What To Put In Your Math Tool Kits for Social Distancing and Beyond

I know this fall is going to be nothing like we’ve every experienced before. Thanks to COVID-19, teachers are scrambling to figure out how to have independent supplies for social distancing and still create hands on learning opportunities. Is this you? It was me! That’s why I created the math tool kits.

Math tool kits allow your students to have manipulatives, hands on materials and math mats, and math reference materials all while sticking to safety guidelines.

Honestly, though, these tool kits can be used for years to come! They would be perfect for students to bring to the carpet during a math lesson or take with them as they work with partners.

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What are math tool kits?

Math tool kits are the perfect way to keep all of a student’s independent math supplies in one place.

I use pencil boxes because I love how everything fits in them. I also really like these editable pencil box name tags because students can use them as a reference throughout the day.

The math tool kits hold small manipulatives, laminated math tool kit pieces such as spinners, number lines, and ten frames, and students’ math reference cards.

As you can see, I don’t put everything in these tool kits right away. We add materials as the year goes on and I may take things out, too.

Manipulatives To Keep In math Tool Kits

What manipulatives should you keep in a math tool kit? Here are just a few that I think would be handy. You definitely don’t want to overstuff these!

First, I think connecting cubes would be important. I would give each student 10-20 and teach them to keep them connected when not in use.

The gray side clip container is from The Dollar Tree and it holds small items like counters and dice:

I like that the smaller container keeps it all organized and the Dollar Tree containers are inexpensive (2/$1 usually) and they fit perfectly in the pencil box!

You can also keep a mini playdough:

I would also give each student their own larger playdough (this is a great deal), but I would keep that in their desk or other supplies.

The mini playdough is the perfect size to pull out quickly for a math lesson and it’s less likely to get everywhere.

Transparent spinners are great because students can use them with ANY printable spinner or center. You can find a set here.

These clip in spinners are less expensive, but they don’t have a base because you are supposed to punch a hole in the spinner and then clip them in. If you don’t want to do that, you could put a bit of sticky tack on the bottom to hold it to the laminated spinners.

Math Reference Mats

These printable math reference mats are great because students can pull them out and use them just like an anchor chart.

I punched holes in mine and put them on a binder ring for each student.

You don’t have to put them all on at the beginning of the year, either. You can teach students to add them onto the binder ring as you need them.

Printable for Math Tool Kits

In the math tool kits pack, I provided you with all the math mats and printables I thought you could possible need in either kindergarten or 1st grade!

They are all in black and white so you can print on colored paper and then laminate.

There are five frames, ten frames, and twenty frames included.

You don’t have to start the year with your tool kits filled! You may want to start with just the five frames and then add the others when you need them.

Spinners can be used for SO many things!

You can use these for partner games, independent practice, or math centers.

The math tool kit contains a variety of spinners, but it also has editable spinners.

This is only a fraction of the math mats included! You can laminate these and then give students a dry erase marker or mini erasers as counters.

Printable Math Manipulatives

I realized that many teachers were struggling to find enough math manipulatives to give each students their own. I was too! That’s why I made this set of printable math manipulatives.

You can print the color version or the black and white version, laminate, and you are good to go! Grab these at the bottom this blog post.

Ready to make your own math tool kits?

Math tool kits are the perfect way to give your students hands on math experiences while still social distancing.

Ready to make your own math tool kits?

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