First Grade Math Games for Teachers

Bonnie Adama has created a rich resource of 130 games proven to help your first graders learn basic math skills. With these skills, your students will be well on their way to success in 1st grade math.

The games cover these important areas in 1st grade math:

• Number Recognition
• Counting
• Greater Than/Less Than, More or Less
• Addition to 10
• Addition to 30
• Place Value, Addition, and Rounding to 100
• Place Value, Addition, and Rounding to 1,000
• Subtraction
• Multiple Operations – Addition and Subtraction
• Odd/Even
• Money
• Time
• Fractions
• Shapes

Here is a sample game that I have found very effective when working with first graders:

Same Sums is a perfect game for First Graders. It allows everyone to practice those addition facts to 10 that are so important. Children need to have them in long term memory as soon as possible.

Same Sums also helps children understand the meaning of the = (equal) sign. Many people think it just means “now find the answer”. Children need to understand that the equation must be equal (balanced) on both sides of the = sign.

Same Sums

What you need:
- 2 players
- Same Sums cards (below) copied and cut out

Turn all the cards face down in 6 rows of 4 cards each.

Player #1 turns over two cards. If the sums match, player #1 keeps both cards. If the sums do not match, he/she turns the two cards back over.

Player # 2 does the same.

Play continues until all the cards are matched. The person with the most cards wins the game.

Same Sums cards (copy and cut out):

First Grade Math Games for Parents

Bonnie Adama has created a rich resource of 130 games proven to help your first grader learn basic math skills. With these skills, your child will be well on their way to success in 1st grade math.

The games cover these important areas in 1st grade math:

• Number Recognition
• Counting
• Greater Than/Less Than, More or Less
• Addition to 10
• Addition to 30
• Place Value, Addition, and Rounding to 100
• Place Value, Addition, and Rounding to 1,000
• Subtraction
• Multiple Operations – Addition and Subtraction
• Odd/Even
• Money
• Time
• Fractions
• Shapes

Here is a sample game that I have found very effective when working with first graders:

Same Sums is a perfect game for First Graders. It allows everyone to practice those addition facts to 10 that are so important. Children need to have them in long term memory as soon as possible.

Same Sums also helps children understand the meaning of the = (equal) sign. Many people think it just means “now find the answer”. Children need to understand that the equation must be equal (balanced) on both sides of the = sign.

Same Sums

What you need:
- 2 players
- Same Sums cards (below) copied and cut out

Turn all the cards face down in 6 rows of 4 cards each.

Player #1 turns over two cards. If the sums match, player #1 keeps both cards. If the sums do not match, he/she turns the two cards back over.

Player # 2 does the same.

Play continues until all the cards are matched. The person with the most cards wins the game.

Same Sums cards (copy and cut out):

Kindergarten Math Games for Teachers

Bonnie Adama has created a rich resource of 73 games proven in the classroom to help you teach kindergartners basic math skills. With these skills, your class will be well on their way to success in elementary school math.

The games cover these important areas in Kindergarten math:

• Number Recognition
• Counting
• Greater Than/Less Than, More or Less
• Odd/Even
• Addition to 10
• Addition to 20
• Subtraction
• Addition and Subtraction
• Money
• Time
• Shapes
• Fractions

Here is a sample game that I have found very effective when working with kindergarteners:

Cover Up! – A Perfect Game for Kindergarteners
Kindergarteners will work on number recognition from 1-6 in this game. When they have mastered this, try the variation which involves number recognition to 12 and simple addition.

Cover Up!

What you need:
- 2 players
- 1 die
- paper and pencils
- number line (following) for each player
- 6 counters (unifix cubes, tiles, beans, pennies, etc.) for each player

The winner of Cross Out is the first person to put a marker on all six numbers.

Players take turns rolling the die and putting a marker on the corresponding number on his/her number line. If a number already has a marker on it, that player loses his/her turn.

Variation: Roll two dice and add them together. Each child will need the 2-12 number line.

