Middle School Math Moments (now Cognitive Cardio Math)

I love to play thinking games with my students (especially when they don't really view it as thinking)! Quite a few years ago (at least 15) I went to a make 'n take workshop, and whoever was running it had quite a few activities made from cardboard circles. For this particular activity, a hole had to be made in the center of the circle, and a shoestring was secured to the bottom of the circle and threaded through the hole. The circle was divided into 32 sections, and each section was labeled with a letter of the alphabet (using some letters, like vowels, twice). As you can see, the sections can be colored so the circle is more attractive:) Yes, this is an OLD wheel!! The rules of the game were conveniently written on the back (otherwise I might have forgotten them!) Here they are: 1. Divide into 2 teams (sometimes I divide the class into 3 or 4 teams) 2. Spin the wheel for Team 1 (hold onto the shoestring and spin wheel). 3.  A member of Team 1 stops the wheel with...

I realized that I have mentioned the activity called Footloose in my blog before, but have never really explained it. It's an activity that is enjoyed by kids of all ages, and can certainly be varied according to the topic that is being studied. I use it mostly for math, because that's what I teach; but in the past, when I taught different grade levels, I used it as a review activity in other subject areas as well. It is amazing how quiet and engaged students are when doing this activity. They are up and down, out of their seats, and you'd think they'd be very distracted...but no matter what the grade level (I've used it with 2nd, 4th, 5th, and 6th), they work hard to complete the questions!   Here's how it works: 1. There are 30 cards, with a question on each card. Each card is numbered, from 1-30. I do laminate the cards so that they don't get ruined after one use:) Download for free from TPT 2. Students receive a Footloose grid (ther...