5 Cool Math Games To Improve Calculation Skills

Math is one of the toughest subjects for many people in school.

Not everyone is good at numbers, which is why they require a solid foundation to boost math skills. As a teacher, it is up to you to incorporate new ways to improve your students' math skills.

One of the best ways is to use games to improve math skills. Here is everything you must know about all the cool math games you can incorporate to improve the calculation skills of your students.

Top Cool Math Games To Boost Calculation Skills

Here are the top cool math games you can teach your students today:

1. Remove and Match the Number by SplashLearn

Remove and Match the Number is a fun math game on SplashLearn, designed for young learners between the ages of 4-6. It is an ideal resource for parents and teachers who want to help preschool and kindergarten students develop their subtraction skills. The game features a lovable character, Blu, who takes children on an educational adventure to adventurous places like high mountain tops and dark caves while learning how subtraction works.

With the count-out strategy, children learn how to subtract numbers and how subtraction works. The captivating visuals and engaging gameplay make it an enjoyable experience for children to learn and retain more knowledge. This game is an excellent way to help children develop their math skills in an interactive and fun way.

With free access for teachers and a subscription fee of $7.49/month when billed annually for parents, it's one of the best math games to develop their math skills in an enjoyable and interactive way.

2. Multiplication And Division Bingo

Many people associate Bingo with old people, but this can be one of the best classroom games you can incorporate to improve calculation skills. All you have to do is create bingo sheets with all the answers to multiplication and division questions you plan on doing with your students.

After that, you can read aloud all the questions one by one. These can include simple multiplication questions such as “7 x 8”, “64 ÷ 8", and much more. The students will have to find the right answers on the sheet and mark them.

Of course, the first person to get an entire column or row of answers wins the math game. Including this game will help enhance competition and improve the mental math calculation skills of your students in no time.

3. Hot Potato

You will need lots of plastic balls to prepare for this game, but it will be fun and active once you begin playing it in the classroom. You must take a plastic ball and tape a calculation question on each ball using masking tape. After that, you must begin playing hot potato by passing the ball around while playing music.

As soon as the music stops, the person that has the ball will have to answer the question on the plastic ball. Once they are done answering, you can take another plastic ball and keep passing it along. You must do this for as long as you like until you feel that the students have answered all the important questions.

4. Jeopardy

Jeopardy is one of the most popular games, and you can also incorporate it into your class by creating a calculation game. You can create a math jeopardy board with different point values, categories, and more. The categories can include multiplication, division, addition, subtraction, and many others.

After that, you must split your classroom into two teams, and each team must pick a card that they want. Of course, if they get the answer wrong, then the other team will have a chance to try. In the end, the team that will earn the most points will win the game.

We recommend that you keep increasing the intensity of the game as the students are playing it. Doing this will ensure that they have little competition in the class, and they can learn even better. So, don't forget to add your own touch to the game to make it suitable for your classroom.

5. Simon Says

Simon Says is one of the most popular games that almost every student has played once in their life. The best part about this game is its versatility, which is why you can also apply it to your math and calculation skills. You can turn this into a math and calculation game by incorporating some basic geometry in the game.

For example, students will have to follow the commands that begin with this phrase. If the command doesn’t start with this phrase, and the player still performs the action, then they will be out. This will keep on happening until there is one player left that has won the game.

You can make this about math by trying to create commands about calculation skills. As you keep playing the game, you must enhance the challenge. Once you do, your students will get the most out of it for a long time.

6. Jump On The Answer

Finally, this is one of the top cool math games to improve calculation skills. For this one, you can take your classroom to the playground. You must write out answers using chalk around the playground.

After that, you have to read out a question, and students have to find the correct answer on the playground by standing on it. Be sure to tell your students that more than one student can keep their foot on the answer. Competitive games always encourage students to do better, which is why you can incorporate them in your classroom.

The game will work best if you have a classroom with fewer people. If there are a lot of students, then it might be difficult. However, you can split the classroom and give different questions to each team.

Top Reasons To Use Cool Math Games In Your Classroom Today

As a teacher, it is your duty to make learning more fun and engaging for the students. That is why you must incorporate various games in the classroom for the best experience and learning for your kids. If you are wondering whether you should incorporate math games in your classroom or not, you are in the right place.

