Algebra 2 Activities Collection

Build a set of DIY nesting boxes to help illustrate the real number system to students. When the integer box fits inside the rational number box, students will be able to visually see why every integer is a rational number but every rational number is not an integer.

This graphic organizer attempts to capture the same illustration of the real number system as the nesting boxes with a 2D diagram.

I created this set of real number system cards several years ago to give my students much-needed practice determining which subsets of the real number system a number belongs to.

I created this always sometimes never dice activity for classifying numbers according to the real number system. We completed this after sorting numbers using our Real Number System Nesting Boxes. I always hated Always, Sometimes, Never questions when I did them as a geometry student in high school. But, I decided to give it a try with my students.

Students must construct a number line with a specified number of natural numbers, integers that are not whole numbers, irrational numbers, and rational numbers that are not integers.

Use this subsets of the real numbers graphic organizer to help students keep the definitions for natural numbers, whole numbers, integers, rational numbers, and irrational numbers organized.

This exploration activity will get students thinking about what happens when you perform various operations with rational and irrational numbers.

One of my favorite activities for reviewing the concept of a function in Algebra 2 is to host a Function Auction.

I created this function vs not a function puzzle to help my students practice determining if a relation is a function or not a function.

This function vs not a function card sort activity is the perfect way to assess whether or not students can apply the definition of a function to determine whether a relation is or is not a function.

This card sort activity provides students practice classifying graphs, tables (both horizontal and vertical tables), ordered pairs, and mapping diagrams as either a function or not a function.

This open middle style activity was designed to give students practice evaluating functions.

I used the same cards that we used for Domain and Range Pictionary to create an interactive domain and range foldable for my Algebra 2 classes.

Algebra 2 students are sure to get lots of practice with domain and range with this pictionary style activity!

In this dry erase activity, students must classify the graph as discrete or continuous. Then, they must correct identify the domain and range.

This function machines activity from CPM never fails to get students engaged and doing lots of math! This is a great introduction to composition of functions!

We reference these roots, solutions, zeros, and x-intercepts posters throughout the year in Algebra 2.

Practice finding zeros of quadratic functions with the graphing calculator with this fun worksheet which involves finding a mystery fruit by unscrambling the unused letters.

Students are given cards featuring six graphs of quadratics, six equations in vertex form, and six descriptions of the transformations needed to form the graph from the parent quadratic function.

Help students discover the parts of a parabola using this fun paper folding activity that produces a parabolic curve from only straight folds. This works especially well with wax paper!

I love using X Puzzles to introduce factoring quadratics. These puzzles are also known as sum and product puzzles since the goal of the puzzle is to find the two numbers that have a given sum and product. Read this blog post to learn about how I turned them into a fun review game!

This matching activity is the perfect way to practice factoring monic quadratics (when a = 1).

Check out Shaun Carter’s ZERO game to help motivate students to why it might be useful to factor quadratics.

This self-checking question stack activity is the perfect introduction to factoring quadratics. Want to practice multiplying binomials instead? Just turn all of the cards over!

Mr. Canning created an open middle style puzzle which involves placing the numbers 1-9 in the missing blanks to create 9 factorable quadratics.

I have been a fan of this factoring puzzle for factoring quadratic trinomials since I worked through it at a Common Core workshop I attended (OGAP) in the summer of 2013.

Help your Algebra 2 students gain confidence factoring trinomials with GCFs using this self-checking question stack activity.

I am really liking these quadratic area puzzles from Chritsopher (Bow Tie Teacher on twitter) that are posted for free on TES.

Each side of the square shares a factor with each of its neighboring sides. Determine the missing values that make this statement true.

Have fun practicing solving quadratic equations using the quadratic formula with this free printable quadratic formula bingo game that features 40 bingo cards, a call sheet with answers, and a PowerPoint file to project the quadratic equations for students to simplify.

What will your Algebra 2 students think when you pass out this fake IRS tax form which is actually the quadratic formula in disguise??

When you show them the actual quadratic formula, they might actually thank you instead of being terrified.

