1st grade homework choice board

1st Grade Choice Boards

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Teaching with Jennifer Findley

Upper Elementary Teaching Blog

Choice Board Scoring Resources {Freebies}

Over the past year, I have received several questions about how I score the choice boards I use in my classroom. I decided to go ahead and compile my favorite choice board scoring resources and offer them for free. You can use these with choice boards that I create or with any choice boards you have. I have included a variety of different printables that you can choose from.

When the students have completed the work, I like for them to self assess themselves before turning it into me. I have included two different self assessment printables for your students to use: a rubric and a questionnaire. Use one or the other or use both.

The rubric requires the students to “score” themselves on specific categories. They highlight, color, or circle the descriptor that matches their work.

Need Choice Boards for Math and Reading?

Are you interested in purchasing full sets of choice boards for our grade level? Click on the grade level you teach to see choice boards for reading and math.

3rd Grade Choice Boards

4th Grade Choice Boards

5th Grade Choice Boards

Want some FREE choice boards to try out? Click here to read a blog post with more information about how to use choice boards and grab free ones!

Where do I get the free choice board scoring resources?

Grab all of these free choice board scoring resources mentioned in this post by clicking here or on the image below.

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Reader interactions.

September 4, 2015 at 12:00 pm

I love that you have students evaluate themselves first!

September 4, 2015 at 7:21 pm

I love this. Do you have any for lower grades (1st and 2nd – in particular, reading) or would it be okay to create some along the same format?

September 9, 2015 at 9:08 pm

Hi Sydney! My friend Cyndie at Chalk One Up for the Teacher has 1st and 2nd grade versions. You can find them at this link: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Chalk-One-Up-For-The-Teacher/Category/Choice-Boards

July 16, 2016 at 12:16 pm

Hello Jennifer, I was wondering how long you give your students to complete the board and when you give them new ones. I read your original blog post, but didn’t see anything about due dates. This looks like a great resource and I’m so excited to use!! Thanks!!

November 5, 2016 at 8:49 pm

I think your choice boards are great but I’m in Texas and we don’t use Common Core. Do you know of anyone in Texas who has something similar for the TEKS? Thanks. Jana

April 7, 2017 at 1:50 pm

Do you happen to have these for sixth grade?

April 11, 2017 at 7:22 pm

Hi Deb, I don’t have 6th grade resources. Thanks for asking though!

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1st Grade Homework Choice Boards for All Year

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Let’s be honest - many of us wouldn’t give homework if we didn’t have to...kids need time to be kids! These choice boards are made to provide fun, engaging homework activities that won’t bog down your students and their families with tons of busywork. Some activities each month are designed to loosely relate to first grade standards, while others are intended to encourage fine or gross motor development, social emotional development, or just plain old curiosity and creativity! 

This resource includes: 

• a choice board for every month August-June
• editable version if you want to make your own
• a family letter that you can use to inform parents about the homework
• story paper, picture paper, and list paper to go with some of the choices 

All you’ll need to do is specify the number of choices students should complete and the date it should be turned in. (You can either write it in and make copies or just add text box). Students check off each box they complete, their parents sign, and done. Easy peasy for all involved!! 

** By the way, some of these activities can provide great conversation starters for morning meeting or circle time!

I hope the resource can take the headaches out of homework for you, your students, and their families. Enjoy!

Visit Teacher's Tribe for more great resources

"HW" that adds to family time!

Posted by Michellle Dawson on Jun 26th 2020

As a teacher, I know we often HAVE to assign homework. As a parent, I feel like I am being assigned work. This resource combines the best of both worlds with activities like, "tell someone about your day," and "make a surprise gift for someone you love." Allows the student to be creative and the parent to have fun with their kid!

Posted by Teri Lina on Jun 24th 2020

This is very well-put together! I love the choice options for my students, and how it involves zero prep on my end. Thank you!

Posted by Debbie Mendoza on Jun 23rd 2020

These are great practical ideas for homework. Thanks for all the goodies I can send home with my students!

HW Choice Board

Posted by John on Jun 22nd 2020

This is so good! I love ready to use resources and this is perfect! I love that it can easily be adapted to distance learning too.

Monthly Homework Choice Boards

Posted by Nancy B on Jun 22nd 2020

I love this. The homework choices are fun and educational. Everything is clear and well thought out. An editable version is included for teachers who want to tweak it for their needs, which is great. Disclosure: I received a free copy of this product in exchange for my honest review.

1st Grade HW Choice Boards

Posted by Amber DeLong on Jun 22nd 2020

I like that this product included a whole year of choice boards. I also liked that it had a message to parents at the beginning explaining sending choice boards home versus traditional homework.

Posted by Rachel Williams on Jun 22nd 2020

As the parent of a little one, I could only hope his teachers are this creative!

Totally Fun Activities!

Posted by Gena Mayo on Jun 21st 2020

I'll be honest. Before I saw this, I had never heard of a homework choice board before! Basically, it means the student gets to choose which activities he or she will do for homework. There is a huge variety of options that change each month. The teacher determines how many the student needs to do for each month and when it's due. Then, the student chooses what they'd like to do! A few of my favorite choices were: "Find a tree outside with pretty leaves. Give it a name and draw it!" "How many things can you think of that start with the letter H?" "Pretend to run a store. Ask a friend or family member to play with you." (Disclosure: I received a free copy in order to write this completely honest review.)

Great Idea!

Posted by Melanie Miller on Jun 21st 2020

I love that students choose! What a great way to get to know your students! Family involvement is a PLUS! Great for homeschoolers too! Fun fun!!

Excellent Writing for the early elementary!

