Review & Giveaway: Carson-Dellosa CCSS-Aligned Thinking Mats for Math

I am so excited about this product and review, especially since we have started launching Math Rotations this week!

I was so excited a while back when Carson-Dellosa contacted me about reviewing their CenterSolutions for the Common Core Thinking Mats for 3rd Grade Math. I knew these would be a perfect addition to our math class and I can't wait to share them with you!

There are 15 mats total and they address the range of Common Core State Standards:


They have cute game names for the kids and about three mats for each standard (give or take), but the best part for you, as the teacher, is that the CCSS strand is located on the top right of each mat! Great for quick reference for centers, informal assessment, small groups, and more!


On the cover of each mat are the directions (for both partner play and individual play) as well as materials needed. The majority only require a dry-erase marker and/or a die, so easy-peasy!


Although I will definitely go over these mats with the kids (with my Rotations, I will go over these on a Friday during the last section of class and will have them available on Monday) the directions included will be invaluable if kids have questions, so they don't have to interrupt my Teacher Time!

Each of the mats come with perforated game pieces that are made of cardstock and.... the best part?!.... the back color matches the color of the Thinking Mat! So, if it's clean-up time and you find a random card on the ground, you will be able to easily find its home again! Yahoo!!


Each of these mats come with a 1/2 page recording sheet that is very open-ended. This is perfect so that if kids use these Thinking Mats throughout the year, their answers will always be different and they will be able to deepen their practice in a non-repetitive way. Plus, the last question for each activity is a reflection on their mathematical thinking that challenges your students to explain the patterns they noticed, strategies they used, and more-- love!


How Will I Use These In Class?

I plan on using these Thinking Mats as a part of Fact Practice in our Math Rotations. Whenever a student finishes the Lesson Work for the day, they can come and grab a Thinking Mat and get to work with a partner or by themselves.

Since these are open-ended and simple to use, I plan on storing them in a baggie with all of the materials needed and multiple copies of the recording sheets available. This way, they will be great grab-and-go activities we can use all year long!

Interested in picking up a set of these? They are available for grades K-5 on Carson-Dellosa's store HERE.

And, oh happy day, you can also win a set by entering the giveaway below! I will pick a winner next Wednesday when I will be back with September's What I'm Reading Wednesday, also around math-- yahoo!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Best of luck!!


118 comments

  1. These look amazing! This is the first year in 13 that I am teaching math. I am teaching the high level (enrichment group) in 3rd grade. These would be an excellent addition to my rotations!

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  2. I teach third grade and would LOVE to integrate these into my centers! *Crossing my fingers!*

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  3. I really am in need of such a great project. This year we are finally allowed to have "workstations" and this product sounds amazing. I teach 3rd grade.

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  4. Those look really cool! I teach 4th, and think that they would be great for my early finishers...a way to keep them learning!

    :) Kaitlyn
    Smiles and Sunshine

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  6. These would be great for centers. I teach 3rd grade. Thanks for sharing!

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  7. I would also use these in my work stations. I really need quick quality work like this for my grade 3 kiddos. I hope I win this because I have already tapped out the budget with back to school purchases.

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  8. We have a math game day each Friday...these would be perfect for our game day!

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  9. This is my first year teaching 3rd. I agree these mats would be great grab and go activities.

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  10. I teach third grade and I implement guided math workstations. I could see these being very useful in either my math game station, or my thinkers station.

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  11. I teach 3rd; these look great for math rotations or to use in small groups.

    Julie
    Math is Elementary

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  12. These look fabulous! I teach 3rd grade gifted cluster. I could see these being used as part of guided math workstations, or as an enrichment activity for those early finishers/ need more challenge kiddos! I adore your blog. Thank you for the neat ideas!

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  13. I teach 3rd. These mats look like a fun way to practice skills!

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  14. I teach 3rd and would LOVE to use these at both teacher table and fact practice during centers.

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  15. These look amazing! I need to look into these!

