10 Ways to Teach Math Using Post It Notes

Let me start by saying, I love post-it notes!  I can never have enough. I have plenty of them at school and home.  We use post-it notes in our daily lives.  Oftentimes, we use them to jot down notes or quick reminders. But today, I wanted to share how you can use them during your math class.

Today, I will highlight:

This post has plenty of example photos, so that you can see how sticky notes are used to teach or reinforce a variety of math standards and concepts.

Let's get started!  Here are 10 ideas to teach math using post-it notes. Since I like to spread the love, 5  ideas relate to the primary grade concepts (Kindergarten - 2nd) and 5  relate to the upper grade concepts (3rd - 5th).

Idea #1: Missing Addends

Instead of using a worksheet to review missing addends, have students manipulate post it notes to show mastery.

Idea #2: Odd & Even Numbers

Odd and even numbers are primarily covered in 2nd grade.  After students have a deep knowledge of what makes a number odd or even, they can use this  sort using sticky notes to show mastery.

Idea #3: Fact Families

Learning about fact families can be  a little dull. Spice them up with the use of post-it notes.  I would recommend allowing your students to use manipulatives (ex. linking cubes) as a support to go along with this activity.

Idea #4: Whole Number Comparison

Comparing numbers is a skill that can get old.  Make it more interactive by having students work with a partner and sort sticky notes into the correct categories. Have your kids compare numbers using benchmars such as 10, 25, 50, 100, etc. You could also use this same format when comparing decimals and fractions.

Idea #5: Graphing

Graphing is a skill that is used across many grade levels.  Pictographs can be especially tricky for kids in that they need a lot of practice with the key.  Try using post-it notes to teach this type of graph. Increase the level of difficulty by modifying how much each stick note is worth (See example below)

Idea #6: Rounding

Rounding using post-it notes gives students opportunities to practice with a more than one numbers at a time.  It can also be an easy to make center.

Idea #7: Missing Factors

Reinforce multiplicative thinking by using post-it notes to represent groups of items and then allow your students time to discover the factors that represent the picture.

Idea #8: Area

Build area models with base ten blocks and then have your students label their model using sticky notes.

Idea #9: Fractions

Fractions, fractions, fractions.... Students need on-going practice with fractions.  In the example below, I used one-half as a benchmark fraction for students to make comparison.  This is a great activity because your students will need to reason and make viable arguments about how they sorted.

Idea #10: Decimals

Ordering decimals can be a challenging task for our students.  Use this simple to create activity as a center to reinforce decimal understanding. Students arrange the post-it notes in order from smallest to greatest.

UPDATE:  To download the templates above click here.

As you can see, there are many ways that you can use post-it notes to support student learning in math.  They also come in handy when making a quick math center.  Which of the ideas above would work well in your classroom? Do you have any other ways you currently use sticky notes during your math lessons?  Leave them in the comments section below.