When I used to do interactive notebooks with my Algebra 2 students, I created a fun quadratic formula tangram puzzle for students to put together in order to discover the quadratic formula for the first time.

Mark Kaercher offers a helpful illustration of how the Desmos Scientific Calculator can be used to illustrate solving problems involving the quadratic formula.

The quadratic formula will be the talk of the entire school if you assign this quadratic formula memory assignment to your students. Students must recite, from memory, the quadratic formula to one teacher, one family member, and one additional person of their choosing.

This was always a memorable assignment when I gave it to my Algebra 2 classes.

Check out this collection of catchy quadratic formula songs that will help your students memorize the quadratic formula.

Ella Hereth shares a quadratic formula story with a cartoon to accompany it to help students remember the quadratic formula.

Perhaps you could use a bit of bribery to convince all of your class to memorize the quadratic formula. These quadratic formula cupcakes look so cool and absolutely delicious!

Are your Algebra 2 students struggling with setting up the quadratic formula correctly? Download this dry erase template to help your students structure their work.

This can easily be slid into a dry erase pocket or heavy duty sheet protector and used again and again!

Andy Lutwyche shares an excellent Quadratic Formula Faded Worksheet where students work through a series of problems where different information is given each time. Sometimes students are given the equation and asked to find the solutions. Other times, they are given the quadratic formula and asked to figure out what the original equation was.

This worksheet has excellent scaffolding, and I’m really impressed with how it is set up. It is a free download from TES.

Katrina Newell offers a quadratic formula cut and paste activity as a free download on her blog. Students have to cut and paste the intermediate quadratic formula step as well as the final solution next to each quadratic equation.

This Quadratic Formula Foldable will walk your Algebra 2 students through solving three different quadratic equations using the quadratic formula.

A template is included with each question to help your students set up the quadratic formula correctly.

This Discriminant Foldable from Nora at Simplifying Radicals will explain to students what the discriminant is and why it is useful. This was always a favorite page in my Algebra 2 interactive notebooks.

We wrote in the definition of a polynomial and the three characteristics polynomials cannot have on this Polynomial Frayer Model template.

Students created 3 examples and non-examples of their own.

After reviewing the definition of a polynomial, we completed this polynomial or not color coding activity. We glued the final results in our algebra interactive notebooks.

I created this naming polynomials poster several years ago as a way to both remind my students of the rules for naming polynomials and to decorate my room with my favorite thing – math!

This building and naming polynomials activity never disappoints. I have used it with students almost every single year since creating it.

I created this naming polynomials practice sheet to give my students some much-needed practice naming polynomials. We glued the finished practice sheet in our interactive notebooks.

This naming polynomials speed dating activity will get kids up and moving around the classroom and talking about math.

This human polynomials activity gets students up and moving in math class. It is a great way to keep students engaged while building their math vocabulary skills.

Here’s a one-page set of notes over adding and subtracting polynomials.

These notes feature a review of multiplying polynomials using the distributive property and the grid method/box method.

There’s something magical about putting math problems inside of Easter eggs for students to find and solve.

Introduce students to the box method for dividing polynomials with these polynomial division puzzles.

If your students are unfamiliar with how to simplify radicals, this dry erase work mat will help them structure their work.

Have fun practicing simplifying square roots with this free printable bingo game that features 40 bingo cards, a call sheet with answers, and a PowerPoint file to project the radicals for students to simplify.

Students will get lots of practice simplifying radicals with this square tarsia puzzle.

Students are given 25 cards featuring radicals that range from square roots to fourth roots. Students must sort the cards into groups of like radicals.

I really like this lovely radicals task from Terry Stickels. It simply asks: Which of the following is the smallest?

This isn’t as quick a problem to answer as you might think it would be. It will definitely get you and your students thinking about radicals!

I want to highlight this multiplying radicals square puzzle shared by Public Schools of North Carolina in their Resources for Algebra Blackline Masters collection.

Make practicing operations with radicals fun with this self-checking question stack activity.

I try to give my students a taste of history and the WHY of what we’re doing when we rationalize the denominator of a fraction.

This self-checking activity will help your Algebra 2 students gain fluency with rationalizing the denominator.

