7+ ACTIVITIES FOR EARLY FINISHERS IN MATH CLASS

I remember when I was in school and my teacher would say, “you have 15 minutes to complete your quiz and then we are moving onto the next activity”. It would make me panic and then I wasn’t able to focus to do my best work.
 
Therefore, one of the things I never want to do to my students is put pressure on them to finish an assessment in a certain amount of time, so the class could move onto the next task. It’s WAY too much pressure!
 
Of course, I can’t give them all day to complete it, BUT I can give them an ample amount of time to finish and check their work. But, by doing so, I may run into a few problems:

1 – Students that finish early will have nothing to do.
2 – We'd lose learning time, by allowing so much time for an assessment.
 
I didn’t want these things to happen either, so I created some quick, review activities for students to complete when they finished their assessments or work early. I call these iMath activities, which are based on everyone’s favorite apps. Below is a summary of each activity. Click on the image to link to the blog post with more detail about each activity. I specifically created them for an Algebra 1 course, but several of them can be used in 7th and 8th grade math as well.

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​MATHBOOK ACTIVITIES
Mathbook’s design is similar to a Facebook post. Even if a student doesn’t use Facebook, this activity is engaging and fun for everyone! My students really like picking out their icons because it gives the activity a personal touch that most math activities do not offer. Also, receiving feedback from a peer helps create a positive classroom environment.

​iSTEP ACTIVITIES
Often students can solve a math equation, but have a difficult time verbally explaining what they are doing. This activity addresses this problem. Each student is to “text” with a friend who needs help with a math concept. Their classmate asks how to solve an equation and the student has to explain each step needed in order to get a solution. I LOVE how these activities have transformed how students think and discuss math in class!!!

​ERRORGRAM ACTIVITIES
Error analysis is a method used to identify common mistakes made in mathematics and the cause of the incorrect answer. According to Robert Marzano, error analysis is at the top of the higher level thinking skills and an aid in conceptual understanding. This ability to check for correctness is a big key to achieving math proficiency. It’s awesome to see the critical thinking that happens during these activities!

​DOODLR ACTIVITIES
Making connections! Sometimes students can best understand concepts when they connect visual graphs, symbols, etc. with words. This activity gives students the opportunity to do just that in a creative and fun way. If your students already love doodle notes, then they for sure will love this activity! Students are able to let their creative side shine in this activity.

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MORE ACTIVITIES FOR EARLY FINISHERS
​FROM MY MATHTASTIC FRIENDS

​*Click on each image to go to the activity.

​5 Pillars of Math Intervention That Works
– Amanda Nix, Free to Discover

​Not only are Math Skill Drills awesome for math intervention, they are the perfect way to meaningfully fill time - especially for early finishers. When students finish an assessment or assignment, prompt them to pull out their Skill Drill and squeeze in some practice!

Skill-Building Equation Puzzles
– Math Giraffe

This set of challenge equation puzzles offers a fun approach to building problem-solving and algebra skills. You can also use these when teaching substitution or the transitive property. They are designed to help students build skills needed for solving systems of equations, even if they have never heard of systems before! They will be using substitution and the transitive property mentally, whether they know it or not.

Geometry Vocabulary Word Search Activities
– Kacie Travis, The Efficient Classroom

​Learning vocabulary is such an important part of learning geometry. These word search activities increase students' familiarity with the vocabulary words in a fun way! They are the perfect activity to distribute after a unit test, to early finishers, or for sub lesson plans.

​Boom Cards
​– Jamie Miller Math

Are you looking for interactive, self-checking practice? If so, Boom Cards (online flash cards) are the perfect solution for early finishers. Students will be engaged as they can continue to practice math skills independently!

Mystery Graphs with Multiple Math Skills
– Rise Over Run

​Students always love coordinate graph pictures! Instead of just practicing plot ordered pairs, why not incorporate other math skills as well? With these mystery graphs, students must first work out math problems to get their points. Then they graph them to reveal a picture.

​Challenge of the Week Activity
– Middle School Math Man

This Challenge of the Week idea and free problems are perfect for early finishers!

It is okay to provide a brain break for early finishers
– Damman's Algebra room

​Planning for instruction that’s fun for your students (and you) doesn’t HAVE to be hard. In fact, it SHOULDN’T be.
Collect and finds are a a double win! They are done for you and keep the early finishers occupied so you can focus on those who need more help. 🎉 Here is a free Collect and Find so you can see what they are all about. I promise, you will not be disappointed.