Stories by Storie

Everyone has a story to tell. What is yours?

  • Stories by Storie
  • Home
  • About
  • Blog
    • Book Activities
    • Book Lists by Topic
    • Classroom Management
    • Freebies
    • Math
    • Reading Tips
  • Free
  • Shop
    • Teachers Pay Teachers
    • Amazon
    • Bookshop
  • Subscribe
  • Contact

Best Math Manipulatives for the Primary Classroom

September 9, 2019

Math manipulatives keep students engaged and provide hands-on opportunities to make learning more concrete. Here are my favorite math manipulatives for the primary classroom along with a few tips to help you manage these materials.

Math manipulatives keep students engaged and provide hands-on opportunities to make learning more concrete. Here are my favorite math manipulatives for the primary classroom.

 

we are a participant in the amazon services llc associates program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to amazon.com and affiliated sites.

 

 

Math Manipulatives for the Primary Classroom

 

Math manipulatives keep students engaged and provide hands-on opportunities to make learning more concrete. Dice, playing cards, and dominoes are some of my favorite math manipulatives for the primary classroom.

DICE

Dice can be used to play math games, practice math facts, and to work on probability. I love having a variety of colors on hand. My students loved playing these dice games independently and with a partner.

Teacher Tip: If you don’t like the sound of dice, you can lay down a small piece of felt. Tell students that their dice must land on the felt or they lose their turn. You can also invest in foam dice.

 

PLAYING CARDS

I was very fortunate that our math program had playing cards. However, we also had some decks of cards that were donated to the classroom. We used playing cards for games that helped develop math fact fluency and place value.

Teacher Tip: to keep cards together, place the deck in a travel size soap container. These will last longer than a rubberband.

 

DOMINOES

When I first moved to the primary grades, I was given six sets of dominoes. I wanted to put them to use, so I created several domino activities to help my students with various math concepts (addition, subtraction, number comparisons, etc.)

Teacher Tip: You can use double-six dominoes for younger students and move towards double-nine dominoes when you’re ready to work on larger numbers.

 

BASE-10 BLOCKS

I loved having base-10 blocks on hand for teaching place value as well as addition and subtraction with regrouping.

Teacher Tip: If you are looking for a quieter option, you can find foam sets.

 

UNIFIX CUBES

Unifix cubes can be used in a variety of ways. Not only can they be used to build numbers, but they are a handy tool for students learning to add and subtract. I have also used these cubes for patterns, graphing, and to work with ten-frames.

 

COUNTERS

I loved using the red and  yellow counters for probability and to work with ten-frames. Transparent counters also make great game markers – especially on Bingo boards!

 

Math manipulatives keep students engaged and provide hands-on opportunities to make learning more concrete. Pattern blocks, geoboards, and geometric solids are some of my favorite math manipulatives for the primary classroom.

 

PATTERN BLOCKS

Pattern blocks are great for building spatial sense. Not only can students use pattern blocks to create larger shapes, but they are a great tool for introducing fractions. I have also used them when teaching symmetry.

 

GEOMETRIC SOLIDS

These were the perfect manipulative to reach for when working with 3-D shapes. My students could physically touch the shapes to determine the number of faces, edges, and vertices. If you are working on capacity, these shapes can be filled with water to help compare amounts, too. My students also loved having them around as a reference tool while playing geometry games.

 

GEOBOARDS AND RUBBER BANDS

I love using Geoboards when working on area and perimeter of shapes. These boards allow students to explore these concepts in a way that paper and pencil simply can’t.

Teacher Tip: Always show your students to hold the rubber band in place on one peg before moving another part of the rubber band.

 

CLOCKS

While many schools and classrooms are going digital, students are still expected to read an analog clock. I loved using my Judy Clock to teach time with my whole class and small groups. You can also find smaller Judy Clocks for students so they can help manipulate the hands of the clock. These are a great tool to use when exploring elapsed time, too. Because they are small, students can carry them around the room while working on different telling time activities.

Teacher Tip: You can also make paper clocks. Just be sure to use thick, cardstock paper. You can even laminate them so they will last longer.

 

COINS

When it comes to teaching coins, I actually prefer the real thing. Plastic coin sets look similar, but kids really do need to see the real coins from time to time. Especially when you consider that most families are using debit and credit cards more frequently than cash.

