Multiplying - Sharing Ideas and Freebies

Well, I got the privilege of being a guest blogger today for the first time!  I helped out Courtney at Miss Third Grade while she is vacationing...wish I was there!  But anyway, I shared my thoughts on the importance of teaching multiplication and starting early!  Check out that blog post to get a couple of freebies!  One is for skip counting, and one has a great graphic organizer (and more) that we use for writing our very own word problems for multiplication facts in my class.

My post was getting really a little long, so I had to cut myself off!  I thought I would just come on back to my own little blog and share the other two freebies I wanted to give to all of our readers!  On Courtney's blog I talked about how we learn the multiplication facts we need to know, but now I want to share more about what we do after we've learned them!

After we have studied and learned all of our multiplication tables, we take timed tests!  With each test they pass, the kids earn a part of a banana split, yes a real one!  It never fails, when I tell my students about this, one of them always asks me if they get a real banana split!  They love doing this and look forward to it all year (we usually do our tests in the spring).  It always surprises me how well they do!  The quizzes I give are 40 questions long and cover only that table (all 2's or all 6's for example).  This year we set a time limit of two and a half minutes and required a 90% (36 correct) or better to pass.  In my homeroom 16 out of 18 students passed EVERY test!!  Everyone got their bowl and banana and at least one scoop of ice cream to enjoy!  It is really set up so that everyone can earn those basic parts!

My "Multiplication Madness: A Trek to a Treat" Unit is for sale in my TPT store and my TN shop.  Even better though...I'm giving one copy away in my 100 follower giveaway (along with items from other great bloggers)!

But today, I have a couple of freebies for you that can be used with this unit or on its own if you do a similar activity with your kids!  On banana split day, we serve the kids, and in all the hustle and bustle, it can be hard to remember who got what.  These helped me out last year!  

First, these stickers will let you see quickly and easily who earned their whole banana split!  These were made using an Avery Print-to-the-Edge Round Label template and they are compatible with products 22807, 22817, and 22825.  Just click on the picture to download the PDF from my Teacher's Notebook shop and print onto the labels! {tip: do a test print first :)}

The second freebie is to help you remember what the other kiddos did earn.  You can highlight the parts a student earned on these notes and have them carry their note through the line.  I didn't make these into stickers to avoid embarrassing any students who didn't pass some of the timed tests.  If you prefer to make them stickers they could easily be printed onto full sheet labels and cut apart.  Click on the picture to download your copy!

Be sure to check out Courtney's blog if you aren't following her already!  

And don't forget to enter my giveaway!!

How do you teach multiplication in your class?  

What really makes it stick??

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