Posted by Matthew Forman on Jun 21st 2020

This is super for both the traditional student and the home schooling family! I love the choices, teachers can set up daily, weekly, or monthly assignment requirements and students can have the entire month to complete these! And some of the simplicity of the assignments - as easy as looking out a window! Thanks!

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How I Use Choice Boards to Increase Student Engagement

Because we all know one-size-fits-all lessons don’t exist.

One of the most common challenges that teachers face is planning engaging, hands-on lessons that are accessible to all students. Teachers know that a one-size-fits-all approach doesn’t work. That’s why I’m a big fan of the choice board. Choice boards can be implemented for any grade level or subject. They typically include a wide array of activities of varying difficulty. As a result, all students, regardless of learning style, are able to get the skills and learning they need.

Here’s how I use choice boards in my classroom.

The setup of a choice board is simple. First of all, I plan at least nine activities that can be done at stations or centers around the classroom. Each activity is then assigned a point value based on the level of difficulty or work required to complete it. Students must acquire a certain number of points by doing activities of their choice.

When I introduce the activity to the class, I distribute the choice board and review directions orally as students follow along. Next, I walk around the room, visiting each station and explaining each activity. That way, students know where to find them and what to do. At each station, I place another set of directions, this one specific to that activity. I have found this  extremely helpful, especially for students who need information presented in smaller chunks. Of course, everything that students need to complete the activity is waiting for them at the station. This really helps avoid confusion.

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Choice boards should offer a variety of activities that appeal to all learning styles.

Another benefit of using choice boards for inclusion classes is that modifications can easily be made without students feeling different or separated from their peers. A professional development seminar that my school held on UDL (Universal Design for Learning) really resonated with me. CAST, a nonprofit education research and development organization, defines UDL as “a framework to improve and optimize teaching and learning for all people based on scientific insights into how humans learn.” This approach really motivated me to be extra diligent in creating lessons that were accessible to all learners.

Here are examples of activities from the choice board shown above:

Choice boards require a decent amount of preparation, but their outcomes are worth the extra time.

The students are learning, but they are also having fun while doing it. When students get to select the activities they do, they are involved in their own learning. This sets them up for success, and as a result the classroom becomes a safe haven for them. Consequently, they develop a positive attitude toward education.

Students also appreciate a teacher who they know is willing to go the extra mile for them. They can tell when a teacher thought outside of the box while planning assignments. If you’re looking to create an engaging, hands-on lesson that allows students to take ownership of their own learning, then give choice boards a try. 

Have you tried choice boards in the classroom? Come and share your experiences in our WeAreTeachers HELPLINE group on Facebook. 

Plus, how I engage middle and high school readers by offering more student choice.

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11 Choice Board Templates You Can Use Tomorrow in Your Classroom

February 16, 2022.

Choice Boards are an amazing learner-centered practice you can use to engage your students, provide choice, and easily differentiate instruction.

Rather than start from scratch, we’ve pulled together our favorite choice board templates created by amazing educators.

All you have to do is click the link to access the template, make your own copy, and start customizing. Let’s dive in!

• What is a Choice Board?
• Getting Started Guide
• Template #1: 9 Square Design your Own Digital Choice Board
• Template #2: Creative Book Trailers Ideas
• Template #3: Geography Fun Choice Board
• Template #4: Digital Breakout
• Template #5: Digital Menu for Student Creation

Template #6: Choose Your Own Adventure (Slides & Forms)

• Template #7: Show What You Know
• Template #8: Genius Hour
• Template #9: Fortnite Digital Choice Board
• Template #10: Design Your Own Choice Board
• Template #11: Flexible Choice Board 

What is a Choice Board? 

A choice board, also known as a learning menu, is a great way to differentiate learning for students and allow them to demonstrate mastery at the end of a unit as well.

Choice boards can be created in various formats, but a simple way to think of them is as a graphic organizer. 

Credit: Tom Spall

With digital tools, you can take static, paper format activities and bring them to life.

Choice boards also help to engage students, give them choice in the way they learn, and create a more interactive learning experience. 

Choice boards are pretty easy to create and the best part is you can be creative in how and where you build it, so it’s customized to your students’ needs. 

Below you’ll find eleven plug and play templates you can use right away in your classroom.

It might seem a bit daunting to start from scratch so all you need to do is make a copy of the template and start customizing.

If you’re new to choice boards, here are a few guides to get you started: 

• The Ultimate Guide to Choice Boards and Learning Menus
• The Complete Beginner’s Guide to Choice Boards

Below you’ll find tons of choice board templates created by amazing educators that you can use across multiple grade bands and content areas. All you have to do is click on the link and you’ll get your very own copy to use in your classroom.

Template #1: 9 Square Design your Own Digital Choice Board – Catlin Tucker

>>> Click here to access the template (this link will prompt you to make your own copy)

This choice board template is created by Catlin Tucker and it follows the classic 9 square model.

This allows students to follow a tic-tac-toe approach where they can complete any three activities in a row on this board.

With this format, you can organize a column by a specific topic, skill, or standard.

The best part about this template is that it gives you the structure to easily design your own choice board, but you can really make it your own. 

Elementary 9 Square Template

• Kindergarten Tic-Tac-Toe Choice Board – Math and ELA – A.J. Juliani

Template #2: Creative Book Trailers Ideas – #BISDwired team

  >>>Click here to access the template

This choice board template was created by the #BISDwired team and it shows you how you can create a choice board that uses several different types of tech tools and platforms to create an engaging experience for all students.

This choice board includes a project-based learning element and focuses on book trailers, but you can use this format for any content area. 

