The Robertson Program

Strengthening Fraction Skills Through Play | The Robertson Program | Ontario Institute for Studies in Education Fractions are one of the most challenging topics in math. We’ve focused our latest research and game development on helping students build strong, intuitive fraction knowledge through play. Try out tw...

Our latest blog post explores how we are using game based learning to help kids master fraction magnitude and equivalence. Read more about our Online Playful Math program and try our new games. #MathEd #Fractions #TheRobertsonProgram #TeacherResources www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/bl...

Bird Gliders Take a peek at what the students learned about flight and how that informed their creative designs!

How do birds fly? This question led Early Years students to build and test their own bird gliders. Read about their hypotheses and creative designs in our latest lesson plan. #ScienceEd #EarlyLearning #TheRobertsonProgram #STEM www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...

Fill Two Students practice modelling ones, tens, and hundredths, as they race to fill in a grid.

Looking for a fun way to teach fraction and decimal equivalence? Check out Fill Two from The Robertson Program. It is perfect for Junior and Intermediate students to build number sense through play. #MathGames #OISE #MathEd #ClassroomIdeas www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...

Teaching Fractions through Baking: A lesson for primary/junior students | The Robertson Program | Ontario Institute for Studies in Education This three-part, hands-on lesson uses baking to teach students how to understand, compare, and work with fractions. Students measure ingredients, double and triple recipes to practice adding and multi...

Students practice adding and multiplying fractions by scaling real recipes in this 3-part baking lesson. Practical, tasty, and educational! #MathTeacher #LessonPlan #Fractions #EdChat www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/bl...

Observing the Moon: Part 2 Tracking the moon and sun.

From moonrise to percentage illumination, students gather real data in this hands-on Moon inquiry. A perfect way to use the scientific research process to visualize the lunar cycle! #SciChat #EarthAndSpace #DataLiteracy #Astronomy www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...

Seeking Sounds in Our Neighbourhood Students will learn that sounds travel differently depending on their environment and the materials and surfaces around them.

From echoes to muffles: Teach students that sound isn't static! Students explore how variables like environment and materials impact sound transmission. #STEMEducation #PhysicsClass #Sound #LessonPlan www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...

Block Party Using their spatial skills, students transform and relocate unique shapes on a coordinate grid, attempting to avoid their opponent's pegs.

Master the grid! Students combine strategy and spatial skills to relocate shapes and avoid obstacles in this coordinate plane challenge. #STEMEducation #MathGames #Coordinates #ActiveLearning
www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...

Observing the Moon: Part 1 Introduction to the moon and our solar system.

Challenge your students to think like researchers! Part 1 of this unit asks students to identify light-emitting vs. light-reflecting bodies and tackle their own questions about the solar system. #StudentLed #ScienceTeacher #Space #SolarSystem www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...

Beat The Odds Get students thinking about experimental versus theoretical probability as they try to beat the odds in this board game!

Get students thinking about experimental versus theoretical probability as they try to beat the odds in this board game! #MTBoS #MathEd #GameBasedLearning #Probability
www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...

Roll and Build Bingo Students practice reading and representing numbers through a fun bingo game.

Students practice reading and representing numbers through a fun bingo game. #NumberSense #ReadingNumbers

www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...

Learning basic math facts using playful memorization | The Robertson Program | Ontario Institute for Studies in Education When the Ontario government rolled out its new math curriculum in 2020, it was touted as a “back-to-basics” approach.

Math fluency isn’t just memorization or strategy—it’s both. This article explains how mental math, automaticity, and playful learning can work together to support all learners. #MathFluency #MentalMath #NumberSense #MathStrategies www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/bl...

Last Landing Students practice performing reflections and translations, whilst using cardinal directions.

Students practice performing reflections and translations, while using cardinal directions on a grid or chess board. #Transformations #GeometryClass #Reflections #Translations #CoordinateGeometry www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...

Pythagorean Theorem In these series of investigations, students explore and deepen their understanding of the Pythagorean Theorem.

Students explore their understanding of the Pythagorean Theorem through four small group investigations using tiles and tangrams to show a^2 + b^2 = c^2. #HandsOnMath #Manipulatives #Tangrams #MathTiles #InquiryBasedLearning

www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...

