Cooperative learning activities are often designed for teams of four students. However, sometimes a team is just too big, especially in math. Sometimes the perfect number of students for a practice activity is just two. Partners tend to cooperate more and argue less, and kids are usually more actively engaged when working with a partner as opposed to a large team.
With that in mind, I developed Solve ‘n Switch, a cooperative learning partner activity for reviewing and practicing math skills. This activity is designed to be used with math task cards rather than printable worksheets. After you teach it to your students, you can customize it by replacing the task cards with new ones. You can even customize the activity by assigning different sets of task cards to different students based on their needs. If you give Solve ‘n Switch a try, you’ll be amazed at how much fun your students have with this simple review activity!
Solve ‘n Switch Directions
Before you introduce the game to your students, decide who will be partners for the activity. It’s best not to allow students to select their own partners because you need to pair students of similar abilities. If your class is set up in cooperative learning teams, you can split each team of four in half or pair students with someone from an entirely different team. You might even want to differentiate the activity by providing different sets of tasks cards for each pair according to their needs.
To begin the activity, seat partners next to each other and place a deck of task cards face down between them. Then guide your class through the following steps:
- Each partner takes a task card from the top of the deck.
- Simultaneously, they each solve the problem on their own card.
- Next, they switch task cards and solve the new problem.
- Finally, they share, check, and discuss their answers.
- They repeat the steps with two new cards.
Solve ‘n Switch Freebie
If you’d like to try this activity with your class, download my Solve ‘n Switch freebie. This resource includes several variations of the activity to help you modify it as needed for your class. The first set of directions is a fun paper-saving option that’s designed to be used with individual dry erase boards. Students solve the problems on their own dry erase boards so there’s nothing to print or prepare in advance. The second set of directions requires you to a print copy of a generic recording form for each student which you can collect and review after the activity. The third set of directions is designed to be used in learning centers after you’ve introduced the activity to your students.
By the way, Solve ‘n Switch is intended for review and practice, so it’s not meant to be graded. After students complete the activity, you can follow up with an independent assignment or quiz to assess their understanding of the skill they practiced.
What I love most about Solve ‘n Switch is that it’s so versatile. You can use it in math centers, small groups, or even in a whole group setting with students divided into pairs. All you really need is a set of task cards and either dry erase boards and markers or the recording pages in the packet. Have fun with this!
