Blasting Math Fact Boredom

To begin this lesson, I will first quiz the class on math facts using flash cards for one minute. After recording how many facts were correctly answered by the class, I will then ask: "Would you like to know how you can learn to do math faster, better, and in a much more fun way then doing flashcards?!"

Next, I will project the Motion Math game "Hungry Fish" on my Promethean board. I will teach the students how to play the game (have the fish correctly swallow the two addends to make the sum on the fish) and also take a student volunteer to demonstrate how to use the game on an iPad.

During center rotations, the students who next go to the "iPad center" will then get about 10 minutes to try "Hungry Fish" on Motion Math app.

After centers have finished, I will gather the class again and have them share in small groups what they noticed help them "swallow" the correct addends quickly. I will ask several students to share their thinking out loud, as well as any difficulties they encountered with the game. I will ask them, "What are two ways that you can make 7?" and similar questions, since the app also targets the commutative property of addition. We will record a list of 2 -3 strategies that helped improve time and accuracy in the game.

The following day, I will repeat the day's lesson: briefly reminding the students how to play the game, display the strategies we had formulated the day before, and then begin math centers.