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  16. I teach 2nd and 3rd grade. I think these would be great to use during math rotations either with partners during independent practice or as an activity for early finishers.

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  17. 3rd and 5th. I would use them in Math Workshop for students to use to practice.

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  18. I teach 3rd grade and began math rotations this year. I would use the math mats for the hands on portion of my math rotations.

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  19. I teach 3rd grade and began math rotations this year. I would use the math mats for the hands on portion of my math rotations.

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  20. Hello! I teach 3rd grade and I would use them during my math rotations. It is great to get new things for the kids, I know they would love these!

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  21. I would use these for early finishers and/or centers. I teach 3rd grade.

    Patti
    One Class, One Sound

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  22. i teach both second and third grade math workshop. i think this mats would be great for independent application time to extend their learning.

    Amanda
    teachigbiliteracywithmrsestevez.blogspot.com

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  23. This is my 2nd year in 3rd grade and I love reading about your ideas to use in my classroom! I am slowly getting into Math rotations and this would be an awesome center. It also would be perfect for small group intervention!

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  24. I teach third grade, and this product would be perfect for my math centers while I work with small groups. Thank you!

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  25. I teach third grade as well, and am looking into starting this year's small groups/centers. I'd like to look at these more closely!

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  26. I teach 4th grade. I am always looking for some good quality activities for my kiddos to do during math rotations and/or for early finishers.
    Thanks for the opportunity.

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  27. I am a 3rd grade teacher. I would use these in my math stations and for small group review. Thanks for the chance!

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  28. Hi! I am a second grade teacher. I would use these in math stations, and maybe in fact practice like you plan to. I am setting up my math rotations this year based on yours. The way I did them last year didn't seem like it would work as well with my group this year. We had our first practice run today and it went pretty well : ) Thank you!

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  29. This is my first year teaching 3rd (after 4 years in 2nd and 1 year in 5th)..these would be an excellent addition to my math centers!! :) Fingers crossed!
    The Fabulous Life of an Elementary Teacher

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  30. I teach 4th grade! I would use these in the partner work or games station for my math stations!!!

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  31. I teach 2nd grade and would love to use these with my guided math which I am just starting this year.

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  32. These look really great! I'm trying Math Rotations for the first time this year, and I think these would be perfect!

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    1. oh yeah, and I teach second grade!

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    2. I'm a K-5 associate instructor for math and 3rd grade enrichment was just added. These would be great!

      Kate

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  33. These look great! It would really help me out as a teacher who just moved from kinder to 3rd!

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  34. I teach 3rd grade also. I find that centers are a fun way to learn math. Students need to have a variety of hands on activities, especially when it comes to math.

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  35. I've been teaching second grade and was moved to third this year. I would love to be able to fit this in to my workstations or small group sessions. Your blog has been so helpful this year!

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  36. I would love to use these in my math rotations for my "Daily 5" Math-Math with a partner. This would also be great during enrichment time. Great for integrating reading skills and character building while working together.

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  37. I wish VA was CCSS-aligned! This would still be great in with my third grade kiddos though!!

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  38. I teach 3rd grade and could also see these working out well in math rotations. I'm also wondering if they might be a fun activity to do with a parent helper.

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  39. After reading about Math Rotations on your blog last year I decided to implement them in my third grade class. I love them and I can't wait to start them again Monday when school begins! These thinking mats would be perfect for my center time or fact practice.

    Hope you are having a great start to the school year!

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  40. These look FUN! I would use them in my 2nd grade class the same way you're planning to. They'd be great as an extension during math lessons when students finish their lesson assignments early.

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  41. These are AWESOME!! I want to start math rotations this year and these would get me off to a fabulous start!! (3rd grade please)

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  42. I teach 2/3 and would love to use them in our math rotations. They would be a great supplement to what we have so far. I'd love the 2nd grade Thinking Mats.

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  43. I am implementing Math Rotations this year because of your blog!!! You made it sound "do-able". I think these thinking mats would be a perfect addition to the Math Rotations. My 3rd Graders are obsessed with math games!

