem step-by-step. One of my friends was lamenting over Algebra homework - she had one problem left to do and was stuck. I sure don’t remember how to do this. Mathaway came to the rescue! It provided clear step-by-step directions on how to reach the solution.

I was more impressed with Mathaway for higher-level math than for basic math. For example, if I entered a basic math problem that was addition, subtraction or multiplication, Mathaway merely gave me the answer without showing me the steps or the process of how it arrived at the answer. (See below)

But if I entered a long division problem, it was beautiful! Everything was written out step by step with clear explanation. (See one step of this problem below.) Mathaway had similar results for the higher level math problems, so I can see where this site would be a life-saver.

Overall, I like Mathaway for higher-level math problems and not for basic math. I think this could be the key to helping students who are missing one step in a process, and don’t have anyone at home who can help them.

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Mandala Maker perfect for math concepts

Yet another cool website can be found through the GirlsGoTech.org page. It’s a mandala maker that allows you to create a symmetrical design using basic shapes and colors, and can be used in the classroom to reinforce geometric concepts in math. As kids work on their design, they can preview the finished design to see if they want to go back and make changes. Here is the design that I created below:

Division: visual respresentations online

Teachers, what do you do when you are teaching division and your students just don’t get it? Just like we learned in college, you go back to manipulatives. Once children understand concrete examples, they can start moving to abstract problems. Until they get to that point, any visual examples you can provide the child will help. For example, the online E-Lab through Harcourt School Publishers is a wonderful opportunity for children to “see” division problems. The first site illustrates division with two digit divisors. (See picture below.)

The second site by E-Lab allows children to practice division with remainders depending in the problem you type in. (See picture below.) Very few sites give children a visual representation of how division works, so these sites are valuable resources to teachers. Happy dividing!

Online Math Manipulatives and Activities

Check out the National Library of Virtual Manipulatives! Right now this is a free site, and I’m not sure it will stay that way because the site is already advertising their activities on CD. However, for now teachers can use this site in math class for free. The site offers a variety of online math manipulatives for K-12 ranging from Base Ten Blocks, to geoboards, and spinners. Now you can use these items without the mess! Virtual clean-up! I used the geoboards in my class and laughed - the children were still expecting the rubber bands to snap off the screen and hit them.

Another one of my favorite sites is the interactive online clock. Project this website in class to help your class tell time on an analog clock. Using the red and green buttons at the bottom of the screen will allow you to create different times on the clock. Notice that the sun and moon will rise and set in the background as you change the time, which helps the children distinguish between AM and PM. If you use an interactive whiteboard, this site is even better since students can come to the board and use the buttons to change the time in class. Use the button on the right side, you can also display the time in a digital clock, so the students can compare the clocks side by side. Since you can hide the digital clock, it’s great for quizzing the kids on the analog clock since they can check their work on the digital clock.

A few other sites worth checking out for math instruction:

1. Online graphing calculator
2. Interactive Math Games (such as Arithmetic Four)
3. Create a graph
4. More virtual manipulatives

National Geographic Photography

Check out National Geographic’s Photography gallery! For educators looking for math connections, look at the subcategory called “Patterns in Nature”. Real-life connections with patterning and symmetry can be used with these beautiful photos.