The end of the year can make any classroom feel like a zoo. As a primary teacher, I've learned to embrace this busy season and try my best to go with the flow. This helps ensure I can keep my cool, while also making the best of those days when things don't go to plan. But aside from having a great attitude, there's another trick I have up my sleeve for navigating the end of the year… Engaging games! Yep, fun activities like games make it simple and easy to review important skills during this busy time. If you're in need of ideas, you'll love these end of the year math games for first graders!
Managing the End of the Year Hustle
You know those busy months between spring break and summer break? During this span of the school year, I find that I often have more on my plate than usual. I've got review at the top of my mind, my own family has extra commitments, and there's usually a school event or two that I need to plan for. All of this can get overwhelming really quickly, so I try to make sure I have a strategic plan in place for this time of the year.
What I mean by this is that I'm even more intentional with planning low-prep activities that are extra engaging for students. This serves a dual purpose in that I won't have to spend hours prepping lessons, and my distracted kiddos will have a boost of engagement! This combined with a can-do attitude helps carry me through those final months in the classroom before break. If you've ever tried to do all.the.things at the end of the year only to wind up burnt out and exhausted, this post is for you!
How End of the Year Math Games Can Help
So what does all of this have to do with end of the year math games? So glad you asked, friend! By choosing activities that will save on prep time, and keep your students engaged in learning, you'll remove SO much of that extra stress from your day. We've all seen that excited and distracted look among our students during the final days of teaching. Engaging math games can help eliminate some of the behavior challenges that go along with this and help sneak in some important math review!
In my room, Boom Cards are the MVP if I'm looking for something easy to use, low-prep, and engaging for students. These digital task cards simply check all the boxes for me! If you're a Boom Card newbie, here are some of the key benefits:
- no-prep, just assign and go!
- self-correcting, with immediate student feedback
- progress tracking options
- easy to assign as center activities or homework
- audio directions for students who aren't yet reading
- easy to differentiate
- SUPER engaging for young learners
Kids love using technology of any kind, but I've found they especially love the game-like quality of Boom Cards! Students feel like they're playing video games, making it super simple to get their buy-in. Aside from these benefits, there are Boom cards out there for just about any topic you can imagine! When using end of the year math games with my first graders, I like to cover fact fluency, skip counting, and more or less equations. These engaging games are perfect for the end of the year, and in fact, I have similar games for winter and spring as well. They're a total win in my room, so I keep returning to them year after year! Ready for all the details? Here's a closer look at each game.
End of the Year Math Games for Fact Fluency
Fact fluency is something we're working on all year. There's no denying the value and importance of helping students master addition and subtraction facts early on. We all know this will pay off tenfold in future years as students progress in understanding. When it comes to end of year math games for fact fluency, I've got you covered! This deck of Boom Cards covers addition and subtraction facts within 10 through engaging, digital activities your students will love!
With this resource, your students will solve addition and subtraction facts within 10 and click on the correct answer. Additionally, this deck includes a direction card with sound so students can listen to the directions before they begin. Each card offers a fun and engaging way to work on addition and subtraction! Kiddos will love the cute summer clip art on each card as they work to solve the equation. Plus, since these cards provide immediate feedback, they'll know right away if they answered correctly. This is so helpful in allowing them to learn as they go!
When using these activities, I like to set students up with a partner and have them take turns answering questions to encourage teamwork. They love working with a partner, and I love that they can learn and observe from each other as they work. Plus, it's a great way to facilitate communication and sharing as well – essential skills for our firsties!
End of the Year Math Games for Skip Counting
Are you looking for a fun way to focus on skip counting? If so, this deck is the one for you! This resource targets skip counting by 2's, 5's, and 10's. In this digital math activity, students will skip count and count sets of 2's, 5's, and 10's to tell how many. Each card includes sound so the students will automatically hear the directions on each card. The cards feature fun themes like crabs walking on the beach, and building sandcastles making them perfect for the end of the year!
This activity comes in handy for center time with technology integration. Simply assign the deck of cards and let students get to work on tablets or computers. This will lighten the load of your planning and make it super simple to practice this important math skill!
Another fun way to use this activity is with a whole group review. Simply project the activity up on your interactive whiteboard and call on students to come up and answer one card at a time. You can also make it an “exit ticket” to line up for recess or lunch if you're looking for a creative way to sneak in some additional practice!
End of the Year Math Games for More or Less Equations
Alright friends, last on my list for end of the year math games to try is this deck of Boom Cards focused on More or Less Equations. This resource makes it easy to have your students practice finding ten more and ten less. In this interactive, digital math game students will look at the 2-digit number on the middle surfboard and mentally find ten more and ten less. They will type the numbers on the surfboards after solving. I love that this activity gives students a chance to practice mental math and is an opportunity to type on a keyboard. This deck includes a separate direction slide as well as directions on each individual slide. Students can click it as many times as they need to complete the activity!
This deck of Boom Cards is super versatile. It can be used during centers or for fast finishers. It also works really well for distance learning and homework. And finally, it's great to use as a quick and easy whole-group review. I love this third option for this deck! It's so nice to have this deck ready to go anytime we have a few minutes to fill. It's nice to sneak in some additional practice and the kids love the surfer dude on these cards!
Grab a Freebie
Ready to get started with some of these fun, end of the year math games with your students? You're in luck! Enter your email below to be sent a free sample of these Boom Cards.
You'll get instant access, so you can try these activities out with your students right away! Try adding the deck to your center time, or use it as a whole group lesson to review adding and subtracting tens. Your students will LOVE the baseball theme, and you'll love how simple these are to review!
Even More Fun Review Games
If you're loving the looks of all these end of the year review games, the fun doesn't have to stop at math! You can find all of these games PLUS Boom Card decks for literacy skills in the End of the Year Review Bundle. Literacy concepts covered include long and short vowels, vowel teams, and three-letter blends.
This means you'll get a total of 6 decks, at an amazing discounted price! This will make planning your end of the year activities simple, and streamlined. These engaging, digital games will save you tons of time and your students will love the cute, summer themes!
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