Template #3: Geography Fun Choice Board – Shannon Miller

>>> Click here to access the template

This one is for all of the elementary geography teachers! Shannon Miller has created a great choice board with BrainPop videos, games, maps, and more that students can interact with to learn about geography. 

You can make a copy at the link above and use it right away in your classroom or switch it up and add in your own resources and activities for students to complete. 

Template #4: Digital Breakout – Lauren Hawkins

>>> Click here to access the directions on how to create this .

You can also use a choice board to create a breakout activity for your students where they work together or on their own to solve tasks and problems to move to the next step and complete the activity.

This is a fun way to engage your students and increase collaboration!

Lauren has put together an amazing resource with all of the directions, templates, and how-to videos at the link listed above. 

Template #5: Digital Menu for Student Creation – Tom Spall

This choice board combines multiple tech tools and platforms to provide choice with different activities that range from low tech – to high tech options.

This also allows students to build upon skills like communication and creativity, as well as develop new tech skills. 

***For the Google Slides Templates make sure you present the slides for the links to work

• The Secret Villiage – Created by Nathan Gildart
• Math Sample #1 (Friends Theme) – Created by Nathan Gildart
• Math Sample #2 – Created by Nathan Gildart
• The Lost Baby Tiger Template – Slyvia Duckworth
• Left Home Alone –  Created by Nathan Gildart
• The Online Adventures of Mousy and Mickey – Created by Nathan Gildart
• Choose Your Own Adventure Template – Created by Nathan Gildar

A choose your own adventure choice board is a great way to give yourself a break from presenting or delivering a lesson.

With this choice board, you can give students voice and choice in how they learn and they can go at their own pace to complete the lesson asynchronously.

We’ve linked some of our favorite choice board templates above for you to get started with.

Template #7: Show What You Know – Lisa Highfill

>>> Click here to access the templates

This type of choice board is pretty self-explanatory, but the templates linked above allow students to express themselves and choose to demonstrate their learning in the way that works best for them.

This choice board format also provides students the opportunity to use different types of technology to build new skills or refine current ones.

Template #8: Genius Hour – Christine Perkins

Genius hour is an amazing learner centered strategy that allows students to focus on projects of their choosing for one hour each week.

Genius hour is always a hit with students and it can help them identify hidden skills, develop their skills and find topics they’re passionate about.

Sometimes these boards can take longer to create so this is why we’ve pulled together a template you can use right away or copy and customize for your classroom. 

Template #9: Fortnite Digital Choice Board – Tom Spall

This is a fun template that students get really excited about!

They can create a project in the format of their choosing and this template also fosters collaboration.

You can use this template for any unit, project, or content area by customizing the options students can choose from. You can make a copy of this template and add in projects or activities that are aligned to your rubric. 

Template #10: Design Your Own Choice Board – Nick LaFave

This is a simple choice board template you can follow and all you have to do is add in images and text.

The template linked above will prompt you to make your own copy and you can customize it to fit your needs. 

Template #11: Flexible Choice Board – Knikole Taylor

An amazing educator, Knikole Taylor has designed this template to help you quickly and easily create a choice board for any subject area.

You can use this template time and time again. The link above will prompt you to make a copy. 

So…What Do You Think Of These Choice Board Templates?

Now we want to hear from you.

Leave a comment and share your favorite choice board template that isn’t in this post or which template you’re going to use first!

Looking for more resources?

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[…] 11 Choice Board Templates You Can Use Tomorrow in Your Classroom […]

I love the Genius Hour template, but it says I don’t have access. Is it possible the owner could change share settings?

Hi Hannah, Thank you for reaching out! The owner has changed the share settings and unfortunately we haven’t had any luck in getting the settings changed. I’m so sorry! I will reach out to our training team and see if they have other resources like this.

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Choice Boards for Distance Learning

Susan Jones April 25, 2020 Leave a Comment

This post may contain affiliate ads at no cost to you. See my disclosures for more information.

Choice boards are great for fostering student independence at all times of the school year, but they may be even more important now during distance learning.

Each student has a completely different family situation going on at this time and students may not be able to complete the same types of assignments. I took this into account when creating different choice boards for kindergarten, first grade, and second grade.

For each grade, I created boards for math, literacy, writing, and indoor/outdoor fun!

There are 4 weeks worth of choices for each category. Some first-grade examples would include:

• MATH: Draw a picture and solve 80-30
• LITERACY: make a list of 3 words that rhyme with pole
• WRITING: make a list of 3 presents you would like to receive for your next birthday
• INDOOR/OUTDOOR FUN: have an indoor or outdoor picnic for lunch

Each choice is meant to be quick to complete and they are standards-based. This way you, as the teacher, can assign however many boxes you want per week, and students can look through and decide what they would like to do!

My own 5-year-old has been loving the kindergarten version for literacy and math, and both my boys have loved the indoor/outdoor fun boards! Here they are enjoying an indoor picnic on a rainy day a couple of weeks ago:

Knowing that many teachers are unable to send physical packets to their students, I went ahead and made a digital version of these boards and included them within the unit as well! The digital version also has an editable form for each mat. This way you can type in whatever skills you want your students to work on!

To see the choice boards for each grade level, just click the images below:

I shared a bit about why I love choice boards and shared some free math ones over in my YouTube video a few weeks back. You can check that out here:

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Literacy Choice Boards

By Mary Montero

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When I first started using novel studies , I felt like I had to have elaborate packets of text-specific comprehension questions for each book we read. I was concerned about comprehension, accountability, and assessment. However, time and experience has taught me that students really thrive on choice and that there are ways to still provide rigorous reading practice without novel-specific activities. Enter, literacy choice boards!

