Math is all around us. Math is the way humans talk to the Universe.
Teaching kids to learn and love math is a big task, but is something that will benefit them for their entire lives no matter where they may go in this big world. And anything this important deserves to be learned… by playing games!
Have fun with math and your kids will too! Try these simple games to start out.
Get a White Board and get creative
The best math is interactive math. Getting involved in the problem-solving process creates a special place for you and your child. That’s one reason why having a whiteboard at home is such a great idea. Whiteboards unlock all kinds of clever ideas about how to challenge your kids with math. Make sure they have access to the whiteboard and that they can reach it easily. Then just create your challenge and watch them figure it out!
Bonus: Teach them to clean it too!
Playing Pairs – subtraction ( or multiplication)
Playing cards are an easy way to play simple match games.
Subtraction game:
-Remove the Face Cards and Aces
-Split the deck in half.
-Each player puts down 2 cards each.
-Subtract the lower number from the higher number, the one with the higher answer is the winner of that round.
-Note: If the answers are the same, then play two more cards each, until one of you wins.
-The game is over when all the cards are played. The one who has more cards at the end wins!
-Variations: You can do this same game using addition, multiplication or for super math kids, division!
Note: To make it more of a challenge, keep the face cards and aces and score them as follows:
Jacks = 11
Queens = 12
Kings = 13
Aces = 1
Print out this 12×12 multiplication chart!
Multiplication table, print it out and get it laminated.
Make a few copies so your kids can look and play with it.
Start asking them multiplication questions, no question is too hard!
Math Road Trippin
While road trips and other types of travel can be a bit stressful, they also provide some really interesting opportunities to relax. They also provide a great opportunity to practice math!
License Plate Math can be played lots of ways. Simple: Add up the numbers on license plates that you see, first to 100 wins!
Exacto Plate: Pick an exact number like … 16. The first person to see a plate that adds up to 16 wins!
Shopping Cart Challenge
A supermarket is another place that can be stressful with kids… But you can turn it into a fun game and enjoy the stroll through the aisles.
Bring a calculator and a small pad with a pencil. Have them write down the prices of all things Orange, or yellow… Have them use the calculator to add up each item as it is added to your cart.
As a bigger challenge, have them add up all items you purchase to see if they can get the right answer when you check out. Since we live in Czech Republic, all taxes are included in the price, so the final number they come up with should be a match with the price you pay!
Have fun with Math and encourage your kids to do the same, you’ll be glad you did!
Do you have any math games that you play that others might like? Let us know in the comments or reach out and we’ll get with you to write it up!