I am sure you have heard all about task cards by now. Task cards can be a truly amazing when used effectively. A lot of times we see things on Pinterest and get the idea that we can use these all of the time and then they either sit in a corner of our classroom collecting dust or we let them sit in their bin. I’m here to tell you that it doesn’t have to be like that! We can use these effectively to help our students!
Task Card Carousel
I love task card carousels. These are my favorite to use when it is time to take a test. Task cards are usually numbered and then I will give them a page that goes along with the answers. They fill out the answers and then we can review as a class or I can check it myself. I hang the task cards around the room (make it a game to find the missing task cards). Other times, I will have the students hang them around and they make it REALLY challenging to find the task cards.
Daily Task Card Challenge
I always feel that students need a quiet and welcoming classroom to walk into each morning. They should have a set task each morning when they come in. Then you can say to the students, you need to work on task card number 1, 3, and 5. They can work on these each morning. A lot of times, I will provide students with things that they have not seen before. Why? I want them to try to learn from their mistakes. The students can try to make attempts at the skill and learn from their errors.
Math Rotations
You know I love math rotations. You can read all about that here! One of my favorite math rotations would totally be the task cards station. I let the students choose whatever card they want to work on during that rotation. I find that if I say “I want all 20 cards done by Friday.” They will be able to work on the cards each day. That would be 4 cards per day. Usually during a math rotation, I will only let them work on the skill that they learned for the day. I don’t like to let them experiment during rotations. Another thing that I let the students do is work together either their normal math group or 2-3 people per group. The students like working together and this is just another way to let them collaborate.
Notebook Challenge
Before I tell you all about this, know that this one takes up a lot of space and uses a lot of paper. However, I find it one of the most effective ways to use task cards. Each student will get ALL of the cards. Then they cut the cards up into 4’s. Once they are done with that, they glue those into notebooks. They have the space to work on each task (next to the card) and then it’s labeled with the number so you can easily check it with the answer keys! here is a huge tip! I always have the students circle their answers in a specific color. I have them circle the answers in red so that I can see the actual answer quickly. I also tell the students that they need to be in order numerically. That one is easier said than done.
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Fast Finishers
I don’t know about you, but I always have fast finishers. My students sometimes rush through their work and I need something for them to do while others are working on tests or other assignments. This has been helpful because I don’t give an end date just a check in date. I tell the students that I will randomly check on the specific task cards that are completed. Some may call this…busy work. I call this Challenge your brain. I have had some teachers use this as EX tasks. (Hello Standards based grading!!)
Task Cards for the Win!
Yeah, task cards are awesome. I love them and I love everything that they can do. Really your ideas are endless! You can always search TpT for a ton of different ideas for task cards.
Try one!
Of course I couldn’t leave you without giving you one of my amazing task cards. I am always trying ideas and it’s better to try it when it’s FREE! Go ahead and fill out the picture below and download the FREE 20 Task Cards. The download will be Adding & Subtracting Decimals.
