Get students excited to learn math with these fun and creative movement-based activities!
Math instruction and physical movement might seem like an unlikely combination, but think about it: For many students, math is the most stressful subject. And research shows that regular physical activity is an effective way to mitigate stress and boost brain power. Movement not only helps students regulate their emotions, but also improves their overall health and strengthens their neural networks. Activate Math! is the resource elementary and middle school teachers need to shake up math instruction’s deskbound status quo and get their students up, moving, and learning with enthusiasm.
In this book, acclaimed educators Suzy Koontz and Kirby Schoephoerster draw on educational psychology to integrate movement-based learning with mathematics concepts. With this approach, students become the manipulatives by hopping on a number grid to solve equations, imitating animal gestures and poses to demonstrate skip-counting, and even dancing through algebra problems.
Each chapter addresses the five catalysts of movement-based instruction:
- Engage students,
- Scaffold math concepts,
- Expand knowledge,
- Enrich curricula, and
- Review progress.
The authors also include a comprehensive appendix of activities ready for you to incorporate in the classroom or try outdoors. Activate Math! is a must-read for all K–8 teachers who want to improve their students’ math skills and promote a healthy, active classroom environment.
Order Now!
About the Authors
Suzy Koontz is a founding board member and current vice president of the National Math Foundation (NMF) and the creator of Math & Movement. She has spent more than 25 years helping students achieve academic success through a movement-based approach to mathematics and literacy education.
Kirby Schoephoerster, EdD, is the senior program director at the National Math Foundation (NMF) and an ardent advocate for the (re)design of educational spaces to foster positive learning identities for all students. Kirby received his doctorate in education at Vanderbilt University. His recent work at the NMF has involved facilitating organizational strategy development, coordinating educational research projects with community partners, and creating professional learning events for mathematics educators and school leaders across the country.
Praise for Activate Math!
“The book is wonderful, rich with ideas, pictures, and examples. More important than giving you a treasure of classroom strategies, it is a breath of fresh air in the academic and self-regulation community.”
—Eric Jensen, neuroscientist, author of Teaching with the Brain in Mind and Brain-Based Learning
“I truly enjoyed this book. It was one of the best education books I have ever read. Activate Math! was eye-opening and motivated me to break away from old teaching habits. Since incorporating movement with math using mats and other hands-on activities, I have seen remarkable changes, especially in one student who previously struggled with his number identification and writing numbers. He used to hide under his desk and refuse to do any work, but now he smiles, participates, answers questions, and can identify numbers he couldn’t recognize just weeks ago. Adding movement during math has transformed the dynamic in my classroom; students are excited, engaged, and retaining more information, which makes teaching both easier and more effective. This is a book I believe every educator should read.”
—Vicki Watkins, kindergarten teacher, Canaseraga Central School
“Activate Math! is the kind of book teachers immediately want to put into action. Koontz and Schoephoerster show how purposeful movement can transform math from something students sit through into something they experience. Grounded in research and packed with practical strategies, this is a powerful resource for educators who want energized classrooms and deeper mathematical understanding.”
—Selina Smith, 4th grade teacher
“It is of critical importance that young learners feel confidence and ownership in how to do mathematics and move their bodies. This book has can enable teachers to empower students in both areas. It includes accessible explanations of how movement-based mathematics aligns with contemporary research in mathematics education and neuroscience. It also contains classroom activities that incorporate movement into a wide range of mathematical topics and only require affordable materials like chalk, tape, and index cards.”
—Meghan Riling, assistant professor of the Practice of Mathematics, Department of Teaching and Learning, Vanderbilt University
“I had the opportunity to visit and participate in math and movement activities in person and witness the joy the students experienced. The time spent was purposeful, deliberate, and fun. It gave valuable insight into the importance of adding movement for my own students learning math concepts. Students were excited to learn and do more. I look forward to using more of the strategies from Activate Math! into my future classes.”
—Mary Yuhas, 3rd grade math teacher, Pittsburgh Public School District
“Activate Math! highlights the numerous advantages and connections between building a positive math mindset, engaging in physical activity, and utilizing evidence-based practices. Educators at any level will gain insight into the power of movement-based instruction and how to apply the catalysts to improve student understanding and their relationship with math.”
—Elizabeth Kraemer, Instructional Resources Team Math Coordinator, Erie 1 BOCES
“In this post-pandemic, technology-saturated world, this approach is a much-needed breath of fresh air. Combining math and physical movement takes the anxiety out of math instruction and replaces it with active engagement, deep learning, increased mathematical fluency and an understanding of scaffolded math skills. I have seen the positive effects of this firsthand after just a short time of implementation with our students.”
