Do Now Math Worksheets

Do Now worksheets are simply a super small quiz. We like to give them at the beginning of every class. It should review skills that students have learned in the past. We tend to aim for three questions that should take a maximum of 10 minutes. It helps students focus at the start of class and provides a quick assessment. Many of our teachers have this either count as part of the student's homework grade or even have it replace homework entirely. These do nows can be used throughout the year as both review and anticipation of what is to come.

Update: All of this work is aligned to the core math curriculum by grade level. We have completely redone all of this section to reflect these newer standards. We review the standards every 6 months to make sure they are still fully aligned.

1st Grade Skills include:

Grade 2 Skills include:

Grade 3 Skills include:

Grade 4 Skills include:

Grade 5 Do Now! Skills include:

Grade 6 Do Now! Skills include:

Grade 7 Do Now! Skills include:

Grade 8 Do Now! Skills include:

What Are Do Now Math Worksheets?

Do nows are brief activities performed at the beginning of a class or lesson. They help to set the tone for the rest of the day. They are used throughout elementary and secondary schools as a constructive teaching technique.

Do nows help children loosen up, get ready and get in the mood for the day. They are short tasks before a lengthy lesson that orients students to the particular subject they will be studying. Students should have something to do in class whenever they walk in. It will make them wonder about what they are supposed to learn in class that day.

How Long Should Your Do Now Activity Be?

A 3-5 minute long task is enough to get the students engaged for the upcoming lessons, or for a revision of the previous day’s work. The do nows should include some variety as well every day, to avoid making them boring and monotonous.

The short projects will allow you as a teacher to check the level of understanding and common mistakes made by students and address them properly.

It should not be boring and feel like a lengthy quiz, and it should provide you with an assessment of how you are supposed to plan your teaching approach.

Making the do nows too long will make it a lesson and not a fun activity. It will drain the energy of students as they will regard the do nows as an exhausting lecture instead of a chance to get ready for the day. The do nows should be short and fun, maximum of 5 minutes, just to set the tone for the upcoming class.

Do not give the students too much information. Give them a small chunk of a general review or a simple, engaging fact about the lesson they are going to be learning in detail later on. Giving them a concise activity will grab their attention and make sure they do well in the class.

Examples of Do Now Activities

- You can ask them to deliver a line as soon as they walk in, telling the class what they are looking forward to learning in the class.

- Ask them to write 4-5 lines of expectations regarding the next lesson.

- Give them a blank sheet to draw or illustrate and label a particular topic they had learned the day before.

- Instructions should be clear and posted or written on the board, allowing them to work independently.

- A do now can be related to what they worked on the previous day, or what they are going to do in the next class.

- You can also have a casual discussion in the classroom, allowing every student to express their opinions without any pressure.

- Ask them to list the points they can remember from the last lesson.

What the Huge Benefits?

- It increases the focus of students and time management, and prepares students by getting warmed up and stimulated for the class.

- It allows the teachers to check the level of understanding of students.

- It streamlines the attention of students and makes the teaching job more effective.

- The do now activities reduce student behavior problems and will encourage them to have better participation in the classroom.

- It maximizes learning and creates a proper learning time.

- Since do nows are part of a routine for your students at the beginning of their day, the students will be keen to begin their day with it.

- They will already know that lessons are started with do-now activities. This will make sure that any waste of time is avoided since learning for the day begins immediately.

- Do nows will also allow you to check-in to see which student needs help in a certain area. This also allows teachers to gauge the mood of students, whether they are anxious about a topic, or just tired.

- It develops confidence in students and helps them perform their work based on self-reliance.

What Makes an Effective Do Now?

There are 3 critical elements for a do now.

- It should be focused.

- It should be efficient.

- It should be effective.

There are some practices that make sure that your do nows are implemented with minimum effort and maximum outcomes.

- Activity is in the same place every day:

It should becomea habit for all the students and teachers to gather at a particular place at the start of their day or lesson. The place for the do now activity can be communicated to students through writing on board, or distributing notice papers to students and teachers.

You can also print the do now activity worksheets and ask students to pick them up as they enter the building, or hand them to students in their classrooms.

- Working independently:

Students should be able to perform and observe their do now activities independently without any interruption by other classmates or teachers. You should also avoid checking in with their work frequently because that will make them anxious to perform better on the activity.

If there is some instruction that needs to be communicated throughout the activity, write in on the same paper they are working on or write it on the board.

- Positive attitude:

When do now activities are successfully completed, they will generate a positive attitude in students and they will be more eager to continue with the learning.

Easy tasks should be provided to students at the beginning of lessons that reflect their individual thought processes and give them encouragement. This begins the lessons with positive emotions and good energy. It also improves engagement in the learning process and ensures better results and outcomes of the activity.

The do now activities should be a recap of the lessons of the previous day or practice for the new lessons that students are going to learn. If the students learned the topic of plants the day before, give them a picture of the plant the next day and ask them to label and color the roots, the stem, leaves, and flowers. Similarly, you can give them an outline of the shape of a country at the beginning of class and ask them to guess which country’s map it could be, if you are planning on teaching geography lessons next.