It’s that wonderful time of year when bundling up and getting cozy next to the fire is a warm welcome! It’s also the time of year when it becomes more difficult to find exciting learning activities after the rush of the holiday season. No more holiday themes to inspire and motivate little minds. That’s why I’m excited to share with you today these adorable Addition and Subtraction Winter Math Mats that are in the shape of a mitten!
Addition and Subtraction Winter Math Mats
Your students are going to love these cute mitten math mats! The winter math mats are suitable for kindergarten and 1st grade.
You can use them in your homeschool or traditional classroom. I like to put them in my math center. You could also use them in small groups or send them home for students to use at home for extra practice.
Let’s gather supplies and get started!
- Print and laminate the Winter Math Mats (at the end of this post)
- Dice
- Dry Erase Marker and Eraser
- Manipulatives for counting ( I used cotton balls to make it look like snowballs in the mitten)
I like to laminate my math mats for use year after year. It also makes this activity more effective when children can use dry erase markers to write in the math equations.
If you don’t have access to a laminator then you might try slipping the printables inside of a sheet protector. I’ve used them this way as well!
Addition
Students will start by rolling 2 dice (or one die, twice) and then writing the number in the equation at the bottom of their addition math mat printable in the first box.
Students will then build the equation with cotton balls (or another wintry themed math manipulative like snowflake scatter) to represent the corresponding number rolled on the die in the first half of the mitten to show one part of the whole.
Students will repeat these steps for the second half of the mitten.
Lastly, use a dry erase marker to write the answer to the math equation in the 3rd box located below the mitten.
Encourage children to count the total number of cotton balls in both sides of the mitten in order to find the answer.
Subtraction
In preparation for using the subtraction math mat, it is important to remind children that this mitten doesn’t have two parts because you will be subtracting from the whole mitten to find the answer.
Begin with rolling one die for the starting point.
Using a dry erase marker, write the number rolled on the die in the first box below the mitten, and then build the number with cotton balls.
Children will then roll a second die to find out how many cotton balls they will be taking away from their mitten and write that number in box #2.
Tip: Let students know that they should only roll a number that is smaller than the number in box #1 so that their equation works out properly. If they roll a number larger than box #1, then they should roll again.
The next step for completing the subtraction equation is to “take away” cotton balls from the mitten based on the second number rolled on the die.
Lastly, students will count how many cotton balls are remaining in the center of the mitten and then use a dry erase marker to write the answer in the 3rd box.
Grab Your Copy
Ready for some winter addition fun? Grab your copy of the mitten addition and subtraction math mats by clicking the yellow button below!
Then, for TONS of winter-themed learning, hop over and grab our Winter Math and Literacy Centers!
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Mandy
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