Here are the top reasons to use math games in your classroom:

1. Encourages Learning

One of the top benefits of using cool math games is that it encourages learning among students. Math can be a boring subject, and not every student will be interested in it in your classroom. That is why you have to get creative and incorporate games so that all students can be encouraged to learn more.

Besides that, such games also encourage cooperative learning among students. You can split the classroom into teams and groups to participate in the game. Doing this will ensure the improvement of their interpersonal skills, such as communication, problem-solving, and much more.

Even shy students will talk to their peers and get out of their comfort zone. Some students have great math skills but lack interpersonal skills. The math games will help them work on all types of skills and encourage learning.

2. Develops Strategic Thinking

If you just keep repeating the same type of lectures over and over again, your students will get bored and barely learn anything new. On the other hand, if your incorporate cool math games, you will help develop their strategic thinking in the long run. When they are solving a math problem, their brains are working on strategy.

It is important to help students cultivate such skills, as it extends beyond the classroom. In the long run, such games will boost their mathematical learning while ensuring that they develop strategic thinking. These skills will extend to other classes, and you will be shaping students to become better in all subjects and areas of learning.

3. Higher Engagement

Kids love playing games, even if it is a math game in the classroom. It helps break the monotony of the classroom and guarantees that you are doing something new in the classroom. That is why you must select the most engaging games that you think your students will like the most.

You can also give different choices and let the students decide on the type of math game they want to play. It will help them feel included, and you will receive higher engagement. Such engagement will guarantee that the students are eager to learn more about math skills.

Skip the boring worksheets and instead play a game in your classroom today. It will result in better engagement, learning, and retention of what you are trying to teach the students.

4. Help Build Connections

Many students struggle with making friends in the classroom because they are too shy or for some other reasons. That is where you can come in and lend a hand to your students by helping them build connections. Play cool math games and split your classroom into groups and teams so that everyone can work with each other.

Such games will help the students get to know each other and build connections in the classroom with ease. You can also give homework in pairs or groups so that the students can build connections even outside the classroom. While you must focus on math, you also need to offer the students an environment where they can thrive.

That is why you must incorporate games frequently and encourage learning in this way. Once you do, it will help your students to become better at math and build connections in the classroom,

5. Help Build A Solid Math Foundation

Every child is different and learns in a unique manner. For example, some are auditory learners while others are visual, and so forth. As a teacher, you have to cater to the needs of all the children in the classroom.

Doing this will help you create a solid math foundation that will enhance the basic concepts that students have about the subject. Once the foundation is set, the students can build on their skills and grasp new mathematical concepts much better. Games ensure reinforcement, which is why your students will learn and understand concepts better.

We recommend that if you teach a primary classroom, you must incorporate math games as much as possible. It makes learning fun and guarantees that the students have a solid math foundation they can work on.

6. Reinforce Concepts

Reinforcement is one of the best ways that students can learn. Instead of piling up homework on your students for reinforcement, you can opt for playing math games in the classroom. Make repeated practices fun instead of boring by playing such games.

The children will learn through play, and they will easily connect the game to the math skills you are trying to teach. That is why it is more important than ever to select meaningful math games for your classroom. It will give a sense of purpose to the students and ensure learning in the best way possible.

7. Build Confidence In Your Students

Math games will help reduce the fear of making mistakes and failure in students. They will be willing to take risks, explore new math strategies, and work through the various math challenges. As their understanding deepens, they will also become more confident in their mathematical skills.

Allow the students to play the game and be confident with their answers. It will offer a positive culture in the classroom where students will feel more comfortable. So, playing math games will turn out to be a win-win situation for everyone in the classroom, including you.

8. Promote Mathematical Talk

Finally, when kids are playing games, they have something to talk about within the game. In your case, it will be math, and students will talk about the subject more freely while helping each other. The key is to create structure in the classroom that will produce discussions about the subject.

For example, you can create math flashcards and many other such things that will help promote math talk. As the students talk about the subject more, they will be more motivated to work on it. Once they do, they will learn better and have an incredible performance in this subject in no time.

Final Words

That was your complete guide to the top cool math games you can play in your classroom and why you should play them. Math tutors must make the subject more fun through these tactics, or the students will get bored easily in your class.

Games can help boost engagement, discussions, strategic thinking, and much more.

So, be sure to incorporate all these math games into your classroom to boost the calculation skills of your students. Once you do, the students will become much better, and you can keep reinforcing the concepts through other creative ways. In the long run, the students will grasp your lessons much better.

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