Toy Capsules in the Classroom

I think I first came across the idea of using toy capsules from Rachel Lynette at Minds in Bloom, and thought it was super cute. She placed task cards, folded up, inside of the to capsules you find in toy vending machines at stores.

So, I found some really nice ones at Ebay. However, these suckers were completely impossible to open and close! My students had to constantly ask me to "pop" them open. I tried to show them the method for doing it, but really, is that valuable use of my instruction time? I think not.

Nonetheless, I still found them very useful to use like concentration cards.

And they stack really nice, too, when it's time to clean up!

So, I tried my luck again at Ebay with some smaller capsules. These actually open and close with success. Yes!

I cut some problems out of a QR code worksheet I made in my Multi-Digit Addition QR Code title and folded them inside each capsule.

Students chose a capsule, solved the problem on a recording sheet (also included in the title), scanned the code with a scan app on an iPod, and then marked their answer right or wrong.

 Lots of fun. Just a small way to make math more appealing to my kiddos.

This video shows the game in action:

Have you done something like this before? If so, please comment!