The University of Kansas has a wonderful math website designed for middle school students called Matrix Learning. In their words, Matrix Learning "provides resources to improve middle school reading and mathematics achievement through the development of interactive educational games." There are several interactive games/activities that are not only educational and engaging, but fun! There also are videos and mulitplayer games. Many of the activities would present well on the SB and some such as Definition Training- similar to hang man- would work well on the SB. I also would encourage you to check out the videos from the University of New Mexico that are on bottom left of the page. So if you are a middle school math teacher I would highly recommend that you take time to scope out this very worthwhile site. ENJOY!
Teaching math to elementary students is critical for establishing a foundation of success in mathematics. There is a need for some basic memorization of facts, because students who do not memorize arithmetic functions struggle in upper grades.
However, math must be fun and interesting, along with making connections with real-world applications.
A fun space invaders maths game where players shoot the balloon with the answer to the multiplication or division question.
http://ictmagic.wikispaces.com/maths
Inspired by the work of Magdeline Lampert, interactive problems offer educators a fun tool to help learners think about "mathematical principles" within the familiar context of coinage. We love her idea that playing with combinations and recombinations of denominations promotes engagement with multiplicative thinking, and have produced this as a result.
"In this section, you will find some fun ways to learn about math. You can start out with Estimation of Length, Place Value and Weight and Capacity. If you want something more challenging, take a look at Line Symmetry, Patterns and Tangrams."
KidsNumbers.com is the absolutely free math resource designed by teachers, specifically for students and children of all ages. A place where students can practice all aspects of math, including addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, in a fun and pressure free way.
The website says: "THE Place For Educational Games!Our research-based and standards-aligned free educational math games and language arts games will engage, motivate, and help teach students. Click a button below to play our free multi-player and single-player games! In the future we'll add features enabling you to save records, tailor content for differentiated instruction, and pinpoint student problem areas."
I think using the games in conjunction with a holistic approach to developing skills would make for a great way of getting students to practices some skills. Let students play, set goals, monitor those goals, reflect on their progress, and apply strategies/heuristics to specific problems they struggle with would create an environment in the classroom where learning was fun, self-monitored, and successful.
"It is the age-old question every student asks: "When will I ever use this math in real life?" While it may seem that long division and pi are not applicable to life outside of the classroom, visitors to "MathAlive!" will learn exactly the opposite-math is actually a big part of all the things they love" Includes a description of exhibits for the Smithsonian event beginning March 10
Visit uStudyhall .com for 7th grade math problems page to practice math problems in an easy and fun way. uStudyhall provide online learning education for student by which they improve their school performance with the help of uStudyhall online practice tools!
"Students learn mathematic skills and concepts best when there is a learning atmosphere of fun and connection. Gisele Glosser at Math Goodies knows this and has developed Math Mania Competition so you can coach your class to victory in the worldwide Math Mania Competition!"
The popular educational portal www.kidsworldfun.com is organizing a unique Little Champs Video Contest for preschoolers (3-6 years old) around the world. The contest intends to discover the very young bright stars around the world who are exceptional in a variety of activities such as reading, writing, singing, dancing, doing chores around home, playing with friends, gardening, and so on.
Parents, who are interested, should make a video portfolio of their child, of about 3-5 minutes duration, stringing together the various activities he/she engages in at different times, in natural situations. The winners will be selected based on how well and happily the child engages in the task, how independently he/she is able to perform, how much effort is put in, and how skilled he/she is, in each activity engaged in. The terms and conditions of the contest are given at http://www.kidsworldfun.com/video-contest/
The Little Champs Video Contest is the second international contest that the KidsWorldFun is organizing, the first being the prestigious International Short Story Contest for School Children that debuted in 2016.