Mathematical Education Games
- Games add an element of fun to math, making the subject easier to learn.math image by jaddingt from Fotolia.com
Whether you enjoy math or shudder at the mere thought of numbers, games are an effective way to learn different mathematical skills. With ideas ranging from kindergarten up to middle school and beyond, there are mathematical games to accommodate nearly every classroom, topic and skill set. Additionally, many games are easily adaptable from one branch of math to the next, or from one difficulty level to the next, making some of the following games usable across many grade levels. - This simple and adaptable game requires only a deck of cards, and any number of students can play. Shuffle the cards and assign values to the picture cards (Jack is 11, Queen is 12, King is 0, Ace is 1, or whatever is appropriate to your classroom). The object is for students to draw two cards and, within 5 seconds, perform the required mathematical calculation (such as addition or multiplication) with the cards. Correct answers go into one pile, wrong answers go into another pile, and the first student to get rid of the "wrong" pile (or the student with the smallest "wrong" pile) wins. Adaptations include using addition and subtraction for the younger grades and multiplication and division for the older grades; using higher values to accommodate higher grades or eliminating picture cards to accommodate lower grades; and shortening the time length to 3 or 4 seconds to increase the challenge.
- The object of Rollin' with the Facts is to use dice and cards to strengthen multiplication skills. The game requires two pairs of differently colored dice and a set of number cards and is best performed in pairs or as two small (2- to 3-person) teams. Shuffle and deal the number cards face-up to the pairs or teams; each number card represents a possible multiplied total of the dice. Each player rolls all four dice, then multiplies the number of each pair. For instance, if the blue set of dice rolls out to 8 and the white set of dice rolls to 9, the correct answer is 72. If the player or team has the 72 card, they would flip it over (discard it). The first team to discard all of their cards wins.
- Worksheet Races is easily adaptable to any grade level, but works nicely in middle and high school due to the classroom setup (students have to move their desks together) and the ability to work with 6th through 12th grade mathematics. Have the class divide into teams of five and give themselves team names; write the team names on the board. Hand each team a worksheet with six problems. When a team's worksheet is complete, the runner brings it to the instructor; if all answers are correct, that team wins the round; otherwise, they must correct any wrong answers. The first place team takes 3 points, second place gets 2 points, third place gets 1 point, and other teams get 0 points. Play for as many rounds as you wish (or for an entire period, if you like), with a different worksheet for each round. Give the winning team a prize.
- This is another adaptable game suitable to middle school and high school algebra classes. Create a game board (see Resources for a sample) with approximately 30 squares that run along the board's edge; place "Start" in one square, then fill in the other 29 with class-appropriate problems. Students roll a die (or dice, to add to the challenge) to see how many spaces to move initially. On each subsequent roll, the student must fill in the number on the die or dice before moving to the next square. For instance, on a student's first roll, he lands on 3b + 5; on the second roll, he must use the number he rolled--say, 6--to answer the problem (3 x 6 is 18, plus 5 is 23). If the student answers correctly, she can move the number of spaces on the die; if the student answers incorrectly, she must stay in place until she finds the right answer. The first student around the board wins.
