Marshmallow Math aka Let's Talk Place Value!

Learning about place value can be a difficult thing for kids. Heck, teaching place value can be a difficult thing! In order to add a little fun to the situation we decided to look at place value in a much more appetizing way. My kids were very excited to learn that we were going to work on place value with food.
Using marshmallows, fruit loops and toothpicks we set about learning place value and what each number place meant. I created a worksheet with columns naming each place up to the thousands place. The students placed one marshmallow in each square with a toothpick in the top. We used the fruit loops to represent each number.   
Using the fruit loops the kids would place the number of fruit loops needed to correspond with the number I told them. For example, if I said 4,321, the kids would place 4 fruit loops on the marshmallow in the thousands place, 3 in the hundreds place, 2 in the tens, and 1 in the ones place. This would allow them to see the value of each number with in the whole number given. We practiced this several times, each time having the kids write the numbers in the designated space below. We practiced reading each number out loud, and also breaking it into expanded form and putting it in word form. It definitely was a great way to introduce place value and the kids seemed to catch on quickly. However, the highlight of this activity for the kids was that they got to eat their math at the end of the project. They keep begging to have an eat your math day again soon! I consider this project to be a success both academically, and kid friendly.

Writing each number.

Placing the correct amount of fruit loops on the marshmallows.