RULERS

Rulers got a lot of use during our measurement unit and our geometry unit. I prefer rulers that are transparent and include both inches and centimeters. To get my students up and moving during our unit, I used a lot of the activities from this Monster Measurement Pack.

 

BALANCE SCALE

When students needed to weigh objects or compare weights, I loved using a balance scale. A balance scale can be used with math manipulatives you have on hand as well as water. Kids love to explore with this tool.

 

 

Other Favorite Math Tools

 

DRY ERASE MARKERS & SHEET PROTECTORS

I don’t know about your school, but supply budgets seem to get smaller and smaller each year. I was always looking for ways to keep my copy numbers low, so I started investing in sheet protectors. By placing pages inside, games and activities could be used more than one time – sometimes with different results! You can read about even more ways to use sheet protectors in the classroom here.

 

CLIPBOARDS

Long before flexible seating was a thing, I had a classroom set of clipboards. My students used these to work around the classroom throughout the day in math and other subjects, too.

 

TICKETS

Raffle tickets can be used for place value, addition and subtraction, reading large numbers, and more. They can also be used as a classroom management tool. You can read more about how I used them in my classroom here.

 

BOOKS

Just because it’s math time doesn’t mean  you can’t incorporate children’s literature. Books have a magical way of bringing more abstract concepts to life in new ways. You can find a complete list of my favorite books by topic here.

 

 

Managing Math Manipulatives in the Primary Classroom

I have heard many teachers over the years say they don’t like using manipulatives because their students just can’t handle them. Here are a few tips that have helped me.

Teach your students that math manipulatives are tools, not toys. That means they are in students hands for a reason. Show students exactly what they can and cannot do with the math tools.

TOOLS, NOT TOYS

This is one of those phrases that I taught my students from day one. Math manipulatives and supplies are tools, not toys. That means they are in students hands for a reason. If a student brought a toy from home and was playing with it during class, you would most likely hold on to that toy until the end of the day and then send it home. When my students used their math tools as toys, they simply lost the privilege of using those tools until we could practice the proper use again.

 

BUILD IN EXPLORATION TIME

When I knew we were using math manipulatives during the lesson, I always built in exploration time at the beginning of the lesson. By providing this time at the beginning, students can get the play time out of their system so they can focus during the lesson. I also had days where students could earn extra exploration time if all the students were using the math manipulatives correctly during the lesson. They LOVED this!

 

EXPLICITLY TEACH HOW TO USE MANIPULATIVES

Never assume that your students know how you want them to do something. This goes for math manipulatives, too. You need to show them exactly how you expect them to engage with the materials. Set your expectations high for what is, and what is not allowed. Then make sure you take the time to review these expectations as needed.

 

 

 

You can find links to all of my favorite math manipulatives for the primary classroom on my Amazon Page.

Be sure to check out this post on Reasons to Play Math Games in the classroom.

Happy Teaching!

Math manipulatives keep students engaged and provide hands-on opportunities to make learning more concrete. Here are my favorite math manipulatives for the primary classroom.

signature

Related posts:

5 Reasons to Play Math Games These multiplication mazes are a great way to get your students practicing their math facts. These mazes can be used with markers, crayons, Bingo daubers, highlighters, and dry erase markers.Multiplication Mazes Picture2.pngMath Mazes (Addition and Subtraction) Children’s Books about Telling Time Geometry is all around us in our everyday lives. Whether you are teaching children to identify 2-D and 3-D shapes, explore area and perimeter, or to identify symmetry, picture books can help! Here are some great children’s books about geometry.Children’s Books about Geometry
«
»