How Literacy Choice Boards Work

Each choice board has a variety of activities that appeal to different learning styles. As a teacher, I determine how many activities students need to complete from each board and if there are any requirements. For example, sometimes I might ask students to select one activity from each column or row. 

Then students complete the activities in their reading journals during independent reading time. These activities can also become great discussion points during reading groups or centers when students share their journals. The work provides me valuable information about students’ comprehension and can also be used as assessments if needed.

Ready-To-Use Literacy Choice Boards

If you’re just starting out, differentiated choice boards are a great choice. My students always have these in their reading journals. The boards include dozens of prompts for responding to text and can be used for independent responses or literature circles. They meet many different learning styles and cover Bloom’s Taxonomy too. 

I also have two free choice boards for incorporating writing and vocabulary into your novel study. Each one has 9 different and creative ways to respond to almost any novel. 

You can download all four literacy choice boards for FREE here!

When you want your students to practice specific reading skills with their novel, I recommend using skill-based novel study choice boards . There are 33 different options here to practice fiction and nonfiction skills, including 5 specific genre related boards.

More Ways To Respond To Text

If you need even more options, my students also love these reading response task cards . I use these to engage students in thoughtful discussions and written responses about their reading all year long. The goal of these cards is to move your students beyond basic, literal understanding of what they are reading and branch out into inferential, critical thinking. Plus just like choice boards, they work with almost any book!

Mary Montero

I’m so glad you are here. I’m a current gifted and talented teacher in a small town in Colorado, and I’ve been in education since 2009. My passion (other than my family and cookies) is for making teachers’ lives easier and classrooms more engaging.

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Using Choice Boards to Boost Student Engagement

Giving students options for how they demonstrate their learning is a good way to ignite their curiosity.

How do you make learning effective, engaging, and student driven when students aren’t physically in the classroom? That’s been the question on our minds for quite some time now. One team of education leaders in North Carolina found a solution that drastically changed instruction throughout the state, and it’s something you might already be familiar with.

As teachers and students transitioned to fully remote instruction, the English language arts (ELA) team created choice boards that teachers could copy and adjust to meet the needs of their students. The boards—which could be assigned virtually or printed out in packets—were organized by grade band and filled with standards-aligned activities as well as scaffolds that enabled children to be able to complete the work alone. Check out the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction’s ELA choice boards here .

Choice boards improved remote learning in our virtual classrooms, increasing student engagement and ownership, and even making our students more eager to dig into their assessments and homework.

Here are some tips to get started with implementing choice boards—whether students are in person, learning remotely, or a mixture of both—as well as some lessons learned along the way.

Assessments

Choice boards add a new dimension to your classroom, offering an alternative to standard assessments and empowering students to choose how they show their mastery of a topic. Additionally, they provide educators with a variety of ways to check for student understanding. If you’ve ever had your eyes glaze over as you regarded the night’s looming stack of 120 freshmen essays to grade, this could be the refreshing twist you’re looking for.

Imagine that you’re working with your middle school English class on analyzing complex characters in The House on Mango Street . You can unpack the standard with your students and create a rubric with them (or we love this idea of success criteria), then brainstorm ideas for activities.

Try incorporating your students into the process and get their input on how they’d like to demonstrate what they’ve learned. For example, students might suggest developing a movie trailer to illustrate their mastery of the standard, drafting a series of diary entries from the main character, or creating a series of podcast episodes. Allowing for student involvement in the creation of the choice boards increases their ownership and follow-through.

A few pointers:

• Keep in mind, some learners do prefer traditional assessments, so leave those as an option in the choice board.
• You don’t have to start from scratch; there are free choice board templates available online.

Choice boards can be used in place of a homework packet—giving students the autonomy to choose how they practice skills they learned during the school day.

But choice boards can also serve as a way to engage with parents and caregivers. A family homework choice board can encourage education-centered family time at home, while simultaneously informing caregivers about topics and skills their child is learning at school.

What might this look like? Let’s say you are teaching a third-grade class and a parent has asked you for the homework. Share the optional homework choice board—activities might include finding three examples of this week’s syllable type in books from their book bin, reading high-frequency words to a family member, or practicing the high-frequency words on an online app.

• Before sending home a homework choice board, allot time to guide your students through the process—practicing it in the classroom first. Think of it as a mini-lesson.
• Evaluate limitations or access issues that may arise for some students when working at home. Things to consider include access to technology, access to materials, and time asked of the parents/caregivers in assisting.

Remote Learning

Remote learning days are far from a thing of the past. Whether these days are scheduled ahead of time in the school’s calendar or utilized as an alternative to closing the building for severe weather or recurring outbreaks of Covid, schools can be proactively prepared by creating district or schoolwide choice boards that teachers can easily access.

Ideally, these can be tweaked by teachers themselves easily so that students can complete them over and over again. Educators can switch out the text and activities at their discretion to update them.

• Move from fluff to rigor by being intentional with learning outcomes and alignment to state standards. (Find tips at Aligning Curricular Decisions with Student Voice ). Make sure that you aren’t just creating busywork but are truly creating assignments that are standards aligned.
• Get a team involved to make the lift lighter. The North Carolina Department of Public Instruction had teams of educators work together to create a universal set of choice boards that could be accessed by teachers statewide—many hands make short work.
• We’ve used choice boards not only with K–12 students but with our teachers in training as well. Offering people choice in assignments does equate to a lot more emails to answer from our graduate students. But that’s something we were more than happy to take on.

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Creating Choice Boards to Meet the Needs of Every Student

FAQs about using choice boards

When I am asked to share a guest blog on websites, I hope I serve as a partner alongside my fellow educators to engage students in purposeful and complex activities. I am in awe of the thousands of responses Achieve the Core received to my last post Giving Students a Choice with Their Learning via the comments section, on Twitter, and on Facebook.

