Arrays scavenger hunt: a 25-minute 2nd grade math activity
What it is: a 2nd grade math activity where students hunt for arrays around the school (egg cartons, window panes, tiles, cubbies), describe them in rows and columns, and write a repeated addition sentence for each. It builds the foundation for multiplication.
Time: about 25 minutes. Grade: 2nd grade.
Materials: clipboards, a recording sheet with space to draw 5 arrays, and a few arrays to show (a muffin tin, an egg carton, a sticker sheet).
- Show an egg carton. Ask: "How many rows? How many in each row?" Write 6 + 6 = 12.
- Explain that an array is a set of objects in equal rows. Show something that is not an array.
- Pairs hunt in the classroom and hallway and draw 5 arrays they find.
- For each one, they write the number of rows, the number in each row, and a repeated addition sentence.
- Pairs share their best find. Ask: "Could we count it another way, by columns?"
Safety: stay in the areas you name, and walk in the hallway.
Differentiation: students who need support find arrays with 2 or 3 rows. Students who are ready also write the array as rows × columns. English learners can use the frame "___ rows of ___ is ___."
Quick check: draw a 3 by 4 array and ask a student for two different addition sentences that match it.
Need it for another grade or subject? Ask us on the request page and our team will write it.
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About this resource
- Shared by
- @UpOnlyLearning · Curriculum team
- Posted
- Oct 30, 2026
- Type
- Lesson plan
- Grade
- Grades K–2
- Subject
- Math
- Language
- English
- License
- Free for classroom, co-op and tutoring use. Please don't resell.