Introduction to Patterning Students learn to recognize and extend patterns in different contexts, as well as identify features that define a pattern.

In this group activity, students identify features that define a pattern and then use their knowledge to extend a pattern. All that's needed is a whiteboard and dry-erase markers! #PatternRecognition #MathLearning #ClassroomActivity www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...

Measuring the Depth of Snow Snowfall can be a learning opportunity when students measure and compare the depth of the fallen snow each week.

Kindergarten students use measuring sticks and Unifix cubes to track and graph changes in snow depth in this outdoor inquiry activity. www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...

Visual Multiplication Students learn about a way of visually representing the multiplication of multi-digit whole numbers.

Students learn to visually represent the multiplication of multi-digit whole numbers by using the area model. #Multiplication #NumberSense www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...

Junior Daily Math Discussion | The Robertson Program | Ontario Institute for Studies in Education Grade 4/5 Teacher Zoe Donoahue shares the Daily Math Discussion she’s developed for junior grades. Her students use the number of days in school to explore factors, prime and composite numbers, fracti...

Grade 4/5 Teacher Zoe Donoahue shares the Daily Math Discussion she’s developed for junior grades. Her students use the number of days in school to explore factors, fractions, place value and more! #JuniorGrades #NumberSense www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/bl...

Patterns with Beads Children are challenged to make multiple patterns with beads of different sizes, shapes, and colours.

Learn to make multiple patterns with beads of different sizes, shapes, and colours through this fun small group activity. #EarlyMath #Patterns #HandsOnLearning www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...

Dice War Players aim to collect all the dice in the game. They roll to get a score, and the highest roll wins all the dice.

Welcome back! Teachers can start off the year with this small group activity where students will roll high to take it all 🎲 One throw decides who walks away with every die. #DiceGame #WinnerTakesAll #Probability www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...

From all of us at the Robertson Program, we hope you have a restful winter break! We can’t wait to share more exciting content with you in 2026!

Missing Puzzle Pieces Students develop reasoning and discussion skills by identifying the missing piece of a puzzle.

Students identify the missing piece of a puzzle using key characteristics, including number of sides, length of sides, angles, and lines of symmetry.
www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...

Unifix Counting Towers Students get their minds and hands engaged with numeracy while making Unifix Towers.

Students are invited to select a number card, read the number and build the corresponding "tower," to get their minds and hands engaged with numeracy in this one-on-one activity with an educator. www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...

Whole Number Bias and 3 Misconceptions about fractions in Junior Math | The Robertson Program | Ontario Institute for Studies in Education Whole number bias is the tendency to apply or misapply one’s understanding of whole numbers or natural numbers – the numbers we typically count with – to rational numbers. It makes sense that people m...

Junior students often have misconceptions about fractions such as incorrectly saying that one quarter (1/4) is larger than one third (1/3). Read to learn about effective fraction teaching strategies and activities that can be incorporated in the classroom. www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/bl...

Draw a Structure from 3 Different Views Students learn how to draw 2D/3D images while using accurate positional and directional language.

Students learn how to draw 2D/3D images while using accurate positional and directional language. www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...

Doubling Up Help children understand exponential growth and doubling with this fun hands-on activity.

Help children understand exponential growth and doubling with this fun hands-on activity using only five to ten manipulatives. www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...

Adding Up the Number Line In this addition and subtraction game players attempt to arrive exactly at 500 on the number line.

Students learn to add and subtract to 500 through this collaborative small group activity. www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...

Prime Factor Students decompose composite numbers and identify prime factors using factor trees.

Students decompose composite numbers and identify prime factors using factor trees. www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...

Card Collectors Students work in teams to determine the maximum, minimum, mean, median, mode and range of a group of playing cards.

Students work in teams to determine the maximum, minimum, mean, median, mode and range of a group of playing cards. www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...

Odds Using a probability line, students will make predictions informed by the likelihood of selecting a domino that is greater, equal, or lesser to the one in their hand.

Using a probability line, students will make predictions informed by the likelihood of selecting a domino that is greater, equal, or lesser to the one in their hand. www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...

Number Hunt Students practice one-to-one correspondence in this fun dice-rolling, bingo-dabbing game!

Students practice one-to-one correspondence in this fun dice-rolling, bingo-dabbing game. www.oise.utoronto.ca/robertson/le...