Want more ideas and freebies?
Try these 6 free activities for grades 3 - 7.
Email me 6 free activities →With the pivot to distance learning, it felt like we lost some of the creative activities that we could do with pen-and-paper. It’s so easy to type on a laptop, but so hard to draw pictures and doodle like we could before the pandemic.
That’s why I love Google Sheets Pixel Art for math class.
It’s a way to bring some of that creativity back into the classroom, while leveraging the strengths of Google Classroom to provide students feedback on problems that they’re solving in math class. And it’s easy for students to use independently: in distance learning, as homework, while differentiating, or as a sub plan.
It’s an excellent all-around activity for any math class.
With Google Sheets Pixel Art, students solve a series of math problems, and the the solutions are auto-graded. With each correct answer, students incrementally unlock a mystery picture:
Here are just a few reasons why I think Google Sheets Pixel Art is a great addition to any math class:
1. It’s creative. Pixel Art is a great way to incorporate creativity into the math classroom. It’s a way to bring some of the fun and creativity of computer and video games into math class.
2. It’s easy to use. Pixel Art is turnkey. Students can start solving problems and unlocking the picture with very little instruction. This makes it ideal for review days or sub plans.
3. It’s easy to differentiate. The auto-grading frees up you attention as a teacher, enabling you to assign multiple difficulty levels of Pixel Art to different students, or giving you time to pull students as needed for small-group instruction.
Under the hood, Google Sheets Pixel Art uses conditional formatting rules — if a solution is a certain value, it changes the color of a certain cell to a particular color.
And there’s no need to spend hours fiddling with conditional formatting rules!
I’ve pre-made dozens of Google Sheets Pixel Art activities that you can use right away in your classroom. Each activity can be set up in minutes, comes out looking great, and has the content you need aligned to Common Core State Standards.
Even better, I make them with different themes that you can use any time of year.
For back to school, consider these autumn themed Pixel Art lessons:
$3.99
$3.99
Find more in my Fall-Halloween-Thanksgiving section.
I've made spooky images perfect for Halloween:
$3.99
$3.99
Find more in my Fall-Halloween-Thanksgiving section.
Nothing says Thanksgiving quite like pie and a harvest basket, and I've made Pixel Art themed like that, too:
$4.99
$3.99
Find more in my Fall-Halloween-Thanksgiving section.
As the holidays approach, there's Pixel Art for that:
$3.99
$3.99
Find more in the Winter-Christmas section of my website.
You can save money with my pixel art bundles:
$28.73
$19.75
$50.38
Find more money-saving bundles in my Google Sheets Pixel Art section.
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Happy teaching!
I spent 7 years in the classroom working to make math magic in middle school, by integrating math, art, and technology. I started Congruent Math to share this all with you.
Try these 6 free activities for grades 3 - 7.
Email me 6 free activities →