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  44. I have begun to use centers this year, so I would use them for enforcement activities ans possible enrichment.
    I teach 4th grade.
    Toni Nicholson
    chief9937@Yahoo.com

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  45. I decided I'm going to do math rotations this year and so of course, these would be a perfect addition!

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  46. I would love to use these with early finishers and with RTI rotations!

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  47. These would be great for kinder math centers!

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  48. These would be great for my centers!

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  49. I teach a gifted self contained 2nd grade class but we use the 3rd grade standards. We use math centers at least 2x per week and these look like a great tool to have in the classroom! Thanks for sharing about them.

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  50. I want these! They'd be great for math centers. I also LOVE the idea of using them for informal assessments. I'm really focusing on tracking standard mastery and putting these assessments and scores into the hands of my 3rd graders this year. I think these would be awesome for that since the standards are right there in black and white!

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  51. What a GREAT addition this would be to my math centers! As a second year third grade teacher in NJ, your blog is my inspiration (no, really!). Thank you for blogging and sharing your strategies in class!

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  52. I teach 2nd. The CD product looks great!
    tania
    My Second Sense

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  53. I would love to use them with my 5th grade math rotations.

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  54. These would be so wonderful for my third graders during math rotations. I have some real math superstars and I think that they'd really enjoy these. :)

    carly.kaczmarek@gmail.com

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  55. I would use them in daily math rotations and small groups. I teach 4th grade.

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  56. YOu always have great ideas. Thank you for taking the time to share them.

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  57. I teach 3rd grade and would love to use these for math rotations.

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  58. Since I love your blog and have been following ever since I found it, I may as well tell you how amazing you are! Thanks for all the insight and these would be amazing for my math rotations too!!!!

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  59. These would be awesome for our rotations during our RTI block. This is my 21st year teacher 3rd grade. Before that, I taught 6th grade for 3 years.

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  60. Perfect for math rotations or for RTI time. I teach 3rd and 4th grade math. Thanks!

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  61. Love these for guided math stations as either an assignment or an extension. I particularly like that it supports a paperless classroom... cuts down on copies!

    Kate
    Purely Paperless

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  62. These look fantastic. We are trying out a few centers this year and this would be great especially for partners. I teach third grade.

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  64. I teach third and these look great for my (newly started) math rotations!

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  65. These would be great to use in my Kindergarten math stations! Thanks for the chance to win!

    kellybrown28021@gmail.com

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  66. I would use these as a center activity during math rotations! I teach 4th grade. :)
    -Melissa
    mahoopingarner@gmail.com

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  67. I am teaching 4th grade this year (my FAVORITE grade!) and would love these mats for our daily math stations. They've added an extra 30 minute "intervention-style" block to our math time and these would be awesome for that time while I'm working with a group.

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  68. I teach fourth grade and I think I'd use them as review this year. Next year I'm hoping to do away with our current program and would probably use them in centers.

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  69. I teach a 3/4 combination class and these look awesome. These would be great for our math stations. It would also be a great way to save on paper - always a plus!

    Thanks for sharing!

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  70. I would use as centers during Math time or as enrichment activities during our additional intervention time. I teach 4th.

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  71. I teach 3rd grade and these would be great for enrichment!

    Stephanie B
    stephb_2001@hotmail.com

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  72. I am a 2/3 teacher and I would love these mats as part of our new and improved math rotations!!! (thanks to you!)

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  73. I teach grade three and these would be a great idea for fast finishers!

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  74. These look great. I have been looking for a "math" intervention for my class! Love teaching 3rd grade and your blog.

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  75. I'd love these mats. I am a special education resource and inclusion teacher for grades 1-8 so I need materials that are engaging and can be used with more than one grade level. Even though these are for 3rd grade I see many of my students benefiting from them.

