Number Puzzles

I got a little crafty today and I thought I’d share my “pinspirations” with you. As I was perusing Pinterest this morning, as I do most mornings (afternoons, and evenings), I came across a few things I’d like to use in my classroom. These number puzzles are from Make, Take & Teach. It was ridiculously easy to do.

Things you’ll need:

Popsicle sticks, Modge Podge, clear tape, marker, Exacto knife, pictures of your choice

Arrange the Popsicle sticks on the back of the picture and tape them into place so they don’t shift when you move them. Make sure you leave space at the bottom of the sticks.

Paint a layer of Modge Podge onto the other side of the Popsicle sticks, place the picture on the sticks, and apply one more layer of glue to make everything stick. Leave it to dry. Drying takes about 30 minutes.

When it is dry, write the numbers you wish to work with at the bottom of the sticks. 

Carefully use the Exacto knife to make a slice between each Popsicle stick and break the puzzle into all its pieces.

Voila! You’re done!

I used a sandwich container purchased at Dollarama (of course) to hold all the pieces. I made three separate puzzles. My kids LOVE the Geronimo Stilton series, so I used that picture to count by 2s. I used a class picture of ours to count by 10s, and I used a picture taken from Make, Take &Teach to have them practice counting by 5s.

The puzzles are a great way to reinforce skip counting skills. The picture is an added bonus for those who still struggle a little bit or for those who are visual learners. I’m going to give these three puzzles a try and if they are a hit, I’ll make some more puzzles with other pictures. In fact, picture taking in my classroom becomes quite the reward. All I have to say is, “I’m looking for people who are working quietly so I can take their pictures. I’ll choose some of those pictures to make a new number puzzle”. It’s a great math AND classroom management tool!

The second thing I worked on today was this writing centre activity. I saw it on Pinterest and downloaded three of the packages so that my kids can practice beginning sounds, end sounds, and double vowel rules. They will use a white board marker to write down their answers, so I'm pretty sure it will be a big hit. There was  A  LOT of laminating that happened today and to be honest, the next “teacher toy” of mine will most likely be a paper cutter.  

If you like these activities, follow the links I have provided to you and give them a try. I’ll let you know how they work out with my onesies!