Muffin pan
Index cards
Counters (e.g., math linking cubes, pom-pom balls, pennies, mini erasers, buttons)
Multiplication cards with selected facts
Preparation:
Write multiplication problems on index cards (e.g., 4 x 5).
Gather counters to use as visual aids for the multiplication problems.
Setting Up the Activity:
Give each student a muffin pan and a set of counters.
Hand out a few multiplication cards to each student, starting with a selection of 15 facts.
Performing the Multiplication:
Students pick a multiplication card.
The first number on the card indicates how many groups to make (e.g., 4 groups).
The second number on the card indicates how many items to place in each group (e.g., 5 items in each group).
Students place the correct number of counters in each section of the muffin pan to visually represent the multiplication problem.
Visualizing the Result:
After arranging the counters, students count the total number of items to find the product of the multiplication problem.
For example, if the card shows 4 x 5, they will place 5 counters in each of the 4 muffin sections, and then count all the counters to see that 4 x 5 = 20.
Repetition and Practice:
Repeat the process with different multiplication cards to reinforce the concept.
Encourage students to explain their reasoning and how they visualized the multiplication problem.