Don't forget to save five minutes at the end of the lesson to recap. Ask pupils to construct a mathematical problem for other children to solve. If more than two pupils are having problems with the same question. Visitors to the classroom provide an excellent opportunity for pupils to explain the mathematics they are working on. The 24 Game available from Summus provides a rich mathematical activity to encourage mental arithmetic.
Students can play against the clock, against each other or in teams.
Mathmagic is also fantastic to encourage the four rules of number. In my Year 2 class I give table groups the names of mathematical shapes. Items belonging to that table are labeled with different properties of the shape. After that I use either the name or a property of the shape when I bring attention to the table. The children love the game and soon learn a lot about 2D and 3D shapes in a fun way.