Math Menus

Every year that I have taught kindergarten, I have a parent at least one parent that I would describe politely as demanding. I know I am not alone and I have come to learn that this is just something that comes with the territory of being a teacher. This year, I have had a parent repeatedly request that I work on multiplication with their child despite my pointing out all of the kindergarten standards that this child still needs to practice and master. Although I am not a parent yet, I plan to have children of my own one day and I get it. I understand the parents' desire for their child to be challenged beyond the kindergarten standards. While my aim is to make sure that each and every child is challenged daily, parents do not always see tangible products of these challenges.

Kindergarteners come in with a wide arrangement of skills and abilities and while the specific child mentioned above has not mastered basic problem solving skills just yet, I do have a child in my class that has demonstrated understanding and competency of multiplication.  Differentiation is a key part of kindergarten, but I often wonder how I can challenge each student without constantly going on a wild goose chase for resources appropriate for each and student.

I came up with the idea of allowing students to create their own math problems within certain parameters. I could give them the answer to a problem and they could use any method they choose to arrive at that answer (addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, multi-steps). This allows students the freedom to practice skills appropriate to their ability level while still giving them a bit of structure and guidance.

I LOVE giving students the ownership of their learning and the ability for them to work at their own level, but I also wanted to make sure that my students are still working on building a solid foundation in all of the standards and skills of kindergarten. So, I came up with the idea of differentiated math menus. Students have the opportunity to pick and choose the order they want to work and are still given the opportunity to create. My above-level kids are able to work independently and I check in and assess their progress as we meet for small group time. My on-level and struggling learners work on their menus with me in small group time. I still allow them to pick which problem they want to work on, but I am there to help guide them. Click on the images below to see my differentiated math menus for the spring semester.

To cover all problem types and build a solid foundation in problem solving skills, I included 2 different CGI problem types in each math menu. The problem types are outlined in the tables below:

These math menus also focus on repeated practice of the following skills:

Click on the image above to see my math menus for the spring semester. 

I would love to hear some of the ways you differentiate to meet the needs of the students in your class!