Description
Operations with integers will help your students escape the haunted house in this digital 7th grade math escape room activity focusing on adding, subtracting, multiplying and dividing positive and negative numbers. While the activity doesn’t mention Halloween, the spooky theme is perfect to use in October, or any time! Students race to solve word problems involving operations with integers, open a safe by finding the distance between a positive and negative number, solve problems requiring paying attention to order of operations with integers (no exponents), and much more! Some of the puzzles are challenging and are meant to encourage collaboration and active learning. Escape rooms motivate students to engage in productive struggle to complete challenging tasks!
This no-prep, self-checking online activity is easy to implement and is completely automated by a Google Form™. The activity can be completed by anyone with an internet-connected browser, no Google™ accounts required! There is the option to create your own copy of the form for schools that require Google Forms™ to originate from within their system. *Please make sure that your school district does not block Google Forms™. There are supplemental printable versions of three of the more challenging puzzles to assist students, but this is designed to be completed online.
Math skills required to solve the puzzles
- Multiply and divide integers
- Add & subtract integers
- Solve real world word problems involving operations with integers
- Understand the rules for multiplication and division of signed numbers
- Understand the rules for adding and subtracting negative numbers
- Follow order of operations
What’s included in the PDF?
- Quickstart guide with link to escape room
- Optional link for Google Drive™ users to create a copy of the form to save to their own drives in order to view student results.
- Optional printable versions of three of the puzzles to supplement the online escape room and allow students to show their work
- Detailed answer key & teacher tips
- Success signs to snap photos with after completing the activity (optional)
FAQ
Do students need to have Gmail™ accounts? NO! Anyone with internet access and a tablet, computer, or even phone can complete the breakout.
How long will this take? That is the hardest question as the answer varies depending on each classroom, student, or group. Most students will be able to complete this activity in 30-45 minutes. You can allow 60 minutes to be safe. The form will only save data if students are signed into Google accounts, so if you are worried about your students not finishing on time, simply have them write their answers on scratch paper. They can then come back and quickly re-enter their answers and pick up where they left off. Some students with a firm grasp on the concepts covered in this escape room will be able to complete the puzzles very quickly (20-30 minutes), others will take longer.
Can this be used for remote learning? Yes! This product is designed to be able to be completed completely online and can be done in-person, for distance learning, or hybrid models. Students will need a device and internet connection.
Will students have to search the web to figure out the puzzles? NO! All of the information needed will be provided in the Google Form™. The math in this activity is all standards-based.
Escape rooms are a great way to practice and review for tests. This activity can be used for enrichment, for a quick sub activity, or a reward any time of year!
