Race to 1 Whole

This fun fraction game is from The Basement! Each player gets their own set of fraction strips (1 whole, 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, and 1/16). The game board is the "1 whole" strip. Players take turns rolling the fraction die. Their goal is to fill up their strip first! Check it out here!

Pimp My Ride

Economics, comparatives, superlatives: Kid industrial design project from Inspire your Learners! Check it out here!

Kid Engineering

Design Squad Nation - Lots of hands on projects, and a great place for kids to collaborate with other students from around the country.
Featured above:
Treasure Grab - Kids investigate magnetism with this measuring construction project!
Indoor Slingshot - Angle Exploration and potential / kinetic energy! Kids measure the distance their object is propelled. What angle worked best? 
Air Cannon - Estimate and measure, while exploring air pressure. Kids blow up a bag, smash it, and a pom pom ball goes flying! 

WYE_Lance has a special showcase of kid engineering projects featured on Instructables: Project-Based Engineering.
Featured above:
Truss Bridges - Kids explore symmetry and angles as they create a unique popsicle stick structure.
Rubber Band Helicopter - How high will it go? How long will it stay up?

Sophie's World - Balloon Boat (top right image)
Kids investigate the power of air, as they estimate and measure the distance their boat floats!

Facebook

E is for Explore just joined facebook and pinterest.

Sneakers

Converse All Star: Sneaker Design (hit create)

Ways to use it:
Have kids name their shoe design and write why someone should buy their shoe. What makes it so cool?
Have kids compare their shoe designs. Are there any similarities? (graphing)
Kids can create word problems. If someone bought three pairs of their sneakers, how much would the total cost be?
Older students can explore color combinations (probability)

Plastic Eggs!

Fraction Eggs

This activity can also be changed to a fraction activity. Eggs are not labeled, but filled with pom pom ball colors. Each student gets one egg. Students write down the fraction for each color pom pom ball in their egg.

Place Value Eggs

Students count out pom pom balls in eggs labeled thousands, hundreds, tens, and ones. They build a number based on how many pom poms are in each "place." 

Money Eggs

Put various coins inside numbered plastic eggs. Then, have kids add up the money in each egg and write their answers on a piece of paper. They write the amount next to the corresponding number.

Inference Eggs

Have each student bring a plastic egg to school with a top secret surprise inside! Along with their egg, have them write three clues about what's inside, without giving it away. Tape the clues to the plastic egg. Then, toss the eggs in a bag and have each child pull an egg out. Make sure they don't end up with their own egg! After each child has an egg with the clues attached, he / she will make an inference about what's inside, using the clues that came with the egg. Will their inferencing skills solve the mystery?!

Equation Eggs

Students open an egg and write down the number inside of the egg, using a crayon that matches the egg color. Then, they solve their equation!

Shape Trading Cards

Kids draw the shape and fill out the back of the cards. Click here for the printable.

Note: Don't cut along the center line. The card folds in half, so there is a front and back.

Matter Race

Give each child a sandwich baggie with an ice cube in it. Kids race to melt the ice cube in the bag, transforming their solid into a liquid. Once they have a liquid, the teacher adds a piece of an alka seltzer tablet to their bag - presto: gas (their bag will expand and the contents in their bag will fizz and bubble)! Math - Estimate how long they think it will take them to melt their cube.

Above is a recording sheet for students to use as they are melting their ice cube. Click here to download! Click here for a checklist to assess your students. Also, check out Bag Bomb!

Array City

This fun multiplication art project comes from Looking From Third to Fourth! Kids construct a city of arrays! Check out her site for details and a printable.

Musical Fractions

Kids explore fractions, while writing a colorful melody, without even knowing how to read music! Fill glasses up with different fractions of water and add food coloring. Provide students with paper to write their songs. Have kids make a hypothesis about why the glasses of water project different sounds. Is it the color of the water: No! Kids will be wowed at how water level makes an impact on the sound that projects from each glass. The fraction of water in each glass produces a different pitch.

SWAT!

swatter via nytimes

Using a fly swatter, kids try to swat and capture matching flies. Example above: swatter is looking for the number 9. There are six flies that represent the number 9. Click here for a free printable!

Cloud Racing

Integrate science and math with cloud racing! Lay a large, long sheet of blue paper down. Kids blow (wind) cotton balls (clouds) across the race track (sky) using straws. 

Try making other types of cotton ball clouds (cirrus and stratus by pulling the cotton ball). Click here for an example. Have kids predict which cloud they think will go the fastest. If cirrus went up against a cumulus cloud, which one would win?!

Next, have each kid predict which cloud will go the farthest: Go out into a large hall way. Blow each type of cotton ball cloud using a straw. Measure the distance each cloud traveled. Which cloud traveled the farthest distance?

Snappo

This fun math game comes from The Kentucky Center for Mathematics! I found this fantastic site (chock-full of games) from Mrs. T's First Grade. Check out her site for more game recommendations!

Snappo Directions (2 player game)
1. Divide uno cards (numbers only: 0-10) evenly among players. 
2. Players lay their cards face down in a pile.
3. Player one flips top card over and lays it on the table.
4. Player two flips his card over. If he can make 10, he captures both cards and says "snappo!" If he can't, he lays his card face up on the table.
5. Players keep taking turns, flipping cards, trying to make 10. They can use the cards on the table or cards opponent flips over. Their goal is to make 10, say snappo, and capture the most cards!

Game ends when there are no matches left. The player who captured the most cards wins!

Multiplying Fractions: Arrays

Step 1: Draw first fraction on grid paper (horizontal).

Step 2: Draw second fraction (vertical)

Step 3: Draw a box (outlining where they touch)

Step 4: Solve! Count the boxes and write the fraction

(example: 3 out of 20 are shaded)

Pasta Angles

Show kids a couple of different pasta shapes. Can they find an angle? Then, have them design their own original pasta shape! Their new shape must include an acute, obtuse, or right angle. What will they call their pasta? Have them create an original logo and package for their pasta.

Mardi Gras Bead Geometry

First, have kids make an inference about what they think each color of Mardi Gras stands for (green = faith, gold = power, and purple = justice). Next, have kids estimate how many beads they think are on the necklace. Who had the best guess?

Geometry: Split students up into teams. Have students make 3 shapes out of the necklaces (triangle, circle, and rectangle). Next, have them measure their shapes with a ruler. Then, have them figure out the area and perimeter (or circumference).

Sand Castle Experiment

This surface tension experiment comes from The Indianapolis Public Library Kid Blog! Students explore measuring by adding different amounts of water to 1 cup of sand to see what water to sand ratio makes the ideal sand castle. They investigate fractions when measuring their water (1/4, 1/3, 1/2, 1 cup). They construct a total of four mini cup castles (using different amounts of water for each one). Then, they estimate how many pennies each "castle" will hold. Which castle do they think will be the strongest? They count out the pennies, as they lay them on top of each cup castle. Can any of their mini castles hold 25 pennies? Which castle was the strongest? Visit IPL Kid Blog for the scientific explanation behind this experiment!

Animal Cracker Habitats / Food Chain