Fun Way to Explain Regrouping Hundreds and Tens with chocolate!

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Need to explain regrouping? Are you thinking Ok, HOW do I teach regrouping of tens or hundreds when I am totally wondering “what is regrouping”?!? This very fun and completely motivating regrouping activity is a hands on math activity that will explain regrouping for math as well as regrouping for addition! AND, the best part is that chocolate math is the way to go…even if the chocolate seems to be subtracting (into mouths) more than adding! 

Here’s the thing: Sometimes, practicing the same.old.math.facts. gets booooring!


It’s boring for the second grader and boring for mom.


But, practice needs to happen and new math skills need to be practiced! So, what is a bored-to-the-gills Mom to do when there is yet another night of subtracting triple digit numbers?


You bring on the chocolate.


This regrouping hundreds and tens math activity is hands-on and taste-bud friendly and was a big hit (surprise, surprise!) with my daughter…and me.  We made math fun by adding chocolate chips as my second grader subtracted three digit numbers.  It is such an easy math activity to put together and uses hands-on learning to make math activity fun (and delicious).


We’ve shared a few other hands-on math activities on the blog, and even some re-grouping activities like this double digit regrouping activity or beginner regrouping tips. This one might be the favorite of the bunch 😉

Regrouping Hundreds Math Activity

Regrouping math with chocolate chips


Regrouping Tens and Hundreds with Chocolate 



Full Disclosure:This post contains affiliate links.


You don’t need many materials for this math activity.  
We used:
chocolate chips

((There are Mini Chocolate Chips
on the market for those kids that really want to practice their math problems after seeing this activity.))

Paper
Marker
math problems

Regrouping math with chocolate chips

Use a marker to draw three sections on a piece of paper.  Label them “Hundreds”, “Tens”, and “Ones”.   Grab a bowl of chocolate chips
and some math problems.  Ask your child to look at a math problem and sort the chocolate chips
into the columns.  If the math problem is 634-x=, sort  6 chocolate chips into the hundred column, 3 chips into the tens column, and 4 chips into the ones column.  Then, as your child subtracts a two or three digit number from 634, move the chips around in the columns.  Try subtracting 634-256=.  Six can not be subtracted from four, so you need to regroup to make it a larger number.  Take a chip from the tens column and with your pencil, cross out “6”. Make it into a “16” and subtract the ones column.  Continue through the problem and when you subtract the tens column, remove a chocolate chip from the hundreds column.

Regrouping math with chocolate chips

We had fun snacking on the chocolate chips after re-grouping.  This was a math activity that my daughter didn’t mind doing over and over again!


MORE Ways to Practice math skills with chocolate chips:

  • Grab a handful of chips and place them into each of the columns.  Count the chips and name the number.  If there are more than 10 chips in the ones, tens or hundreds column, move them over to the next higher column.  
  • Practice adding with the chocolate chips and carry the extra tens over into the tens and hundreds columns.



Looking for more chocolate learning ideas?  Stop by and see what the other Early Elementary Blogging Team have created with chocolate:

Chocolate learning activities for hands on learning


Make Fractions Fun with Chocolate from Crafty Kids at Home
Chocolate Cocoa Writing Tray from Still Playing School
Chocolate Sight Words Writing from Natural Beach Living
Tracing with Chocolate from Sugar, Spice, & Glitter

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