Fall Math Centers
Pumpkin NimDirections:Players take turns placing one
pattern block piece at a time until the pumpkin is covered.
The person who fills in the last hexagon wins!
Play again and change the rules so that the loser is the one who covers the last hexagon.
Apple NimDirections:Players take turns placing one
pattern block piece at a time until the apple is covered.
The person who fills in the last space wins!
Play again and change the rules so that the loser is the one who covers the last space.
Nim Materials
Pattern blocksPumpkin Nim patternApple Nim pattern
Sweet Pictographs
Sara returned from trick-or- treating with lots of candy. Help Sara sort her candy. Create a pictograph to display your results.
Sweet Pictograph Materials
Bucket of candyPaper/recording sheet
Prospering PatternsUsing the assortment of objects, create a variety of different patterns. Record your patterns on the paper provided. What is the rule of your pattern? Can you create an equation to fit your pattern?
Prospering Patterns Materials
Fall objects such as leavesSentence strips/recording sheet
Nutty SortingSort the objects into groups based
on one common attribute. Can your partner guess the attribute
you selected?Sort the objects by two attributes
and have your partner guess the attributes you selected.
Switch roles and repeat the activity.
Nutty Sorting Materials
Materials to sort—leaves, candy, nutsVenn rings
Prize PumpkinsPredict which pumpkin has the
greatest mass.Place the pumpkins in order, from
the pumpkin with the greatest mass to the pumpkin with the least mass.
Weigh the pumpkins to determine how close your predictions were.
Record the mass of each pumpkin.
Prize Pumpkins Materials
Balance scaleWeighing objectsPumpkins of various sizes
Basket CapacitiesPredict which basket has the
greatest capacity.Place the containers in order, from the
container that will hold the least amount of liquid to the container that will hold the most.
Find the capacity of each container to determine how close your predictions were.
Record the capacity of each container.
Basket Capacities Materials
Containers of various sizesBlocks, rice, or beans for measuring
Measuring Pumpkins Estimate the height, width, and
circumference of the pumpkin. Cut a piece of string to match each of your estimates.
Measure the height, width, and circumference of the pumpkin. Compare the lengths of your string with the actual measurements of the pumpkin.
How close were your estimates?
Measuring Pumpkins Materials
PumpkinStringScissorsMeasuring tools: rulers, measuring tapes
Fall Fraction Activities1. Use the fall items to create
fractions. Record your fractions. Ex: ½ of the nuts are pecans
2. Find the fractional part of each bag of fall items.
3. Play the Fraction Concentration Game with a partner.
4. Build fractions with the pie pieces. What equivalent fractions can you find?
Fall Fraction Activities
Fall items such as leaves, gourds, etc.Bags of itemsConcentration GameFractional Pie Pieces
Thanksgiving FeastCreate your own Thanksgiving Feast.
Browse grocery store advertisements. Choose foods that you would like to have at your own Thanksgiving dinner. Don’t forget dessert! Calculate the total amount of your dinner and record.
Can you create a Thanksgiving feast with $100? How about $50?
Thanksgiving Feast Materials
Food advertisementsCalculators
Massive FeastPredict the mass of each food item.
Which food has the greatest mass?Place the food items in order, from
the food with the greatest mass to the food with the least mass.
Weigh the items to determine how close your predictions were and peek on the outside of the label.
Record the mass of each food.
Massive Feast Materials
Thanksgiving food items with the mass covered on the label
Seasonal Symmetry Activities1. Sort the fall pictures into groups.
1 – Has line symmetry 2 – Not symmetrical
2. Draw or use the pattern blocks to create two designs -- one to fit each category.
Seasonal Symmetry Activities
Fall cut-outs and picturesWhite paperArt materials—crayons, markers, etc.Pattern blocks
Fabulous Fall Art1. Create a scarecrow using only
polygons. Record the name of each polygon used in your design.
2. Create a fall picture using pattern blocks. Trace and color the design on construction paper. Find the total fractional amount of your design (Hexagon = 1) and record at the bottom of your picture.
Fabulous Fall Art Materials
Geometric shapes precut Construction paperGlue or glue stickMarkers, crayons, or colored pencilsPattern blocks
Leafy Grids1. Each player should select 5 fall
pictures and place them on their coordinate grid.
2. Players take turns calling-out ordered pairs. If a player names the correct location of a fall item, it is removed.
3. The winner is the first player to locate all 5 of their partner’s objects.
Leafy Grids Materials
Coordinate grids—paper, cookie sheets, box lids, poster board
Fall items—attached with magnets, velcro, tape, or drawn on grid
Turkey Time
Create a graph to display the weights of the turkeys. Write three questions
about your data display.
Turkey Time Materials
Cut-outs of turkeys—one weight written on each turkey
CalculatorsGraph and plain paperPencils, markers, and colored pencils
Yummy Mathematics
Select one holiday recipe. Change the recipe to serve:
5 people 10 people20 peopleentire class
Instant Pumpkin Pie Recipe
In a sandwich bag, crush 3 graham crackers. Add 2 tsp. of sugar and ¾ tbsp. of soft margarine. Mix together and spread in container. Mix 1 tbsp. instant vanilla pudding and ¼ tsp. pumpkin pie spice. Add 3 tsp. canned pumpkin and 1/3 cup of milk. Mix well and pour into “pie shell.” Refrigerate for 1 hour before serving. Top with whipped topping.
Yummy Mathematics Materials
Thanksgiving recipesRecipe cards
Fabulous Fall Ideas
Describe additional ideas you usein your math class to engage andmotivate your students during the
fall season.
Autumn EqualitySort through the fall cut-outs to find number sentences that are equal. Record each equation.
Autumn Equality Materials
Fall cut-outs—one number sentence written on each
Puzzling PumpkinsSelect one pumpkin. Solve the
function table and find the missing numbers. Decide what change is happening and figure out the rule of the function table.
Record your solutions. Complete at least 4 pumpkins before changing centers.
Function Tables
In Out
1 2
2 4
3 6
4 8
5
12
In Out
10 5
22 17
16 11
19 14
8
23
In Out
12 6
10 5
8 4
6 3
4
1
Function Tables
In Out
6 18
3 9
0 0
5 15
2
21
In Out
18 15
12 9
16 13
6 3
9
0
In Out
12 3
20 5
40 10
16 4
24
15
Function Tables
In Out
2 5
6 9
7 10
12 15
14
13
In Out
19 24
8 13
12 17
54 59
90
21
Puzzling Pumpkins Materials
Pumpkin cut-outs with function tables on each
Recording sheetPencils