This game seems simple, but it really helps young children recognize the dots on the dice. When they begin, they may need to count the dots each time, but soon they ought to learn what number the dots represent without counting them.

Cross Out 1-6 Number Line (Copy on card stock, laminate, and cut out)

Cross Out 2-12 Number Line (Copy on card stock, laminate, and cut out)

Kindergarten Math Games for Parents

Bonnie Adama has created a rich resource of 73 games proven in the classroom to help your kindergartener learn basic math skills. With these skills, your child will be well on their way to success in elementary school math.

The games cover these important areas in Kindergarten math:

• Number Recognition
• Counting
• Greater Than/Less Than, More or Less
• Odd/Even
• Addition to 10
• Addition to 20
• Subtraction
• Addition and Subtraction
• Money
• Time
• Shapes
• Fractions

Here is a sample game that I have found very effective when working with kindergarteners:

Cover Up! – A Perfect Game for Kindergarteners
Kindergarteners will work on number recognition from 1-6 in this game. When they have mastered this, try the variation which involves number recognition to 12 and simple addition.

Cover Up!

What you need:
- 2 players
- 1 die
- paper and pencils
- number line (following) for each player
- 6 counters (unifix cubes, tiles, beans, pennies, etc.) for each player

The winner of Cross Out is the first person to put a marker on all six numbers.

Players take turns rolling the die and putting a marker on the corresponding number on his/her number line. If a number already has a marker on it, that player loses his/her turn.

Variation: Roll two dice and add them together. Each child will need the 2-12 number line.

This game seems simple, but it really helps young children recognize the dots on the dice. When they begin, they may need to count the dots each time, but soon they ought to learn what number the dots represent without counting them.

Cross Out 1-6 Number Line (Copy on card stock, laminate, and cut out)

Cross Out 2-12 Number Line (Copy on card stock, laminate, and cut out)

How To Help Your Child Learn Math at Home

More and more in my teaching career, I see that children no longer memorize their addition facts or multiplication tables. With the math curriculum as extensive as it is, teachers cannot afford to take the time to ensure that students learn the basic facts (sad, but true). Parents are partners in the process, and you can offer greater opportunities for your child to succeed in math if you support the learning of the basics at home. Games fit the bill wonderfully!

Math games for kids and families are the perfect way to reinforce and extend the skills children learn at school. They are one of the most effective ways that parents can develop their child’s math skills without lecturing or applying pressure. When studying math, there’s an element of repetition that’s an important part of learning new concepts and developing automatic recall of math facts. Number facts (remember those times tables?) can be boring and tedious to learn and practice. A game can generate an enormous amount of practice – practice that does not have kids complaining about how much work they are having to do. What better way can there be than an interesting game as a way of mastering them?

Games are fun and create a context for developing children’s mathematical reasoning. Through playing and analyzing games, children also gain computational fluency by describing more efficient strategies and discussing relationships among numbers.

Games offer a pleasant way for you, as parents, to get involved in your child’s mathematics education. You don’t have to be a math genius to play a game. You don’t have to worry about pushing or pressuring your child. All that you have to do is propose a game to your child and start to play.

Here is a list of objectives or goals children should achieve during each grade level and how to help:

• Kindergarten expectations
• First Grade expectations
• Second Grade expectations
• Third Grade expectations
• Fourth Grade expectations
• Fifth Grade expectations and Standards
• Sixth Grade expectations and Standards

Why Cards and Dice May Be Better Than Computer Games

There is no doubt in my mind that, as the Internet continues to play a larger role in education, a growing number of online sites will host free math games, most of which are challenging, exciting, fun, and age-appropriate. That’s all well and good.

But above all else, children crave time spent with their parents. Because learning is a social process, children learn best through fun games and activities that involve interaction with other people.

Stanley Greenspan, M.D., a clinical professor of pediatrics and psychiatry at George Washington University School of Medicine and author of many influential parenting books, says playing games with parents helps children develop the social skills necessary for getting along with others and is core to their healthy development.

