When I think of long division, I instantly hear “Uggghhhhhhh” inside my head. Have you experienced this before? If not, I really envy you! I love teaching long division because once students master the sequence you can see so many lightbulbs turning on in your classroom.
As a math teacher, it’s really important we help every student master this skill. In sixth grade you aren’t introducing long division, but it’s your job to help your students to become masters. As students progress into more complex math, long division is going to be a foundational skill they need to be successful.
Division is used in everyday life from trying to figure out how many pizzas to order for a party to how much money you need to save each week to buy a car. So, let’s dig in and explore 10 versatile resources to help your students become masters in long division.
- Long Division Digital Escape Room
- Mazes: no remainders + with remainders
- Knockout Game for Long Division
- Long Division Digital and Printable Task Cards
- Mathgames.com
- Who Wants to be a Millionaire
- Long Division Digital Activity (Riddle)
- PBS LEARNING VIDEO
- NumberRock Song
- Illustrative Mathematics Task
Long Division Digital Escape Room
Escape rooms have become very popular over the years and your students are going to love being challenged by this activity. The Long Division Digital Escape Room is a digital resource that you can easily assign to students in Google ClassroomTM or other LMS.
The goal of an escape room is to solve different problems to find the answer to a mystery. Students have three different problems to solve that will provide them with a code. The codes tell you, as the teacher, if they answered the problems correctly. If students answer all three problems correctly, they will find out the answer to the pirate mystery.
For code #1, students will solve six long division problems and use the decoder wheel to match the correct letters. To solve code #2, students have five problems and five answers. They must match the correct quotient to match the letter choices to identify the correct order of numbers. For code #3, students are presented with six word problems. Once all six problems are answered, they must put them in order from least to greatest to get their final code.
Using an escape room in math gives your students something to look forward to. Not only do they want to solve the division problems correctly, but they also want to create the right codes. Escape rooms provide specific math skill practice, as well as puzzle solving opportunities.
Have you tried a digital math escape room yet? Teachers & students rave about them! To see what all the fuss is about, click the link below, drop your email, and we’ll send you this FREE digital math escape room!
This escape room is built in Google Slides and has 3 puzzles- one for combining like terms, one for distributive property, and the final one for solving 2-step equations. Grab yours today!
Long Division No Remainders Digital Activity (Maze) + Long Division (with and without remainders) Digital Activity (Maze)
Mazes are a great resource to use in your classroom. For this topic, we have two different options you can choose from. You can have all quotients be whole numbers without remainders, or you can have some quotients with remainders and others without.
Each resource comes with three different mazes and the answer key. You can choose to have students divide three-digit by one-digit, three-digit by two-digit, or four-digit by two-digit. Students begin at the start problem and move in the direction of the answer they found trying to get to the finish square.
Mazes are a fantastic tool to use in the classroom because they are very versatile. You can print one off for each student and assign it as their bell work, homework, or an exit ticket. There is no prep on your part and you can easily check student work. Students are very motivated by the mazes because it’s different from just solving ten questions on a simple worksheet.
Long Division Knockout Game
Our Long Division Knockout Game is a whole class activity that can be used as a review before a test. This resource is very similar to Jeopardy and will give you quick feedback about how prepared your students are.
This knockout game has four vocabulary questions, eight long division problems, and four word problems. Plus, three questions have a special *bonus* where students choose an icon and earn a *bonus* which could be good, or it could be bad. My students love this element of suspense!
To play a knockout game, give each student a game scoreboard (you could use individual white boards as well). There’s a box to do work for each problem that matches the icon on the specific slide. Students then record how many points they earned if they answered correctly. (read more about knockout games in this post)
You can have students work individually, in partners, or groups based on your classroom needs. I like to have rewards for my top three scorers so there’s an incentive to put in their best effort. Since the order of the questions doesn’t matter, I draw names and let students pick the icon they want to solve next.
Long Division Digital and Printable Task Cards
Task cards are one of my favorite resources because you can use them with five classes and use them differently with each class. The long division task cards come with a digital version through Google SlidesTM and a printable version with four cards per page.
There are lots of different ways to use task cards, which can be slightly overwhelming. When it comes to long division I find that my students all work at different paces. I like to use these cards in small groups, similar to centers. I usually give each student a card to work on and help one or two students one-on-one. Once a card has been solved correctly, I can quickly grab another card from my stack all while helping other students.
