Decimal activities are crucial to the practice necessary to master decimal operations. There are so many real-world applications. Today I am listing all of the decimal lessons and activities I found after scouring the internet, and of course, Maneuvering the Middle!
Adding and Subtracting Decimals
Teaching Adding and Subtracting Decimals blog post – Before you start teaching adding and subtracting decimals, make sure to take a look at how the skill is assessed and read some tips on combating common misconceptions.
5th Grade Adding and Subtracting Decimals Activity Bundle – Start your unit with 5 activities:
- Scavenger Hunt: place value with decimals
- Find it, Fix it: comparing decimals
- Speed dating: adding decimals
- Maze: subtracting decimals
- Task Cards: adding and subtracting decimals
If I can start a unit with all or most of my activities prepared, I feel so ready!
5th Grade CCSS Adding and Subtracting Decimal Unit – You can reach your students and teach the standards without all of the prep and stress of creating materials! A 12-day unit that covers adding and subtracting decimals using models and the standard algorithm. This unit includes student handouts, independent practice, and assessments. If you teach 6th grade, you can find the 6th Grade Unit here.
Decimal Diagrams and Algorithms Desmos Activity (free) – This would be a great practice to review right before a quiz. It starts with a warm-up and slowly scaffolds using a variety of problem types. Desmos has also added teacher supports: questioning strategies and differentiation to name a few.
First to 1 Adding and Subtracting Activity (free) – This blog post will give you all of the directions. Essentially, students are trying to make it to the whole number 1 without going over. With either a 100s grid or a 0 to 1 number line broken up into tenths, students take turns rolling a decimal dice. You’ve Got this Math does a great job explaining how her students play this game in her classroom. You can download it for free on their site.
Make a Buck: Adding Decimals Card Game (free) – This game is so simple and clever that I am jealous that I didn’t think of it first. Your students will need a deck of cards per group playing and be placed in partners or in small groups. To win, you must be the first person to draw 10 cards that equal $1.00 without going over. Each person is dealt 10 cards and takes turns drawing and discarding 1 card on each turn. Go read Bethany’s post because she also shares how you can use this for higher and lower grade levels.
Multiplying and Dividing Decimals
6 Strategies for Multiplying Decimals blog post – There are SO many different ways to teach multiplying decimals! I highly recommend checking out this post to learn how to explore multiplication beyond the standard algorithm.
5th Grade Multiplying and Dividing Decimals Activity Bundle – Another activity bundle to reinforce decimal concepts? Sign me up. This bundle includes:
- Matching Activity: multiplying decimals by whole numbers
- Find it, Fix it: multiplying decimals by whole numbers
- Puzzle Train: multiplying decimals by whole numbers
- Cut and Paste: multiplying decimals by decimals
- Solve and Color: multiplying decimals by decimals
- Scavenger Hunt: dividing decimals by whole numbers
5th Grade CCSS Multiplying and Dividing Decimals Unit – When I invest in Maneuvering the Middle’s units, I know that I can focus on teaching instead of creating materials. It gives me the gift of time! I know my students are going to practice with both skill-based problems, real-world application questions, and error analysis that will support higher level thinking skills. 6th Grade can be found here.
Movie Time: Dividing Decimals in Context (free) – This is not for beginners, but this could be a great teacher-led introduction to decimal division or an extension for early finishers. Students will program animals to dance and calculate the duration of their dance with different playback speeds.
Mixed Practice
Mixed Decimal Operations Maze Activity (free) – Click to download our autumn-themed freebie! Students will practice adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing decimals. There are more skills included (on separate pages) like fraction operations, rational number operations, and solving equations.
What decimal activities are happening in your classroom?
I tried to sign up for the Math Fast page from the previous post. The result was a 405-page not found.
Hi, there! Thanks for letting us know! You can get the Math Fast page at this page: https://www.maneuveringthemiddle.com/solving-5-classroom-interruptions/ I just double checked it myself.