“When you play games with your children”, Greenspan says, “you’re not only connecting and engaging, you’re exchanging back- and-forth emotional signals, which are helping the child regulate mood and behavior, learning to read social signals and learning to communicate. Each of these abilities contributes to a child’s sense of security.”

Seize this opportunity to teach them your values, and indulge them with your own undivided attention. Try a math game with your kids. A price cannot be put on the quality of the time you will have spent with your children. They will have fun while learning, and they will remember those times with greater fondness than the times they spent playing the educational computer game.

And lastly but of great importance, among the obvious benefits of sitting down and playing a good game with your children is the opportunity that games provide to apply and solidify the mathematical reasoning and calculating skills your children are learning in school. When children play on-line or video games, parents may know how the child scores, but do they know where they made mistakes and why? Playing games with your child offers you, as a parent, a greater opportunity to know what your child’s strengths and weaknesses in mathematics are.

Cards and Dice for Teachers

I began playing math games with my students using regular decks of cards. However, over the years, I developed my own cards for several important reasons:

• Regular cards do not have a zero, and zero is much too important in our base ten system to leave out. Turning a queen or king into a zero is confusing for most children.

• While teaching first grade, I discovered the ten-frame. It allowed children to easily count the dots, if they needed to do so and anchored the students to ten – a very important learning tool with our base 10 numbering system. It is easy to see how many more are needed to make 10 if you have a 7, or 5, or 9, etc.

• And lastly, these cards help children see if a number is odd or even. If there is a dot that doesn’t have a partner, it is an odd number. If all dots have a partner, it is an even number.

Masters for the these special cards can be found on the CD with directions for printing, laminating, and cutting out.

Dice
(random number generators)

All that you will really need are regular dice. They are really cheap and easy to find at stores such as The Dollar Tree, the 99¢ Store, etc. For the most part, you will need two dice. There are a couple of games that require more. One of my favorites is Oops! which requires five dice.

I also like those 1 ½ inch foam dice for younger children. You can get 12 for $4.99 (plus shipping and handling) at the Oriental Trading Company. They make counting the dots much easier.

Some games need teacher-made dice. I buy those small wooden cubes from a crafts store or an educational supply store and mark them according to the instructions on the game.

Using Games To Teach Math In The Classroom

When I first started to work on the use of games in the classroom, I was amazed at what I began to see happening! Here are a few of my discoveries about games where children can learn and practice math:

• Many of the games lead students to talk mathematics.
• Games forced students to justify their reasoning.
• Games put pressure on players to work mentally.
• Games did not define the way in which a problem had to be solved or worked out.
• Students began to explore and learn new strategies by working and talking with each other as they played.
• A game could often be played at more than one level allowing the teacher to differentiate instruction.

Assessment

Teachers who observe and interact with children while they are playing math games can diagnose a wide variety of their mathematical strengths and weaknesses. In assessing learning through math games, teachers’ concerns are not just confined to the children’s levels of factual knowledge. Rather, they may also note, record, and analyze the following:

• reasoning and problem-solving skills,
• the forms of children’s responses,
• the processes that children employ in solving problems and arriving at answers,
• children’s patterns of persistence and curiosity, and
• their ability to work with peers, adults, and a variety of resources.

In addition, the recording sheets that children produce while playing games can be placed in assessment portfolios, where they can be of great value to children, teachers, and parents.

Finally, games provide children with a powerful way of assessing their own mathematical abilities. The immediate feedback children receive from their peers while playing games can help them evaluate their mathematical concepts and algorithms and revise inefficient, inadequate, or erroneous ones.

Good games evaluate children’s progress. They provide feedback so that teachers, parents, and the child know what they have done well and what they need to practice.

Calculators

Calculators can be quite helpful for settling questions about answers, executing complex calculations, or keeping track of players’ cumulative scores. Use your judgment as to whether calculators will speed up or defeat the purpose of the game.

