Look At The Pros and Cons Of Using Fun Math Games to Make Math More Fun For All Students

Decide for yourself!

The Pros of fun math games:

1. Kids think they are getting out of doing work. The truth is they are doing more work than they would have with worksheets.
2. Motivation to play a game is stronger than doing a pencil and paper assignment.
3. Lets the kids move around, gets rid of the "squigglies."
4. Builds cooperative learning.
5. Creates positive bonds between different students.
6. Multisensory experience. The students see, hear and do as they play games. Add manipulate objects and you have the best hand on learning lesson.

The Cons of  fun math games:

1. Too much importance on winning. One poor loser will ruin it for everyone.
2. The classroom will be too noisy.
3. It takes too long to learn the rules and find the best small groups.
4. Classroom has no way to move things around so kids can get into game groups
5. Teacher does not want to take the time to prepare and print out the games.

The bottom line:

• Once all the games are created and organized...
• Once the basic rules of the games are learned...
• Students can get set up and ready to play in a jiffy. 
• There is nothing  better than multisensory reinforcement activities. 
• You cannot go wrong. These games are perfect resource to use  to make math more fun.

Ready to make math more fun? Use this link for information on an all in one resource of fun printable math games and activities that are teacher created and kid tested.

CLICK HERE:   MAKE MATH FUN

Seven Ways To Have Fun With Math Using Math Card Games

Kids today are always coming into class and asking teachers if they can play a game today. It gets annoying at times!  Math card games however, are the perfect way to keep daily flash card drills going, but insert that practice into a card game.  Here is an article I wrote  awhile ago about seven different ideas you can use to bring card games into your classroom.  While reading, you will hopefully think of seven even better ideas you can use!

Have Fun With Math Card Games - Seven Ways to Use Card Games in Math Class

By Sue Gnagy Fegan

http://ezinearticles.com/?Have-Fun-With-Math-Card-Games---Seven-Ways-to-Use-Card-Games-in-Math-Class&id=3092332
Using a deck of cards in math class can be a quick fun way to have fun with math. A perfect way to quickly review or reinforce math facts and concepts is for students to have fun with math card games. It does not matter if you use regular cards (Ace to King) and make up fun math games to use with them or create specialized decks based on math fact drill or concepts being taught (i.e. fractions, factors, place value). What does matter is that the students are manipulating these cards and actively involved in retrieving the answers and having fun at the same time.

1. Use a deck of fact cards when playing a board game. Simple as can be, roll the dice whatever number is on the dice is the number of fact cards that must be read before moving.
2. Make memory matching sets. The problem on one card the answer on another. Be careful not to have too many problems with the same answer. This kind of memory game should only have about 10-15 problems, 20-30 cards total.
3. This leads to playing what we used to call war. The answer takes the problem. Add a second or third set so multiple problems and answers are there to make it interesting. Another variation would be have only problems, no answer cards and the highest answer takes the cards.
4. Use a standard deck of cards (Ace -King). Play any traditional card game, but make the student do something with the numbers. If it is a discard game, they add or multiply the card being discarded to the one already there. If it is one where you place three of a kind , or three in a sequence down you have to do something with them, add the all up, add the first two subtract the next one. Name all the factors using the numbers and so on.
5. Use a standard deck (A-9 only) for place value. They have their decks of cards, call out a number see how long it takes them to find the numbers and get them in the correct order. Face cards can be commas.
6. Fun Card games where you fish around for cards. This is based on an old favorite where the players have 4-5 cards and pick up from a scattered pile and ask others if they have certain cards. The goal is four of a kind, placed on the table. Put problems only on the card. The question is, "Do you have a problem with the answer ____?" Make sure there only four problems with the same answer.
7. Use a popular card game with numbers, colors, wilds, skips and Draw 2/4 cards. Play it with the standard rules. The wilds would change the operation. Start out adding, every time you put a card down you add it to the one already there. Older students keep a running total. When a wild is played the operation changes. A teacher will have to decide if they want to mess with division!

As you can see the possibilities are endless, these are just some ideas to get the creative juices moving and help you think of ways to have fun with math card games in your math class. Card games can be quick and a great reinforcement drill as students do not mind seeing the same facts over an over again when a bit of competition is thrown in.

TIME SAVER TIP:  
Discover creative math card games created by a teacher and used in classrooms to make math more fun for your students.
CLICK HERE