Math Games
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Beach Ball Grades Any
Summary: A fun an inexpensive way for your students to practice their math facts.
One game we play is with a beach ball. I write out the numbers on the top and bottom sections. Throw the ball gently to a child and they have to add the numbers where there thumbs are. Hard to finger-count when you are holding a big ball. Can be used for subtracting and put vowels in the sections and it becomes language arts!
Another game is to sit in a circle and count to a specific number. Whoever says that number has to go to the center of the circle. Keep going till there are two left. Everyone yells showdown and they play till we have a winner and winner number two ( no losers). I have done this with counting by 2's, 5's, 10's, days of the week, months, etc. Easy and quick and they really like it a lot! Just 2 for now as it's late.
Submitted by: Carol KSCarol@email-removed
Math Games From Math Their Way Grades K-1
Summary: Who doesn't like a good game? Check out these games from the math program "Math Their Way".
I use some games that I got from the Math Their Way program. I am not sure what they are called in the book since I have been using them for years and we, the kids and I, have probably mixed up the names. Anyway, one we call STAND UP, SIT DOWN is just rote counting. We all stand and then sit as we say the number. Then when we get to nine, we put up one finger for one ten, and go on. When we all are sitting, we just keep going and then stand as we say our number. When we get to nineteen, we put up a second finger and say "twenty" and just keep going this way to whatever number we have preset. In Kindergarten I stop at twenty at first and with First Graders, I would start at twenty and quickly go to fifty and one hundred. Another finger is raised every time we say a number with nine in it, and it helps us remember what comes next. For example, when we get to thirty-nine, we have four fingers up and it helps us remember that "FOUR-ty" comes next. I hope this is clear but I have great success with this and everyone counts to 100 in no time. The finger method was actually invented by a Kindergarten child that I had one year. I asked Mom and previous preschool teacher if they had taught it to her and they all said no. So I guess she discovered it on her own.
Submitted by: Rebecca Becca2001@email-removed
Math Games Using Dice Grades K-2
Summary: Activities using a great math manipulative... dice.
#1 -
I use a 100's chart and stop at 50. You need 2 dice and one cube with 4 green sides and 2 red sides. I bought plain cubes and put small red or green stickers on the side. Each child has a 100's chart-I blew them up and laminated them. You also need bingo chips-I use the colored see through ones, 2 different colors, one for the class color and one for my color. Each child needs one of each color. We play this as a whole group for the first few times, the class against me. Each child will get a turn to roll. I let the kids start. One child rolls the dice and the cube together. They call out the #'s on the dice, we all add them up and then the child tells us if the cube is red or green. If it is green, we all the move class bingo chip ahead that # of spaces or if the cube is red, we move it back that # of spaces. Then it is my turn to roll. And, depending on the cube color, I either move ahead or back. The first one to 50 wins. It is important that everyone moves the right color chip the correct # of spaces. We usually verify which space each color is one after each move. The kids LOVE this game!
#2 -
Another game with dice is to have a piece of paper with the #'s 2-12, one # on each line. Decide how many times you want to go through the class, I usually do 2 rounds. After each child takes a turn, make a tally mark by the # thrown. See which # wins. The kids can make a guess before you start as to which # will win-the one with the most tallies by the time each child has 2 turns. They get really excited. Another was to do this is in a graph form. Make it 12 squares high with the #'s 2-12 along the bottom. Each time they roll, they color in a square for that # and see which one gets to the top first. You can do this in groups then they can compare their graphs. They love to see who has which # that won because most groups will each have a different winner.
Submitted by: Debbie
Operation skills with dice
Summary: This fun game will really get students thinking and completing multi-operation math problems.
Make a numbers chart with 1-16. You can have teams or students can play against each other. Each student has their own colored chips. Students take turns rolling three dice. They have to add, subtract, multiply, or divide the numbers they role to match one of the numbers on the chart. For example if a student were to roll a 6, 3, and 4 the students could multiply the 6 and 3 to get 18 and then subtract the four to get 14. The student would then use their colored chips to mark the number they got. Once a number is taken it can not be marked again. Students play until all of the spaces are taken up and the student with the most chips on the board wins. If a student can't make a number to match the numbers left on the board then they have to pass to the next person. The game is over when all the numbers are taken.
Submitted by: Whitney White wwhite79@email-removed
Printable Math Worksheets
Use our Math Worksheet Generators to whip out some printable math worksheets in a snap!
Complete Thematic Unit for Math Games! Grades All
Fact-O! Grades K-12
Students practice math facts as they play a game of chance and skill. (Game sheet included.)
EMAIL us your favorite math game.