Filed Under: math, teacher tips Leave a Comment

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Subscribe Via Email

Search

Categories

Latest on Instagram

A new month means new books to fill the shelf. Her A new month means new books to fill the shelf. Here’s what we have on display right now. We still haven’t seen any snow ❄️, but we plan to curl up and read all about it. Maybe that will help! Do you spy some of your winter favorites? ⁣
⁣
#winterbookshelf⁣
#seasonalbookshelf⁣
#januarybookshelf⁣
Happy New Year! 🎉⁣ ⁣ If you’re starting 2 Happy New Year! 🎉⁣
⁣
If you’re starting 2021 by making resolutions and setting goals with your students, I suggest sharing Squirrel’s New Year’s Resolution by Pat Miller. This book follows Squirrel around the forest as she learns what a resolution is and helps her friends get started on theirs. Swipe to see a kid craft you can pair with this story. I also have comprehension and vocabulary activities for this book. Just follow the link in my bio for more information.⁣
⁣
#squirrelsnewyearsresolution
As 2020 comes to an end, it has been fun to look b As 2020 comes to an end, it has been fun to look back at all of the books I’ve shared this year. It was so hard to narrow it down to a Top 9 list, so you’re getting 20 instead. Do you see some of your favorites?⁣
⁣
⁣
⁣
⁣
⁣
⁣
#raisingreaders #bookshare #bookpusher #classroombookaday #picturebooks #picturebookaddict #bookstagram #storiesbystorie #readersofinstagram #kidsbookswelove #kidlit #readalouds #iteach2nd #teachermom #picturebooksofinstagram #childrensbooks
Winter is officially here! Have you had snow yet w Winter is officially here! Have you had snow yet where you live? We haven’t, but my kids are anxiously waiting. While we wait, it’s been fun to revisit our favorite snow day memories while reading Ten Ways to Hear Snow.⁣
⁣
In this story, Lina wakes up to a blanket of snow outside,  but she is supposed to help her grandma cook that day. Since Sitta is losing her eyesight, Lina rushes to bundle up and get over to her home. Lina wants to make sure her grandma is okay and knows about the snow outside. On the way, Lina explores the city muffled by snow and discovers ten different ways to hear snow. ❄️⁣
⁣
What is your favorite (or least favorite) thing about snow?⁣
⁣
#tenwaystohearsnow⁣
#winterpicturebooks⁣
#booksaboutsnow⁣
#snowbooksforkids⁣
#winterbooksforkids⁣
#cathycamper⁣
#kenardpak⁣
@kokilabooks⁣
@kenardpak⁣
@cfastwolf ⁣
@penguinkids
If you could make a wish on a snow globe, what wou If you could make a wish on a snow globe, what would you wish for? ⁣
⁣
During one of the worst snow storms of the year, a little girl and her family settle in for the night. They build a fort by the fire and enjoy a picnic-style dinner. Later that night, the little girl makes a wish on her snow globe. The next morning the family wakes up to a winter wonderland outside. ⁣
⁣
“What if, ⁣
dear friends, ⁣
on this snow globe day⁣
EVERYONE comes out to play?”⁣
⁣
Snow Globe Wishes has a great message about slowing down, enjoying the simple things, and bringing a community together. It would be perfect to share while getting cozy on cold, winter day!⁣
⁣
⁣
#snowglobewishes⁣
#winterpicturebooks⁣
#childrensbooks⁣
#kidlit⁣
#readingismagic⁣
#picturebooksaremyjam⁣
#picturebooksofinstagram⁣
@sleepingbearpress⁣
If you’ve been around here for awhile, you’re If you’ve been around here for awhile, you’re probably a big fan of books. Whether you’re shopping for the holidays, a birthday, or celebrating a milestone, books make great gifts. If you still need convincing (or justifying your recent book purchases 😉), I recently shared 10 reasons why books make the best gifts on my blog. Follow the link in my bio.
Danny’s back in an all-new adventure!⁣ ⁣ In Danny’s back in an all-new adventure!⁣
⁣
In this latest book, Danny’s headed to the water park with his family. Throughout the day, he’s faced with a lot of important decisions to make. Will he be fair and kind, show empathy towards others, keep himself safe, and take responsibility for his actions? That’s up to the reader to help Danny decide! ⁣
⁣
Growing up, I loved reading choose-your-own-adventure books because it was so much fun getting to decide how the story ended. Now my own kids get to experience that same reading magic with these Power to Choose books from Ganit and Adir Levy. My kids are bound and determined to read every single one of the 9 different endings.⁣
⁣
Have you read any of the Danny or Darla books yet? If so, do you have a favorite?⁣
⁣
⁣
#whatshoulddannydo⁣
#whatshoulddannydoonvacation⁣
#thepowertochoose⁣
@ganitandadir 
#raisingreaders⁣
#picturebooksforkids⁣
#bookpusher⁣
#clasroombookaday⁣
#kidsbookstagram

Copyright © 2021 · Website Design By Jumping Jax Designs