Recording Sheets

Many of the games include recording sheets. Recording the problems solved while playing a math game can leave a mathematical trail that is of great value to children, teachers, and parents. Children can feel a sense of accomplishment as they look back at all of the math work they have done; teachers can use the records for assessment; and parents will appreciate this “evidence” that their children are actually doing mathematics and not just playing games.

Communication

Many people think that a quiet room is one in which learning is taking place. I strongly disagree with that tenet. When children are playing games, they need to be able to talk with each other. This talk can be very constructive if children take responsibility to make sure that all players in a game understand the algorithms, concepts, and facts being used within the game. Sharing strategies with each other helps everyone see different ways to play. The bottom line is: Teach each other and learn from each other.

Competitive Versus Noncompetitive Games

Most of the games on these CDs have been designed as competitive games where the high scorer wins. All can be transformed into games where the high scorer is not the winner or into noncompetitive games.

For example: Children can roll a die. If the number rolled is an even number, the player with the highest number or score wins the game. If an odd number is rolled, the player with the least number or score is the winner.

Many of the games can be played in such a way that players keep track of their own individual scores over a period of days and try to better their previous day’s scores. Children can enjoy keeping graphs of this information themselves.

Using Math Games as Homework for Parent Involvement

More and more in my teaching career, I see that children no longer memorize their addition facts or multiplication tables. With the math curriculum as extensive as it is, teachers cannot afford to take the time to ensure that students learn the basic facts (sad, but true!). Parents are partners in the process and will offer greater opportunities for their children to succeed in math if they support the learning of the basics at home. Games fit the bill wonderfully!

Games offer a pleasant way for parents to get involved in their children’s education. Parents don’t have to be math geniuses to play a game. They don’t have to worry about pushing or pressuring their children. All that parents have to do is propose a game to their child and start to play.

Math games for kids and families are the perfect way to reinforce and extend the skills children learn at school. They are one of the most effective ways that parents can develop their child’s math skills without lecturing or applying pressure. When studying math, there’s an element of repetition that’s an important part of learning new concepts and developing automatic recall of math facts. Number facts can be boring and tedious to learn and practice. A game can generate an enormous amount of practice – practice that does not have kids complaining about how much work they are having to do. What better way can there be than an interesting game as a way of mastering them?

Sending a letter to parents that tells them how and why math games will be used in your classroom is a good idea. It can allay any doubts that may arise when their children come home describing how they “played games during math today!” Sending an already-learned game home with children to play with parents as part of homework is also useful. This helps give parents a sense of what can be learned from math games that are not workbook-or ditto-based.

On the CD, there is a copy of a parent letter and a response form for parents to fill out as a result of playing the game with their child.

Games and English-Language Learners and Special-Needs...

Because math games require active involvement, use concrete objects and manipulatives, and are hands-on, they are ideal for all learners. Games provide opportunities for children to work in small groups, practice teamwork, cooperation, and effective communication. Children learn from each other as they talk, share, and reflect throughout game times. Language acquisition is meaningful and understandable.

Games can easily be one of the components of cooperative learning. Cooperative learning is an extremely valuable technique to be used in empowering nontraditional students. It is different from traditional group work, which is often the work of only one or two members of a larger group. It can be described as a group of no more than six members who ALL work together to complete instructional activities. It embodies five essential elements:

1. Positive interdependence.
2. Face-to-face interaction.
3. Individual accountability.
4. Use of interpersonal and small-group skills.
5. Periodic and regular group processing.

Math games, used in a cooperative learning context, solidify the achievements of children who are already good at math, and they shore up children who need shoring up.

You can easily vary the games within the CD to differentiate instruction and suit the needs of the children who will play them. Some variations have been described within many of the games. Changes can be made by:

• altering the operations used within the games. If it is an addition game, try changing it to subtraction, or multiplication, etc.
• changing the numbers used in the game. They can be easier or harder, greater or smaller. Instead of working at the tens level, bump the game up to involve hundreds or thousands.
• The rules of the games can be altered.

You can be creative in transforming the games into new forms, and please allow children and parents to do likewise.