Activities for Thinkers

Item description

Use these no-prep problem-solving activities in class, for homework, for early-finishers, in centers, or even to leave for substitutes. The activities support various content areas and basic skills and give students interesting opportunities for creative problem-solving with math concepts, literature response, observation, reading and writing skills, and more.

Most are open-ended activities that invite many different types of responses, so they can be used at any time of year and more than once during the year. Some of the activities are designed to be used repeatedly.

Some of these activities can supplement specific lessons, but any of them can stand on their own to offer review, practice, and/or problem-solving practice. Several include a writing component of some kind, and many include drawing or coloring as an essential component of the task. For the most part, parent help should not be required for students to complete these activities at home.

These are great activities to use for differentiating according to student need.
And… they are perfect for substitutes!

The resource includes 76 activities, as follows:
Around the House – 9 pages  – sort, categorize, count, observe
Draw and Write – 11 pages – prompts for drawing before writing
Color Combinations – 6 pages — color, add, and compare
Working with Patterns – 9 pages – extend, create, interpret, describe
Counting Money – 8 pages — count, draw, skip-count, add
Observe and Compare – 6 pages  — describe similarities and differences
What Goes in the Box? – 8 pages — add, subtract, and find the unknown
See It • Draw It – 7 pages — observe, draw, resize, rotate, and more
Story Problems – 13 pages — draw to help solve word problems

Some of these pages include blank templates so teachers can make additional, similar worksheets, or for differentiating according to student need.

Also for thinkers:
Art Task Cards Bundle  — great for early finishers or art centers

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I am a retired elementary classroom teacher, a former art teacher, an artist and a writer. I have a Multiple Subjects credential, a Single Subject credential for Art and English, LDS/ESL certification, a Master’s Degree in Elementary Education with a Mathematics focus, and Montessori certification. I have worked with all elementary grades, and with special groups including ELL, GATE, and At-Risk students. Creating Art With Kids and Share2Learn lessons and resources are designed to foster student creativity, choice, and independence, and to encourage authentic art-making. Consideration is given to developmental appropriateness, differentiation possibilities, and teacher individuality. For this reason, directions are general, expectations are open-ended, and clip art on student pages is kept to a minimum. 

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Terms of Use:

Permission is granted to copy for single classroom use only, including homeschool classrooms, for use with classroom students. Additional licenses may be purchased for a reduced price. Electronic distribution is limited to single classroom use. Public and/or online display are not authorized; this resource may not be posted on district or classroom websites, or on any teaching resource websites, without permission of the author. Please do not give away my work.

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Connect With Me:
Creating Art With Kids Facebook Group
Blog: Creating Art With Kids  

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Enjoy!