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  76. I would use them for both centers and interventions. Oh and guided math!! I teach 2nd grade! :)

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  77. I love Carson-Dellosa and these sound great! I would use them with small flexible groups during guided math, for math workshop stations, and those who finish other tasks fast. I teach second grade.

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  78. Being my first year as a third grade teacher, I am looking for GREAT ideas like these for myclassroom! By the way, my kiddos love the whole brain stuff!

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  79. This would be perfect for my math workshop time!

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  80. I actually would love to win these for a colleague of mine. She just switched from teaching first grade for over 10 years, to 3rd grade. She would really find these useful as she navigates her way through the 3rd grade math curriculum.

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  81. This would be great for math rotations!!

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  82. I teach 4th grade and would use these mats in my math workshop....either in our "All by myself" time or our "Hands-on math with a friend"

    Amanda
    Peaches and Palmetto Trees

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  83. Would definitely use these as a part of Math Rotations! I just started them for the first time (ever!) this week. Seems like they could work as a part of Math Centers, Fact Practice, or Enrichment for my high guys on Mondays. Thanks!!

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  84. I teach third grade, and we implemented an intervention program district wide last year. I would love to use these Math Mats with the Tier 2 small group that I pull during our math time!

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  85. I'm in 2nd grade and I would love these for small group instruction and math stations.

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  86. I love how they are color coded and you can easily see the common core reference. I would love to use these in my math centers for early finishers or just extra practice! Thank you for sharing!

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  87. Would love to use these in Math Rotations in my 3rd Grade Classroom! Looks Great!

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  88. I would use them during Math Workshop for my independent group. I teach 3rd grade.

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  89. I teach 3rd grade. I would use these during my math rotations! Thanks for the giveaway!!!

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  90. During math centers/small group time! I teach 3rd!

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  91. This is my first year teaching, also in 3rd grade...those mats look awesome!!

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  92. This is my first year teaching third grade and these mats would really come in handy! My kiddos love centers so I would use them during small group first to make sure they understand how to use them. Then, I would use during independent time and group centers! Love, love, love!!

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  93. I teach fifth and these would be excellent to add to my classroom.

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  95. I teach fifth grade and these would be a wonderful way to add review practice during centers time. I would plan to set this up as it's own center, where children can chose a standard they are struggling with based on data, and practice on their own. I could also use them with students who are struggling with the standard we are working on that day.

    Check me out- I am a new blogger!
    http://5thgradeandfab.blogspot.com

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  96. I would use this with my third grade rotations as well!

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  97. I need to start doing math rotations.

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  98. These will be perfect for Math Centers!!!! I have been moved from Middle/High school to Middle Elementary and I am searching for ways to help me track Common Core plus keep our centers engaging!!!! This is perfect.

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  99. I am a first year teacher, teaching 3rd grade and am always looking for ideas to help make this year a little more easy! I have a few students who are above level in math and these would be great for them to use when they finish their class work.

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  100. They would be great during math rotations with my third graders!

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  101. AHH! I love these!! These would be perfect to use during Math Center time during YOUR Math Rotations that I launched with my kiddos this week!! I teach second grade :) :)

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  102. Would love to use these for either Math centers or early finishers centers!!!

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  103. I teach third and I plan on using these for centers!

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  104. I teach 3rd grade and would love to use these during math centers.

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  105. These would be perfect for my 3rd grades! FUN!

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  106. I teach 3rd grade and would use these for math rotations and centers.

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  107. I ran with your math rotations idea last year. Would use these in my math rotations as well. :)

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  108. I ran with your math rotations idea last year. Would use these in my math rotations as well. :)

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  109. I am doing your math rotations this year and they are running great! I would use these thinking mats with my second graders. :) Bforbes89@gmail.com

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  110. I'd use these as math centers during math rotations (which are working amazingly thank u!). I teach 3rd grade and we are a common core school.

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  111. I'd love to use these as math enrichment and perhaps students who need intervention. They look hands on and not overwheleming for students - it's lighter than carrying a textbook. :)

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