One of the best ways to make math fun is to design a creative math bulletin board that students can interact with. Teachers can also incorporate seasonal themes as well as academic unit themes along with the math bulletin board display. Here are two great ideas for interactive math bulletin boards that can be adapted for grade level for the K-12 classroom.
Find a Pattern Math Display Board for School
This simple math bulletin board idea can change every day and can be designed with the students’ math abilities and experience in mind. Set up a background for the bulletin board. It can be any color as long as it contrasts with the felt (or paper) numbers that will be placed on the board. Once the background is in place, make several unfinished number patterns using felt numbers.
For example, one pattern might be “2, 4, 6, 8” and another might be “1, 10, 100, 1000”. Once the pattern rows are set up on the bulletin board, place a scrambled group of felt numbers on the opposite side. As students come in to the classroom, or at the beginning of a math lesson, have each child choose a pattern to add a number (or numbers) to and slowly build up the math series rows.
Finish the Equation Math Bulletin Board
Create a math bulletin board that has equations (addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, etc.) placed onto removable items, such as fish in the ocean, leaves on a tree, butterflies in the sky or any other theme that matches the season or a unit of study within the classroom. The equations should not have answers. An example would be “5 + 8 =”.
Place a small table next to the math bulletin display with a jar of numbered balls or tiles. Each number should be the answer to one or more of the equations on the bulletin board. Have students pick a number and then choose the equation they think matches that number. Award points, tokens or tickets to students who choose correctly. They will be encouraged and excited for the next interactive math display.
Once the classroom bulletin board is emptied of its contents, it can be refilled with other equations, number patterns or whatever might be appropriate for the next math lesson in the classroom. Children in the class will love to interact with their math bulletin board on a daily basis. Often, bulletin boards are admired only for a short while, but interactive math bulletin boards become a source of constant learning.
Karen Plumley - Karen Plumley is a writer specializing in parenting and education. She works for Parenting NH and the Hippo, NH's most widely read ...