Teachers of every grade level and several subject areas shared their excitement, their questions, and their ideas about using choice boards with their students.

John Hattie, author and educational researcher of influences and effect sizes related to student achievement, states student efficacy has a .92 effect size on student learning (Visibile Learning 2019). Student efficacy is the understanding that pupils believe they can achieve a complex goal or outcome. Choice boards give students the opportunity to have a choice in showing what and how they have learned.

My goals for this post are to answer several of the most popular questions that were asked after my original choice board blog was published and inspire more teachers to share this “best practice” with their students.

How do I create a choice board?

I always keep the “end goal” in mind when I choose to create a choice board for my students. I look at the cluster of standards I am teaching and decide what I want my students to accomplish as they complete the assignments on the board. Choice boards can be as small as three choices and as large as 12 choices depending on the purpose.

How do I make sure choice boards do not become busy work for me or for my students?

Choice boards allow students to have a choice on how they will show their learning. It is important to include a cluster of standards (e.g., Numbers Base Ten for math or comparing characters, setting, and theme in a complex text) in order to create a variety of options. I do not use the boards for early finishers because I want everyone to have equal access to them.

Where do I get my ideas for choice boards?

I am a firm believer that two or more heads are better than one, thus I brainstorm choice board ideas with my grade level and my instructional coach. My students have also served as contributors to several choice boards throughout the year especially for our #softstart Morning Choice and for our novel studies. I also ask my Professional Learning Network (PLN) via Twitter for ideas.

How do I grade choice boards?

I only grade choice boards when they are completed in class. I create a rubric and share it with my students to show them how each choice will be graded. Daily check-ins are an integral part of ensuring my students are choosing challenging choices with a purpose. I do not grade homework choice boards. The goal of my homework choice board is to encourage families to read, discuss, and learn together.

How do I differentiate choice boards to meet the needs of all of my students?

All students should have access to complex problems, rigorous tasks, and quality text. Therefore, I may use color choices on some boards. The red choices might include technology; the blue choices might include inquiry options; yellow choices could include checking in with the teacher when they complete the task, and the green choices could be constructed responses. This ensures students have a supervised choice in order to have multiple entry points. Some choices might need a teacher’s support, while other choices might be completed with a partner or independently.

How do I make certain every student will be interested in one or more choices on the choice board?

One of the easiest ways to have students buy into choice boards is to start with a non-academic one. I start the beginning of the year with a “get to know you” choice board. Students can choose two or three choices to help all of us get to know each other. Building relationships is an intricate part of implementing choice boards successfully.

What technology could I include in the choice boards?

Including intentional technology in choice boards is a great way to engage our learners. Apps and web-based programs like @Flipgrid, @IMovie, @TEDTalks, @BrainPop, @Newsela, @ReadWorks,@Seesaw, QR Codes, and Google Classroom are just a few options out there. What other apps and web-based programs could you include? Let me know in the Comments section below.

What are some alternatives to Choice Boards?

Gamification is another way to engage students through choice. John Meehan is a high school teacher and author of Edrenaline Rush . His book and his website have several resources to start you on your journey. Michael Matera is the author of XLAP, and his website includes strategies you can implement immediately in your classroom to promote choice in learning.

Choice Boards can be used in every grade level and with any and all subject matter. Choice gives our students a voice in their learning.

• ELA / Literacy
• Mathematics

2 thoughts on “ Creating Choice Boards to Meet the Needs of Every Student ”

Thank you for sharing this wonderful blog! I will be adjusting a few things during my morning choice! I love that this is so purposeful.

Choice boards allow students to have choice and voice in the classroom. It allows them to pick their partners, choose their literary skill to focus on, choose their medium in which to illustrate mastery of that skill, choose methods of further learning the skill, be creative, innovative and problem solve. It also provides a great opportunity for one on one and group instruction as well as redirection and reteaching as the students have questions and are solving problems.

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About the Author: Tika Epstein is celebrating her twenty-fifth year in education. She currently serves as a fourth/fifth-grade interventionist and instructional coach at an elementary school in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tika also mentors new teachers and facilitates professional development at the site and District level. Please reach out to Tika via Twitter @tikaee or by email [email protected] with questions or to collaborate on a Choice Board.

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Math Choice Boards for Elementary School

Is your classroom filled with students with diverse backgrounds who learn at different rates and require a variety of activities to learn? That was a rhetorical question, as the answer is “yes” to practically every classroom. When I taught, my third-grade classroom was often filled with rich conversations with each student bringing their unique point of view and ideas about math to the conversation. Allowing student voice and choice in the classroom is crucial to maintaining student motivation, and research shows that choice boards are an exemplary way of establishing both .

A major goal in education is to differentiate instruction that enables all learners with access to learn the content. By introducing choice board activities into classrooms, students become collaborators in their learning process. A 2003 study by Fuchs et al. showed that by giving students agency in deciding how they would like to practice, choice boards can enhance students’ metacognitive awareness, that is their ability to think about how they learn and where they are in the learning process.

What Are Choice Boards for Math?

So, what are choice boards anyway? Choice boards provide students with a menu of activities that can be used to demonstrate knowledge or practice a skill. Math, in particular, lends itself well to clear, definable avenues to practice and demonstrate knowledge. Math “menu” choice board activities can be designed to practice at levels based on the depth of knowledge required to complete the activity, allowing students to choose activities that enhance fluency, problem-solving, creative applications, and more.

For example, a choice board for third grade multiplication might include activities where students:

• Play a multiplication game to recall products to 100.
• Make groups to find products.
• Create a book of arrays and their products.
• Explain the distributive property to another student.

