Teaching Basic Addition and Subtraction with an Online

Learning Game

Grade level: Kindergarten

Duration: 50 minutes (10 minutes of whiteboard instruction, 20
minutes of hands-on practice with rice, 20 minutes playing the
Freerice.com game)

Materials:
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Overhead projector, white board, or Smart Board

Pencils and paper
Grains of dry rice in small baggies for each child
Computer lab with Freerice.com opened on each computer

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Addition, put together

Subtraction, take away
Sum
Difference
Donate

Vocabulary:

Idaho education standard met: K.M.1.2.1 Use concrete

objects to illustrate the concepts of addition and subtraction.

Lesson Introduction: Ask students if they know what addition
and subtraction are. If they do, explain sums and differences.

Step-by-step Procedure:
1. Write 1+1 on the board in front of the class. Ask students if
they know what this means. Pick up one marker in each hand
and bring them together to show that one (marker) plus one
(marker) equals two markers.
2. Draw 3 cats on the board, write a plus sign, and then draw 1
more cat. Point to each item on the board as you say aloud,
1,2,3 cats put together with 1 more cat makes how many
cats? Count along with them to find the answer as 4 cats.
Write 3+1=4 to show them how to write out this type of
problem.
3. Give the students their little baggies of rice and ask them to
use the grains to show addition.
a. Write 3+4 on the board. Ask them to take out 3 grains
of rice and set it aside. Ask them to then take out 4
more grains to put in another little pile.

b. Tell them to put the piles together and count what it

adds up to.
4. Repeat 3a-b with multiple simple addition problems. Make
sure the students grasp the content before moving onto
subtraction.
5. Go back to the board and draw 5 flowers. Ask them to count
how many there are, and write it down above the drawing.
Count aloud 2 flowers as you erase them from the board. Ask
the students how many flowers you took away; write it above
the drawing next to the 5. Ask them how many flowers are
left. When they count 3, show that 5 (flowers) take away 2
(flowers) leaves us with 3 (flowers). Write on the board 5-2=3
to show them how to write out this type of problem.
6. Use the baggies of rice to explain simple subtraction.
a. Write 7-2 on the board. Ask them to take out 7 grains of
rice from their baggies, and then to put 2 of those
grains back.
b. Tell them to count how many grains are left in the pile.
7. Repeat 6a-b until they grasp the idea of subtraction.
8. Clean up any rice and move onto the computer lab to play the
Basic Math section on the game of FreeRice.com
9. Explain to them that now we will be earning rice through this
game to donate to hungry people across the world.
10. Give them a pencil and scratch paper in case they need to
draw pictures to solve the problems.
11. Make sure that each student is on the correct webpage,
and set them loose to play the game. Walk around the lab to
check on them and answer any questions
Take home assignment: Send students home with a short
assignment of about 5 addition problems and 5 subtraction
problems. Make sure to leave room on the paper for drawings!
Also include a short note to parents explaining the online game
and the organizations humanitarian efforts. It will not be
mandatory that students play the game at home, but provide the
URL (http://freerice.com/#/basic-math-pre-algebra/16845) so that
they can find the game for extra practice.

This lesson plan was loosely based on a few plans found on

mathlessons.about.com