Do your students struggle to explain their math thinking? Do they freeze up when faced with word problems? Teaching math vocabulary words can make all the difference! When students truly understand math terms, they can approach problems with confidence and clarity.

 

When teaching 2nd grade math, I found that it was easy for my students to have many misconceptions. I noticed that a lot of these misconceptions revolved around different math vocabulary words.

 

 

One of these misconceptions I noticed was that some students didn’t know the difference between digits and numbers. They would see a number like 105 and think the number means 15 because they only count 1 and 5. They don’t recognize that “0” is a placeholder digit and is part of the number. But if you teach “digits” as a math vocab word, students will know that every digit in a number holds a value, and that digits include numbers 0-9 and that these make up all other numbers.

 

I started to see the benefits of focusing a few minutes of our math warm-up for the day teaching and reviewing math vocabulary words. It was easy to turn this into a routine that made it easy for me, and effective for students. Soon my students could use the words in our lessons!

 

So I thought it would be helpful today to share all the benefits I’ve seen teaching math vocabulary words and then share how to help 2nd grade students master them.

 

Let’s first get into why they matter.

 

Why Math Vocabulary Words Matter

 

When students learn math vocabulary words, they better understand the questions that are asked in math. For example, directions may say “find the difference.” Do students know what that means? Before a lesson on subtraction, I like to teach “difference” as a math vocab word.

 

 

When students know precise math terms, they are able to communicate their math thinking. This is especially helpful when you want students to explain how they solve using different strategies. When I have students solve using a 3-digit subtraction strategy, I like them to share how they solved it out loud.

 

A student might say something like this, “Well, I see the ones digit in the 2nd number is greater than the ones digit in the first number. That means we can break apart the 2nd ones number to make an easier number to subtract.” How was this student able to use words like digit, greater than, and break apart? It’s because I’ve taught those as math vocabulary words. Learn about all the 3-digit subtraction strategies I teach my students in this blog post here.

 

And the most important benefit I’ve seen by teaching math vocabulary words… Students increase their confidence in math. They feel more confident to tackle more challenging math problems and concepts. Or they are more confident with the subjects in math that we don’t always correlate with math, such as data and graphing, shapes, and measurement.

 

Now that we know why math vocabulary words are essential, let’s dive into simple, effective strategies to help 2nd graders master them.

 

How to Teach Math Vocab Words

 

I love to turn teaching math vocabulary words into a routine. It helps me be consistent in teaching them and students know exactly what to expect. To easily do this, I use Math Vocab Cards. These cards show the word, the definition, and have an example or picture. These cards make things very clear for students and very easy for me to introduce them to students.

 

At the beginning of each math lesson, I gather students at our class gathering spot. I display the cards that pertain to that day’s lesson. Then I have students repeat the word, I read the definition to them, then we look at the example together. We might discuss the example a little more and try to think of other examples or non-examples of the word. This gets a good classroom discussion going. You can even have students turn and talk with a partner so that you have more student engagement.

 

Let me show you how this can look with an example.

 

If I am teaching a lesson on repeated addition, I would display up the word cards for array, column, and row. Then I would say, “here is our first word for the day: array.” I would then read the definition from the card and say, “an array is a group of objects arranged in rows and columns to make counting easy.” After that I would ask students what they notice about the example. Students would notice that there is the same number of objects in each row and the same number of objects in each column. 

 

Then I would move onto our next word, row. I say the word and read the definition, “a line of objects that go from left to right.” I might have some loose math cubes and call up a student to arrange them in a row. Then I might have students show me how rows go across from left to right with their arms.

 

After that, I would move onto our final math vocabulary word for the day, column. I read the definition, “a line of objects that goes up and down.” Then we would look at the example and point out all the columns in the picture. We might even count how many objects make up each row. Then I would have a student arrange the cubes in a column and have students show me what a column is with their arms.

 

This routine only takes a couple minutes but it sets up the lesson so nicely. Now students know the words for the lesson so that they can use them correctly.

 

I like to then display these cards on our front whiteboard for the rest of the lesson. I point to them when students see the words. This encourages them to say the words and use them naturally in our lesson.

 

And because students know what rows and columns are, they are able to solve problems involving arrays. Learn more about how I teach repeated addition and arrays in this blog post here.

 

Ready to use these printable Math Vocabulary Cards in your 2nd grade classroom? Grab them here!

 

When we have extra time in our math lessons, I like to get students more interactive practice with these words as a review. That’s where the student versions of the math cards come in.

 

Math Vocabulary Review

I actually make these student versions into a Math Word Booklet for students. When they have time after the lesson, they will open up their books, find the words for the day, and draw new examples for the words. The pages still have the meaning written out for each word.

 

 

But to get students more quality practice with these words, I include lots of copies of different vocabulary graphic organizers. These can work for any of our math words.

 

For one of them, students write the word in the middle. Then they write what it means at the top. At the bottom, they draw or write different examples and non-examples of the words.

 

Another graphic organizer has students write the word in the middle and then they write 4 examples around the word.

 

And the final graphic organizer I include in the book has students write the word, use the word in a sentence, and then draw a picture to go with it.

I find these pages especially helpful in our place value unit. I will have students use the first graphic organizer for the math vocab word “standard form.” They write that in the middle and write what it means up at the top. This might be something like, “writing the number with only digits.” Then they write examples or non-examples down below. For example, they may write numbers like 562, 146, and 978. For non-examples, they may write those numbers in expanded form or word form.

 

 

When my students learn the vocab word “expanded form,” I have them fill out the second vocabulary graphic organizer. They write the word in the middle of the page and then come up with 4 examples. They may write 100+50+2 for the first example, 600+70+8 for the second example, 400+90+5 for the third example, and 900+10+4 for the fourth example.

 

For our comparing numbers lesson, I have students complete the third graphic organizer. They write the vocab word “greater than” up at the top. Then they use it in a sentence. They may write something like “562 is greater than 561.” For the picture they may draw the models for 562 and 561 and draw a greater than sign in the middle.

 

Then graphic organizers work well with any of the words. That’s why I love to include them in my students’ Math Word Booklets. They work as a great math vocabulary review. Find the student booklets I use here.

 

When it comes to teaching 2nd grade math, don’t just skim over math vocabulary words! They help students find a deeper understanding of math. Students will be more comfortable talking about math. They will make fewer mistakes and have fewer misconceptions.

 

Teaching math vocabulary words doesn’t have to take up all your class time. Use Math Vocab Word Cards to quickly introduce them as a math warm-up routine. Easily review these words with vocab graphic organizers and student Math Words Booklets.

 

Ready to make math vocabulary a seamless part of your daily routine?

 

My 2nd Grade Math Vocabulary Word Resource has everything you need. It includes 70 math vocab cards, student-friendly versions, and graphic organizers. These help your students gain confidence and mastery in math! Grab it today and watch your students thrive in their math discussions and problem-solving. Click here to get it now!

Once I teach the words, you can include them on your Math Wall. Learn all about my interactivity Math Wall in this blog post here.