I created this exponent rule review game to expose Algebra 2 students to actual ACT questions involving exponents from past released exams. This activity gives students a chance to play the role of exam writer by crafting tricky distractors for each question.

I have gone back to this exponent rule card sort activity and karuta game so many times over the years. I have used it with students ranging from Algebra 1 to Algebra 2 to Pre-Calculus.

Students are always engaged when I pull this out of my filing cabinet!

My Algebra students completed this arithmetic geometric or neither color coding activity after we created our arithmetic, geometric, or neither foldable in our interactive notebooks.

I created this classifying sequences activity to give my algebra students practice distinguishing between geometric and arithmetic sequences. I also threw in some other sequences which we classified as neither.

Each line in the picture represents a different arithmetic sequence. Can you fill in the blank circles?

These creative puzzles are the creation of Naoki Inaba, a prolific Japanese puzzle creator.

I love teaching conic sections, so I was super-excited to discover a set of instructions online for building a cone to help students visualize the four different types of conic sections.

The MathHappens Organization is sharing free files for creating your own tool to help students visualize conic sections.

They even have a printable version that you can create with cardstock if you don’t have access to technology for creating it out of wood.

If you teach conic sections as part of Algebra 2, I am about to share a life-changing teaching method for you called Conic Cards. Conic Cards are the creation of Cindy Johnson, a National Board Certified Teacher in Oklahoma.

Your students will be classifying the equations of conic sections in no time with this fun and easy to use flow chart from Rebecka Peterson.

Download an entire unit’s worth of graphic organizers and foldables to use with your students in their interactive notebook while learning about the various conic sections.

Help your students to summarize and retain important information about each different conic section with this helpful conic sections foldable.

Hyperbolas are always the hardest conic section for my students to master the skill of graphing. If the weather is suitable, this sidewalk chalk hyperbolas activity will have students graphing perfect hyperbolas in no time!

I decided to use this folding conic sections project to kick off our conics unit in Pre-Calculus. Over the last few years, I have learned how to create parabolas, ellipses, circles, and hyperbolas using paper folding.

I’m excited to introduce you to wax paper parabolas! Students loved making the parabolas, labeling them with the appropriate vocabulary, and gluing the result in their interactive notebooks.

Learn how to use paper folding to create an ellipse.

Learn how to use paper folding to create a hyperbola.

Once your students have created all of the conic sections by paper folding, have them turn it into a conics poster project!

Probability Bingo is not your typical bingo game!

Students fill their bingo boards based on the color combinations they think will appear the most. The winner is the person who fills out their entire bingo board first.

This Candy Grab Lab is one of my favorite ways to introduce students to the process of linear regression.

I learned about using twizzlers for linear regression from Tammy Ballard with Wake County Public Schools. I modified her activity to create my own twizzlers linear regression lab that met the needs of my specific group of algebra students.

This Desmos activity kept students engaged and interested while learning how to draw lines of best fit by hand.

This hula hoop scatterplot activity gets students moving in math class while learning about how to create a scatterplot and use that scatterplot and linear regression to make predictions.

This starburst scatterplot activity ended up being one of my favorite activities of the year!

I created this tongue twister linear regression activity for my algebra students to use while collecting tongue twister data in their small groups. Students work in groups to collect data regarding the amount of time it takes various numbers of people to recite a tongue twister.

Warning: don’t try this bouncing tennis balls linear regression activity if your classroom is on the 2nd floor. The science teacher below your classroom will not appreciate it.

I was inspired to give my students the true colors personality test after attending a workshop where we did this personality test as one of our activities. We took turns going around the room saying what color we found as our result.

When comparing the amount of time it took for different numbers of students, we were able to perform a linear regression to figure out how long it would take the entire class to speak their results.

Check out this free printable perfect squares list of each square number between 1 and 1024. This perfect squares chart is available as both a PDF and editable WORD document. 

One of my high school math students’ most used math reference sheets is this free printable factors chart for the numbers from 1 to 100.

Print a copy of this 1-100 prime number chart printable (PDF) which features a visual representation of the prime numbers from 1 to 100.