—Kerri Bianchi, principal, Carrie E. Tompkins Elementary School
“Activate Math! is a practical, energizing guide that reimagines how students learn. It highlights how physical activity can deepen understanding, boost student engagement, and build confidence. With practical strategies, real classroom applications, and an inclusive perspective, it serves as a valuable resource for forward-thinking educators working with diverse learners across grade levels.”
—Dr. Lynn Allen, Deputy Superintendent, Putnam Northern Westchester BOCES
“After reading Activate Math! it affirmed what I’ve long believed: math can be joyful. Growing up as a young girl in the 1980s, I had an underdeveloped math identity and gravitated toward subjects that told stories. But when math is active, it tells stories too. As a principal, I supported teachers that brought math outside by measuring flowerbeds, counting with sticks as 10s and pebbles as 1s. When we create core memories through movement and relevance, we help students build positive, confident math identities that last a lifetime.”
—Dr. Katie Brasley Trepanier, school administrator and founder of KTB Innovative Solutions, an Education and Leadership Consultancy
“Activate Math! is an exciting addition to the field of embodied learning—an evidence-based, practical guide to movement-based math instruction. Suzy Koontz and Kirby Schoephoerster offer clear, concise, and compelling answers to why and how students should be getting out of their seats—and hopefully putting an end to the all too common refrain ‘I’m not good at math.'”
—Jennifer Light, Bern Dibner professor, MIT
“Great resource for educators and families seeking practical solutions for engaging more effectively with students who struggle with understanding abstract math concepts. The movement-based applications present accessible pathways necessary for implementing more inclusive approaches for teachers by providing a practical tool for navigating traditional barriers to skills acquisition and by improving academic success and reducing anxiety among learners.”
—Julius H. Moss, EdD, MPA, Med, associate clinical professor, Department of Kinesiology, Seattle University
“This book offers a comprehensive explanation of the vital role kinesthetic movement can have in learning mathematics. Examining the importance of kinesthetic movement through multiple lenses, it provides a compelling rationale for integrating purposeful movement into math instruction. Blending research-based theories with practical strategies, it equips educators with engaging, classroom-ready activities that help deepen understanding and enhance student learning.”
—Diana Chang, assistant professor, University of North Georgia
“Activate Math! is well written with a clear blueprint for building the fundamental base of mathematical concepts for our youth using physical activity. I am impressed by the numerous references from evidence-based studies and well-known successful educational strategies to build an irrefutable case, with examples for implementation, to include movement to engage learners at a deeper level of understanding in a logical fun way. I truly enjoyed the thoroughness of this book and how it looks at the many individual learner facets to effectively teach all children math, no matter their personal ability to learn. Their passion to educate shows from beginning to end and is evident by their dedication by donating the funds raised by this book to the NMF (National Math Foundation).”
—Kirk Hamel, MS, elementary physical educator, Central Falls, Rhode Island
“The aspect of this resource that I appreciate the most is the vast amount of research to support learning, especially in this fast-paced, ever-changing world! Even as adults, we know that physical activity increases engagement and in turn skill retention. This book shows how something as simple as movement can be a game-changer in the classroom. It provides a launching strategy for students who would have typically not engaged or previously given up. In my elementary classroom, I have witnessed an increase in motivation, engagement, and excitement that my students have when they are practicing their skills with movement activities.”
—Holly W., Math Interventionist, New York
“The demand for STEM-literate citizens prompts us to seek effective classroom strategies to engage this generation of developing mathematicians. Through the lens of neuroplasticity, Activate Math! by Koontz and Schoephoerster is literally a playbook of research-based insights that expanded my understanding of students’ need for critical-thinking activities through movement. By utilizing holistic, multisensory approaches, we support students in building meaningful math-to-world connections.”
—Elisabeth Johnson, EdS, NBCT, K–5 mathematics instructional coach and education consultant
“Activate Math! provides a practical framework for developing effective math interventions based on movement. With its thorough underpinning of research ilustrated by case studies and supplemented by classroom-tested activities, this book lays a solid foundation for state-of-the-art math interventions. The concepts and ideas presented here go beyond traditional methods to offer solutions both fresh and new.”
—Sally Cramer, Math Interventionist, Merit Academy Charter School, Colorado