Another great way to use these task cards is with a variety of games. All kids want to get up and move around in the classroom. I’ve used these cards with a basketball game. I split the class into three or four groups. Each group works to solve the problem and presents me with their final answer. If it’s right, they earn a point. They can then earn additional points by shooting a basket from different marked locations.
Division with Remainder at mathgames.com
Every student wants to play games on a computer or tablet, and this link provides your students with that opportunity while also practicing long division. Students are given division problems to solve with a divisor up to 1,000. Students must enter the quotient and reminder.
**Make sure you explain to your students to put 0 if there isn’t a remainder so the game doesn’t score their answer as wrong.
The program has three levels for your students to work through. As they play through the game, the problems are going to become more complex. This is a fantastic resource for students to reinforce their knowledge of the long division sequence with instant feedback.
I like putting students into groups and have them compete against one another based on points they’ve earned. This website is also a great option for early finishers. Students will be excited to be playing a game but they’re still working on math with the rest of the class.
6th Grade Long Division Millionaire Game
I love this game because it requires no preparation on my part but provides my students with a complex game to practice long division skills. Students are presented with a long division problem, four possible answers, and 30 seconds to answer. If they answer correctly, they move up in earned money.
There are 15 total questions in the game. Students have three hints to use for the entire game, so they should use them wisely. When they answer incorrectly, they can use a hint to answer again. Once all three hints are used and they select a wrong answer again, they’re out of the game.
I like to use this game as a quick formative assessment. When students are out of the game, a percentage pops up with how many questions they answered correctly. I like to record them so I can see which students have it mastered and who needs additional help.
This game has the same problems every time, so I like to use it as a center or a whole class activity. For my students who need a challenge, I give them materials to create their own version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.
Long Division Digital Activity (Riddle)
This resource has two different riddles for you to use in your classroom. The first riddle, “What kind of dog has no tail?” has eight long division problems to solve with no remainders. The second riddle, “Which word in the dictionary is always spelled incorrectly?” has eight word problems.
There are several different ways to use riddles in your long division scope and sequence. I like to use them as exit tickets a day or two before a quiz. It gives students the opportunity to practice without becoming frustrated and I can quickly scan to see which students need more help.
You can print off a page for each student and have them turned back into you. If your school provides you with a limited number of copies, you can easily project the riddle onto a screen and have students use a half sheet of paper to write down their answers.
PBS Learning Media: Long Division (Video)
This video is about two minutes long and does a great job introducing long division. The animated video does a great job explaining why we use long division and reviewing specific math vocabulary.
This video is a great resource for an anticipatory set as well as a resource for my ELL students. Before showing the video, I write these discussion problems on the board. I show the video and have students write down their answers during the video and give them time afterwards to finish writing. Then we go through the questions together as a class.
- What does long division help you do?
- What is a dividend?
- Why does it help to think of a number in parts in long division?
NumberRock: Long Division Song
This catchy song is two minutes long and goes through the steps of long division. This video is a great tool because it provides visuals for students to understand the simple division and multiplication used. It also does a great job discussing remainders.
When I show this video, I like to give my students a challenge instead of discussion questions. After we listen to the song, we write down the steps on the board: Divide, Multiply, Subtract, Bring down. I give my class about three minutes to come up with a saying to remember the steps for long division.
The students love this extension activity because they get to be creative. Once everyone has shared their way to remember, I share mine: Does McDonald’s Sell Burgers. This provides students with a way to always know the next step and they take ownership in their own learning.
Illustrative Mathematics Tasks
Illustrative Mathematics has great resources for students who need a bit more challenge. There are lots of tools for students who need help with long division, but this link provides your higher students the opportunity to expand their minds.
The link will take you to the math task and provides a detailed description of how to find the answer and why the answer is correct. When you click “Student View” you’ll see the option to print the task. I like using this as an early finisher option so the students who have mastered division are still using their brains for math.
Creating Masters of Long Division
I hope these ten resources have given you the opportunity to think of different ways to help all of your students and the different types of learners in your classroom. Our goal is to provide you with quality resources so you can spend less time prepping and more time focusing on your students. Let us know which activity you use in your classroom and how your students responded!