Each of these activities practices skills within the domain of numbers and operations in base 10, but the activities span different depths of knowledge, in effect requiring different skill levels. Eventually all students are expected to be able to complete all of these activities, but providing a choice board allows students the autonomy to decide where they are in the learning process and how they would best like to demonstrate their understanding.

Here are some ways to get started with making choice boards for students:

• Identify the Teaching Objective: Will this be morning work? Informal assessment? Independent practice? Once they are routine, choice boards can be used for a variety of purposes.
• Identify the Learning Objective: What do you expect students to learn or demonstrate through these activities? This can be specific to one skill or standard or more generalized to include an entire domain or cluster of standards.
• Gather Resources : What resources do you have that can be used to populate the choice board? Filtering for a particular skill or standard on your curriculum’s digital platform can reveal a treasure trove of activities and resources.
• Collaborate with Students: Our students know themselves best! Bringing students in to help with choice board planning gives them more ownership over the process which will ultimately contribute to the success of this classroom routine.

Math Choice Board Ideas to Create Dynamic Learning Opportunities

The medium with which students demonstrate their knowledge is so important. Students come to us with a variety of backgrounds. Reflecting their interests and experiences in the activities we provide access to honors our students as individuals and communicates to them that everyone belongs in our classroom.

One of my students only wanted to build things, so when I handed him base-ten blocks to model multiplication of large numbers, of course he wanted to construct something with them. At one point, I might have only seen that as playing—not learning math—but playing is how kids learn. So I invited him instead to build a city with the blocks, as long as the city’s sections were made up of equal groups and he could tell me the total product of each section. I knew I was on to something when I saw look of joy on his face as he completed the task in the way that I had guided.

Here are some math choice board ideas to create dynamic personalized learning opportunities for students in your classroom:

• Build a Model: For example, a popular third-grade multiplication activity is to create an array city with construction paper. Students can draw buildings and glue windows as arrays prior to identifying the products. Display array cities around the classroom.
• Draw a Picture: This can be as simple as asking kindergartners to draw a shape, or you can provide a word problem and ask students to draw a picture that represents the problem.
• Make a Poster: This can be a creative and colorful way for students to demonstrate their knowledge of a math concept. Consider inviting students to present their posters, or have a gallery walk and discuss the posters at the end of a unit.
• Write a Song: Do you have students that love music? This is a way to get them to shine. Younger students can sing a song without having to write it down, and older students can write a poem or rap instead. This can lead into many math lessons as well, for example counting beats or measuring a song’s speed.
• Create a Word Problem: This activity gives students the opportunity to notice patterns in the word problems that they have solved to create a problem with the same structure. Challenge students by having them trade problems with a peer to solve.
• Make a Book: Students can make a reference book that includes the vocabulary for a particular topic or a list of steps to solve a type of problem. Students could also make a more in-depth book that explains a process or concept. It all depends on the depth of knowledge that you set for the activity.
• Teacher Time: You can also add teacher time as an option for any student who feels that they may need extra help or review of the topic.

Integrating Technology in Math Choice Board Activities

Whether through laptops, tablets, or interactive whiteboards, technology has found a permanent place in many of our classrooms. Integrating technology into our classroom activities can also motivate reluctant learners. Additionally, choice boards for math can be delivered digitally through your learning management system.

Here are some additional activities you can add to your choice board to integrate technology:

• Make a Movie: A short video explaining a topic can be as small-scale as a student talking for 30 seconds into a phone camera. It can also be a larger project that involves video editing and multiple students.
• Create a Slideshow: Rather than creating a video, students can instead focus on creating individual slides for a slideshow that demonstrates their knowledge and teaches their peers.
• Play a Game: There are many online resources—including Math 180 and Waggle —that offer games for practicing math. Games are an especially powerful way to develop fluency.
• Use Virtual Manipulatives: Students struggling to understand a concept with physical manipulatives may respond better to virtual ones instead. Look for activities that let students create models and solve problems using virtual manipulatives.
• Complete an Online Lesson: Students especially may prefer to watch lessons as online videos then demonstrate their knowledge using digital practice problems.

Technology can also help you make choice boards interactive and easy to navigate for your students.

• QR Codes: QR codes are links that can be printed on a piece of paper. There are many free QR code generators online. They are great for printed choice boards that include digital activities. Students point their device camera at the QR code and a link pops up leading them directly to the activity.
• Shared Documents: Shared documents that contain links to each digital activity make choice board assignments easy to organize and manage. You can also display a choice board on an interactive whiteboard for the whole class to see rather than making individual copies for each student.
• Slideshows: Linking between slides makes slideshows an excellent option for choice boards. The first slide can be the choice board with the remaining slides providing the routines for each activity and links to resources to complete the activity. Each choice in the first slide links to the slide with the description of the routine.

Strategies for Implementing Math Choice Board Activities for Learning and Assessment

As with all new classroom activities, introducing choice boards should be accompanied by a well-organized and well-planned routine. Once students decide on an activity, they will need to know what part of the classroom to go to and what supplies they will need.

In the Classroom

Your choice board routine may also need to account for potential pitfalls. For example, if many students choose the same activity, there may be crowding in one classroom area. One solution to this could be to have sign-up sheets for certain activities, or to distribute the materials for popular activities to more than one corner in the room.

Consider beginning with a smaller two-by-two choice board. Then gradually introduce more activities as students demonstrate understanding of the expectations for each activity. Here are some strategies you can use for implementing choice boards in the classroom:

• Morning Work: Present students a choice in how they will start the school day.
• Centers: Use the choice board as a way for students to decide which center they will work at. Consider challenging students to cross off each center once they have completed it so that they complete a different activity the next time.
• Independent Practice: Create a class routine where students choose an activity from the choice board for independent practice while you teach a small group.
• Classroom Game: The choice board itself can be a game . Students can roll a number cube to choose an activity, or different activities can be assigned point values based on their difficulty.

