Addition Machine: DIY

I love teaching addition to young children. They have such a fascination with the idea of taking two separate amounts and combining them to get another new amount. Manipulatives are key when kids are first learning to add.

I love hands-on learning. Hands-on learning encourages kids to become active participants in their own learning. They can actually handle and manipulate the objects to explore a concept.

The addition machine is a simple way to transform a mathematical concept into a magical learning experience. When I first started teaching, I was a special education resource teacher. I traveled around with a cart. Since I was a traveling classroom, any math manipulatives used had to be small and portable. To take up space on my cart, any manipulative had to show real worth.

This machine is worth it's weight in gold. I started with a PVC drain from the hardware store. Kids put manipulatives into each opening on the drain and unscrewed the bottom to "add" the two sides together.
You can see the blog post with the old addition machine here.

A month ago, I found this amazing picture on Pinterest.  See the pin here.  I couldn't find the original blog post, so I'm not able to give credit, but you can see the awesome idea below.

I tried to recreate this amazing addition machine and came up with two different options. Head over to my blog to get the DIY directions for the Addition Machine. It is so easy to make and I promise you will love it! 

Check out some more creative teaching ideas on the Teach Junkie Link-up!

 Until next month,