Why You Need More Plastic Eggs for Your Math Classroom

Plastic eggs are not just for an Easter egg hunts! After a delicious Easter meal, the kids take part in a large Easter egg hunt at my parent's house. There are so many good hiding spots and, as usual, the older kids dominate the hunt. Colorful, plastic eggs jingle with coins and jellybeans...chocolate and a dollar bills too, but only if you are lucky! After a few quick minutes, everyone gathers back on the porch. The kids quickly hide their money (after counting it, of course!) and throw their eggs into a large sack. While everyone is eating jelly beans and some eat chocolate, I begin my favorite activity of the post-Easter season! I re-purpose those colorful, plastic eggs and create rigorous math centers that can be used for the rest of the school year. While I hunt high and low for interesting eggs, I can never have enough. So, what's the big deal with plastic eggs? I'm glad you asked...

Top Five Reasons to Use Plastic Eggs in Your Math Centers

1. Plastic eggs are inexpensive...unless you buy an entire cart full of them. Guilty as charged!

Most of the eggs I buy are about 98 cents to $2.00 per package. Of course, the basic colorful eggs are most inexpensive, while the larger, themed eggs are most expensive. I try and think about what I would like to use them for before I buy so I can have a quantity in mind...but most of the time I just buy, at least, two packages. That way, I am guaranteed to have a little variety in whatever I end up creating! I mean, when you see cute eggs you just buy them...kind of like those Target erasers. Gasp!

2. Plastic eggs can be used year-round. There is so much diversity in the type of eggs you can buy, you can use them seasonally and/or with your classroom themes.

I have eggs with sports theme that I use during those seasons. I also use the animal-shaped eggs to coincide with teaching about organisms. I love making as many cross-curricular connections using math as possible. Not only is it a great way to spiral, or revisit, previously taught content, it also gets the students engaged with the theme!

3. Plastic eggs provide a hands-on, or tactile, way which stimulates the brain.

Tactile learning take place when the students are carrying out the actual physical activity! Whether the students are sorting through the eggs or opening them up, students are actively participating in the math center.

4. Plastic eggs are versatile.... they can be written on with a permanent marker, stickers can be added on them, and/or they can be filled!

Pick your favorite way to use plastic eggs, mix it up, or use them all! Plastic eggs allow you to use them creatively to accomplish your specific learning goals for math centers.

My favorite writing tool to use on plastic eggs is a regular Sharpie marker in black. It goes on nice and smooth. I tried the flip chart version of the marker and it left marks.

5. Plastic eggs are reusable! Not only can you have an amaaazing Easter egg hunt with them, but you can use them within a center.

Don't worry if you are late to the Easter egg party! If you create a last-minute center this year, it will be ready to go for next year! You can break apart the eggs to compress them for storage, creating towers of like ends. Perhaps, you can even find some eggs on clearance... fingers crossed!

I hope this post inspires you to go out and buy some plastic eggs, if you'd like to check out how I incorporate plastic eggs within my math centers, you can find it here!

Why would you buy plastic eggs for your math classroom?