Each choice board can be used once or across several days depending on its purpose and objective, but the routine for the choice boards should be consistent. That way, students buy in to the use of choice boards.

Out of the Classroom

Create general routine-based choice boards that students paste in the front of their notebook. Then you can assign students to complete a certain number of activities over a unit or topic for homework. The choice here then includes both which activities to complete and which order to complete them in. For younger students, homework choice boards can include activities to be completed with family members or objects they might have at home. For example, they might tell their favorite toy all about the shapes in their home or go on a shape scavenger hunt with a family member.

Choice boards can be used to list options for a final project-based assessment made up of relevant performance tasks. A point structure for each choice can be included to account for different levels of understanding. Students can then be instructed to complete an activity at each point level to demonstrate understanding.

Get Started with These Math Choice Board Templates

We created a blank choice board template so you can give your students a choice board that matches their interests and the content you’re teaching.

• Blank Choice Board Template

We also created templates that are filled out with math choice board activities for geometry, spanning Grades K–5.

• Kindergarten Math Choice Board Template

• 1st Grade Math Choice Board Template

• 2nd Grade Math Choice Board Template

• 3rd Grade Math Choice Board Template

• 4th Grade Math Choice Board Template

The 4th grade choice board references the video “ Math at Work: Math Meets Homebuilding .”

• 5th Grade Math Choice Board Template

The 5th grade choice board references the video “ Math at Work: Math Meets Fashion ,” along with the game Coordinates Secrecy , which requires a group of 2–4 students.

Math Choice Boards: Increasing Student Agency

Choice boards are a powerful tool for increasing student agency and engagement in math classrooms. By offering a range of activities, students can take ownership of their learning and demonstrate understanding in ways that suit their individual needs.

Choice boards accommodate diverse learning needs, foster metacognitive awareness, and can be used for various purposes, such as assessment or independent practice. Integrating technology enhances the experience, and implementing a consistent routine is crucial. By incorporating math choice boards for elementary school learners, educators can create a dynamic and inclusive learning environment that celebrates students’ uniqueness and supports their individual learning journeys.

Explore how Waggle personalizes math practice to help students in Grades K–8 thrive. Request a self-guided demo .

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Back to School Prep

Summer is about relaxing and letting go of the stress from the previous year. However, many teachers are also thinking about the upcoming school year. Honestly, getting ahead often means a smoother start to the beginning. This typically involves preparing everything for Open House, developing new lessons filled with engagement, and planning assessments for baseline data. There is just so much to handle with back-to-school prep. Luckily, the two checklist items below will help teachers enjoy summer while preparing for a fantastic year. 

Back to School Night/Open House 

Truly, this is one of the most important events of the year. It allows parents to meet the person who will spend most of the day with their loved ones. Most importantly, it allows students to see their new classroom and put their minds at ease about the upcoming year. Therefore, teachers often feel a ton of pressure to create the perfect experience. 

Luckily, the First Week of First Grade will help ensure that the start of the year progresses flawlessly! This includes needed documents for parents, such as a welcome letter, transportation form, and parent survey. Then, there are printables for the first four days of school. All the included activities focus on basic skills to avoid overwhelming students. This also creates the perfect opportunity to get to know the new class family. There are even teacher resources, such as attention grabbers and morning songs! This back-to-school prep will help ensure students, parents, and teachers have an enjoyable start to a fantastic year. 

Homework Plans

Honestly, making decisions over homework is stressful. For instance, teachers often wonder how much homework should be assigned. Additionally, there is always concern about how teachers can support students who do not have adults to help at home. Thankfully, the Editable Homework Choice Boards create a way to give homework in a fun, exciting way. By using choice boards, students have the opportunity to pick what they are working on. This means they may choose something they can do independently if their parents are busy. Then, they can complete the items they need help with when their parents are free. 

There are monthly and weekly menus to fit each classroom! Each weekly homework menu has 9 reading, math, and writing tasks. Then, students select the 4 tasks they want to complete each week. Each monthly menu has 5 reading tasks, 5 math tasks, 5 writing tasks, and 5 science or social studies tasks. Then, students select at least 15 squares to complete throughout the month. Best of all, students are reviewing essential first-grade skills while enjoying the ability to pick! 

Honestly, back-to-school prep can be exhausting and overwhelming. There is so much to handle to ensure students have an incredible year. To help reduce anxiety, create a helpful checklist. Working on one item at a time will make a list less daunting. Thankfully, the First Week of First Grade resource and Editable Homework Choice Boards will help check items off the list! 

If you do not want to miss any of the upcoming lessons, join my email list to be notified of all the interactive lessons coming up! By joining the email list, you will also receive freebies for blog exclusive subscribers!  

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Many teachers use the strategy of student choice to increase engagement, reinforce autonomy, and improve learning outcomes. A reading response choice board is a quick and easy way to provide students with an opportunity to make their own decisions, building a sense of agency with the learning process.  Giving students a choice in how they showcase learning is also an effective method for differentiating instruction. All students learn in their own way, and they need to be able to show their individual skills and interests.

Click here to download the editable, printable, and digital reading choice boards for fiction and non-fiction text!

Use the list of reading response prompts below to make your own choice board. If you’re still not sure about implementing a student choice board, click HERE to download a free printable and digital choice board for fiction text. You can try it with your students, and see how it goes.

