Bridges Breakouts, Grades K–5
Bridges Breakouts are derived from Bridges in Mathematics First Edition but may be used to supplement any curriculum. These theme-based replacement units, games, and activities provide problem-solving opportunities, skills practice, and continual encounters with broader math concepts. More info Unless otherwise noted, these materials were developed prior to the publication of the Common Core State Standards. While the content retains its educational value, the grade level alignment may have shifted for some lessons and activities.
Bridges Breakout: Bugs Across the Curriculum
Grade level: K–2
Across the Curriculum units extend a particular theme into all areas of instruction. They include activity ideas—picture walks, ant farms and other live visitors, interactive writing, and more—poems and songs, literature suggestions, and blacklines.
Does not include a Bugs Math Bucket and requires materials (game boards, spinners, etc.) be created from blacklines.
Bridges Breakout: Frogs Across the Curriculum
Grade level: K–2
Across the Curriculum units extend a particular theme into all areas of instruction. They include activity ideas, poems and songs, literature suggestions, and more.
Does not include a Frogs Math Bucket and requires materials (game boards, spinners, etc.) be created from blacklines.
Bridges Breakout: Sea Creatures Across the Curriculum
Grade level: K–2
Across the Curriculum units extend a particular theme into all areas of instruction. They include activity ideas, poems and songs, literature suggestions, and more.
Does not include a Sea Creatures Math Bucket and requires materials (game boards, spinners, etc.) be created from blacklines.
Bridges Breakout: Make Change – A Money Game
Grade level: 3
In this game for two players or teams, students find the total value of collections of bills and coins less than $5, then make change from $5. After three rounds, they compare the total amount of change each player or team received.
Designed for use with Money Value Pieces or MLC's free Money Pieces app.
Bridges Breakout: Crossing the Pond – A Probability Game
Grade level: 2–3
In this charming game, frogs hop across a pond while children practice subtraction facts and explore probability. The game is presented first as a whole-group lesson and then as an activity for groups of two.
Does not include frogs and requires materials (e.g., gameboards, spinners, etc.) be created from blacklines.
Bridges Breakout: Math With a Sock - Probability and Fractions
Grade level: 2–4
Probability containers and tile offer a creative way to explore probability and fractions. Children learn to read and write fractions, create graphs, and use experimental data to predict probability. Includes three whole-group sessions and two activities designed for independent use and blacklines.
Does not include probability containers, tile, lunch bags, magic wall, and magnetic tile.
Bridges Breakout: Math Buckets – Sorting and Patterning
Grade level: K–2
Fabulous frogs, beautiful buttons, and colorful bugs are great teaching tools. In this Breakout, four group activities and one designed for independent use cover sorting, patterning, Venn diagrams, and graphing. Does not include Math Buckets and requires sorting cards to be created from blacklines. Printing – When printing a PDF, be sure that print scaling is set to "None." This will ensure that activities containing measurement items print in the correct dimensions.
Bridges Breakout: Exploring Money – Adding, Counting, Sorting and Patterning
Grade level: 1
Strengthen students’ understanding of money through 35 weekly sessions that provide practice identifying, counting, and adding coins.
Requires some materials (cards, etc.) to be created from blacklines.
Bridges Breakout: Exploring Time – Hours, Minutes and Paper Clocks
Grade level: 1
Teach the concept of time and telling time with paper clocks, worksheets, and cards. In 22 sessions, children practice telling time to the hour, half hour, and quarter hour and learn the numbers on the clock face.
Does not include Learning Basic Skills Through Music tape and requires cards to be created from blacklines.
Bridges Breakout: Data Analysis – Exploring Mean, Mode & Range
Grade level: 5
Two activities offering exploration of mean, mode, and range. In Average Handfuls, students explore leveling-off and grouping-then-dividing concepts of averaging while working as a class and in teams to find the average number of cubes in a handful. In Finding the Average Length of Our Feet, students work in pairs, then groups of four, and as a class to measure and find the average lengths of their feet.
Designed for use with base ten pieces or MLC's free Number Pieces app, linking cubes such as Unifix cubes, and calculators.
Pattern Block Lessons to Meet CCSS, Grades K–2
Grade level: K–2
This Pattern Block sampler provides you with six lessons from whole group Problems and Investigations and centers called Work Places. In many cases, there are suggestions for support and challenge to help you meet the CCSS standards and differentiate your instruction.
Pattern Block Lessons to Meet CCSS, Grades 3–5
Grade level: 3–5
This Pattern Block sampler provides you with eight lessons from whole group Problems and Investigations and centers called Work Places. In many cases, there are suggestions for support and challenge to help you meet the CCSS standards and differentiate your instruction.
Hands-On Math: Geometry with Geoblocks
Grade level: 1–4
Designed for use at home. Contains six exercises that provide many opportunities to introduce and use geometric terms using geoblocks. Adapted from Bridges in Mathematics, this kit comes with teaching instructions that encourage play, observation and geoblock manipulation. Geoblock set not included.
Hands-On Math: Measurement with Marbles
Grade level: 1–4
Designed for use at home to give children opportunities to use mathematics in the context of scientific research. Students make ramps with household cardboard tubes to investigate some of the factors that cause marbles to roll farther and faster.
Includes teaching instructions. Does not include Unifix cubes or assorted marbles and balls. Adapted from Bridges in Mathematics.
Bridges Breakouts: Building Computational Fluency
Grade level: 1–5
Derived from our Bridges in Mathematics First Edition curriculum, these activities are designed specifically to build computational fluency.
Following a baseline assessment, instruction unfolds through whole group, small group, and individual work using activities, games, worksheets, and follow-up assessments. Visual models such as tile, 10-frames, base ten pieces, arrays, hundreds grids, and other mathematical tools are embedded in activities throughout the materials.
Recommended timing and frequency is approximately 20 minutes, two to three times per week. These materials may also be used with students by resource and title teachers, instructional aides, volunteers, and parents.