This interactive Flash applet can be used to assess or reinforce children's understanding of number sequence and their subtraction skills. The applet displays a set of randomly placed number cards from to 1 to 20 with one card highlighted. The student identifies the number card that is 2 less than the highlighted card. Clicking on a question mark (?) at the bottom of the screen reveals a temporary number line as an aid. On completion a score appears. After 5 errors on a single example, a message appears prompting the student to ask someone for help.

This webpage provides a sample chapter from the book "Picturing Math" by Carol Otis Hurst and Rebecca Otis. In this chapter the authors describe how students in grades K-2 can gather data from picture books, display the data, and analyze the data. The webpage provides information about specific data activities that can be completed with specific books as well as activities that can be generalized to other picture books.

This problem provides an opportunity for students to form and test conjectures, and make generalizations, while exploring the effect of parity on simple whole number sums. Solvers are asked to arrange given sets of numbers in a V formation so that the sums of the numbers in each "arm" are equal. The Teachers' Notes page offers suggestions for implementation, discussion questions, ideas for extension and support, a printable record sheet (pdf) and links to two YouTube videos demonstrating use of the problem in a professional development setting (videos cataloged separately).

This dice game combines practice with basic number facts with strategic thinking. Students first are challenged to determine the rules of the game by watching a video of a game being played. The game is accompanied by a Teachers' Resource page that includes suggestions for approaching the problem, questions, extension ideas, and tips for support.

This open-ended interactive Flash applet helps students develop operation and number sense, facility with number facts, and understanding of equations. Users designate single-digit whole numbers or integers and operations on both sides of an equation and test for balance. Users can enter numbers by using the keyboard or arrow buttons or by dragging number tiles. Each element can be hidden and a seesaw may be toggled on/off. Teachers may use this applet to lead instruction, or students may use it independently to perform specific investigations or explore freely. Supplementary documents include Objectives, containing teaching suggestions, and a student recording sheet.

This interactive Flash applet provides a customizable set of dominoes that users can manipulate to play games or solve puzzles. It can be used with an interactive whiteboard to facilitate group work. Users can determine the size of a set (up to double-9), remove individual dominoes, rotate and move them, and change their size. The Teachers' Notes page includes a link to page containing domino games and challenges (cataloged separately).

This pair of videos (8 min and 10 min) and accompanying text illustrate various strategies for providing mental skills practice that is brief, interesting, useful, and effective. They include examples of teachers working with their students in group settings as well as narrative elaboration by Paul Goldenburg. Two related articles (Practice and Fact of the day) are cataloged separately.

This web blog presents an activity where individuals practice the skill of subtraction in the context of determining how many steps it takes to arrive at a square of zeroes. Detailed pictures of the problem at work are included along with follow-up questions and extension ideas.

This problem with multiple solutions offers an opportunity for students to practice simple addition and subtraction, work with number sentences (equations), and develop systematic work habits. Given cards containing the addition, subtraction and equal signs along with the digits 2, 4, 6, and 8. solvers are challenged to find as many ways as possible to arrange some or all seven cards to create true statements. The Teachers' Notes page offers suggestions for implementation, discussion questions, ideas for extension and support, printable cards (pdf) and a link to an interactive Flash applet.

This web page describes two challenges that build fact and computational fluency as well as flexibility and reasoning. Each activity uses uses an ordinary set of double-6 dominoes, which students try to arrange into a magic rectangle and a magic square, according to given conditions. The page provides links to an interactive Dominoes Environment and a page of other domino activities (both cataloged separately).

This web page provides instructions for a basic form of Nim, an ancient game that develops strategic thinking. Starting with a total of 7 counters, two players take turns removing one or two at a time. The player who takes the last counter wins. The game of Nim is very adaptable. This page includes questions that encourage players to generalize a winning strategy as well as a link to another page describing several of variations.

This Flash applet generates number fact questions for the game of Bingo. Each of the six levels focuses on a different range of number facts (addition, subtraction, and multiplication), which are displayed one at a time in a variety of question formats. The applet is intended for use in a class/group setting with a projector or interactive whiteboard. Downloadable cards for each level are available from the menu page. At any time in a game the "number facts so far" feature will reveal all the questions presented in the current round to facilitate review or verification of a winning board.

In this article Stanford University professor Jo Boaler discusses the negative consequences of timed math fact tests and cites research on the causes and results of math anxiety. She warns against equating "fluency" with speed and suggests alternative meanings and strategies for accomplishing it.

This is a task from the Illustrative Mathematics website that is one part of a complete illustration of the standard to which it is aligned. Each task has at least one solution and some commentary that addresses important asects of the task and its potential use. Here are the first few lines of the commentary for this task: Materials * Number cards labeled 1-10 (attached as a PDF) Actions * Begin by playing the game as a whole class to demonstrate the rules and for student...

This game for two players provides students with practice in whole number addition and subtraction while developing strategic thinking. It is played on paper on a 0-20 number line. Player 1 crosses off two numbers and circles either their sum or difference. In each successive turn players cross off the last circled number and one of their choice, and then circle the sum or difference. The player who makes the last possible move wins. The game also may be played co-operatively. The Teachers' Notes page offers suggestions for introducing the game, discussion questions, and extension ideas.

With this free iOS app students practice and extend fact fluency while they develop strategic thinking and flexibility. The game includes 12 sequenced rounds (7 addition, 5 multiplication) in which players select numbers to reach a target sum or product. Speed and accuracy are rewarded with points, stars, and personal bests.

This problem with multiple solutions provides an opportunity for students to practice subtraction while developing logical thinking and systematic record-keeping strategies. Given a pyramid of six circles, solvers are challenged to arrange the numbers 1 - 6 so that each number is the difference between the two numbers just below it. Children may use pencil and paper or the interactive Flash applet provided. The Teachers' Notes page offers suggestions for implementation, discussion questions, ideas for extension and support, work sheets (pdf), and a link to a more challenging version.

This interactive Flash applet helps children understand the "take away" model of subtraction. Users choose starting numbers from within 10 or 20. A group of rabbits appears and the user is asked how many will remain if a certain number run away. Mousing over a clue button dims the number of runaways. After selecting the correct remainder, the rabbits run away, and the applet displays the number model and the word sentence that represent the problem. [Available for iPad & iPhone in the iTunes AppStore.]

This interactive Flash applet contains a progressive range of exercises to sharpen mental math and recall of number facts. Levels include one-digit addition and subtraction within 20, two-digit addition and subtraction within 100, and multiplication up to x5 and x10. The goal is to complete 10 correctly as quickly as possible. An incorrect answer deletes a point, discouraging guessing. At the end of each round the applet reports the time taken and the number of errors.

Students can use this interactive applet to practice quick recognition of the number or value of a small group of objects, without one-to-one counting. This skill, called subitizing, is important in the development of number sense. The user chooses among several representations, including fingers, a pair of dice, an abacus, a ten frame, and coins. In this version of the game users score points according to how quickly and accurately they complete each round of ten examples.