• Draw a detailed picture of the setting. Describe your picture using at least three complete sentences.
• Compare yourself to one of the characters in the text. Include two similarities and two differences.
• First, describe the main problem presented in the text. Next, describe how the problem is resolved.
• Explain the mood of the text. List three words from the text that support your mood choice.
• Find, record, and explain one simile or one metaphor used in the text.
• Identify at least one possible theme for this text. Explain your theme choice using at least three sentences.
• Write three questions that came to mind while or after reading this text.
• First, define a new word you learned from  reading this text. Next, use the word in an original sentence.
• Make a connection between the text and something in your life or something in another text.
• Write a five-sentence summary of the text. Include major events and avoid minor details.
• Choose an adjective to describe a character. State evidence from the text to support your adjective choice.
• Create a timeline that includes five events from the text. Include a short description and picture of each event.
• Find a new word you learned from reading this text. Draw a picture to represent the word’s meaning.
• Write a diary or journal entry for one character. The entry should be at least five sentences.
• Change the ending of the text. Describe how the changes affect at least two of the characters.
• Using at least four sentences, predict what might happen if the text were to continue.
• Would you recommend this text to a friend? State why or why not using at least four sentences.
• Write three questions about the text you would like to ask the author.
• State the main idea of this text using only one sentence.
• Write three multiple choice questions that can be answered by reading this text.
• State another possible title for this text. Explain your new title choice using two complete sentences.
• Write a five-sentence summary of the text. Include main points and avoid minor details.
• State something you wish the author included more or less of in this text. Explain why.
• Compare this text to another text on the same topic. State one similarity and one difference.
• Would you like to learn more about this topic? Explain why or why not using at least four complete sentences.
• First, state the topic of the text. Next, list three details about this topic you learned from reading this text.
• Record three facts stated in this text. Answer using complete sentences.
• Explain why the author wrote this text. Answer using at least four complete sentences.
• How do the pictures or graphics help you understand the text? Answer using at least three sentences.
• Did you enjoy this text? Defend your answer using at least four complete sentences.
• Make a connection between something in this text and something in your life.
• First, define a new word you learned from reading this text. Next, use the word in an original sentence.
• Create a detailed illustration that could be added to support this text.

Editable, Printable, & Digital Reading Response Choice Boards

1st Grade Homework Alternative - Homework Choice Board + Lottery - Editable Menu

• Google Apps™

What educators are saying

Description.

This unique 1st grade homework solution provides the perfect solution to traditional 1st grade math homework and 1st grade ELA homework . Say goodbye to ELA & math worksheet packets and hello to a world where students can finally look forward to homework time!

Here’s the deal - traditional homework is developmentally inappropriate - students need a chance to be kids. Students spend 7+ hours a day at school. Once their family is home and everyone is done with after-school activities, it often leaves them with very little time together.

Why UnHomework?

UnHomework gives families flexibility - complete choices on your own time. Busy week? Complete less. More free time? Do them all!

UnHomework gives families accessibility and empowerment - not all family members have the tools, educational or language background to support students at home. UnHomework is simplified, requires no background knowledge, and requires little to no tools.

UnHomework gives students more time to be kids - more time to run around and play outside, plus the UnHomework choices themselves are play-based and hands-on. 

UnHomework gives teachers more time to teach - no more grading homework “for completion,” making rushed trips to the copier, or frantically stapling together last-minute packets. 

How To Use UnHomework

The UnHomework Choice System is incredibly easy to integrate into your classroom routine. Here’s how:

• Every week, assign 1 new page of UnHomework. Each page has 5 choices for students to complete throughout the week.
• Students choose to do any, all, or none of the weekly choices. For every choice that is completed, students fill out a raffle ticket (attached to the bottom of the weekly UnHomework page)
• Raffle tickets are entered into a weekly class drawing for prizes! The more choices completed, the better a student’s chance of winning.

What’s Included

• 40 weeks of UnHomework tasks - EDITABLE
• 48 prize cards (color and black & white) - EDITABLE
• Learning Lotto labels - EDITABLE
• A parent letter explaining UnHomework - EDITABLE 
• A slide deck/PowerPoint presentation explaining the benefits of UnHomework against traditional homework (great for sharing with administration, parents at Back-to-School night, etc.) - EDITABLE

*Materials are included in PDF, PowerPoint, and Google Slide formats

More About This Product:

Is this editable?

Yes! This 1st grade homework alternative is already aligned with standards, but you can choose to customize weekly choices to reflect your own students’ interests, learning goals and styles, etc.

What prizes do you recommend offering?

The pack comes with 48 prize cards that are mostly experienced-based (bring a stuffed animal to school, use a teacher pen for the day, etc.). There is an editable template for you to create your own prizes too.

What Teachers Are Saying

• “A Game-Changer for My Classroom!” “The UnHomework choice menu has completely transformed how my students view homework. They actually look forward to it now!” - Mrs. Smith, 1st Grade Teacher
• “Engaging and Easy to Use” “I love how easy it is to customize and the variety of activities keeps my students engaged and motivated.” - Mr. Johnson, 1st Grade Educator
• “Stress-Free Homework” “This has made homework time at home so much more enjoyable and less stressful for both students and parents.” - Ms. Lee, Elementary School Teacher

Elevate your 1st grade homework experience with the UnHomework Choice Menu! Create a learning environment where students feel empowered, engaged, and excited to explore new tasks each week. Transform homework from a chore into a choice with this innovative and teacher-approved system.

Looking for other grades? Check them out here:

• Kindergarten UnHomework
• 2nd Grade UnHomework
• 3rd Grade UnHomework
• 4th Grade UnHomework
• 5th Grade UnHomework

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