Kindergarten is the perfect time to develop kids’ cognitive skills. Games engage multiple areas of their brain and help them learn at their own pace.
Kindergarten Math Games
Here are a few fun kindergarten math games that will boost kids’ number sense, addition, subtraction and measurement skills. These games are also age-friendly and can be played independently or with a partner.
Number recognition
Number recognition is a crucial skill to learn for children as it will allow them to solve many of the math problems that they will face as they progress through school. It is also essential for understanding more complex mathematical concepts such as addition, subtraction, and measurement.
Kindergarten math games can help kids to develop and practice their number recognition skills. They can also help students to be more engaged in their learning, reduce their anxiety about math, and boost their motivation to learn.
For example, a fun game for children to play is hopscotch; it’s a classic playground activity that helps to reinforce the recognition of numerals as well as introduce the concept of higher and lower. It’s also a good opportunity to help them to use their gross motor skills, as they will be hopping and jumping to get to the end of the grid.
Another simple way to encourage students to practice their number recognition is by playing memory (or matching) games. These are easy to create and can be used in a variety of ways.
You can also try teaching children to recognize numbers by sky-writing them in the air, drawing them on foam or other messy substances, or making them in craft activities. This will help to build their confidence and ensure that they are able to see the numbers in everyday situations.
You can also help students to practice number sense and subitizing by having them sort ten frames, dot patterns and more. These can be printed or labeled, and if you prefer, you can use pre-made subitizing cards. You can even have them add a little creativity to this by using different colors for the numbers, or making the numbers look like a rainbow.
Addition – Kindergarten Math Games
Kindergarten Math Games offer students a fun and engaging way to practice addition. Addition is a foundational skill that kids need to build upon year after year. This is especially true if they are moving into the first grade where math skills are more complex and built on previous learning.
To teach addition, students should start with simple number sentences that are meaningful to them. These activities will help them to connect what they are learning with their real world experiences.
A good example of this is a story problem where students are asked to figure out how many animals there are in a train that passes in front of them. This is a great way to teach them to read a word problem, understand how they can use their knowledge of numbers to solve it and have fun while doing it.
Another idea is to play a game of “Connect Four.” This is a fun way for children to learn addition facts and also work on their motor skills. To play, set up some sheets with numbers from 2 to 12 and have a pair of dice.
The player who gets 4 in a row wins the game.
This game can be played with a partner or by several kids at once. Each player will roll a die and move their pawns as the numbers on the dice fall.
A board game with a snake and ladder style is an excellent addition board game for kindergarten students. It comes with a large, colorful board and a set of pawns that are moved by the numbers on the dice.
Subtraction – Math Games For Kindergarten
Subtraction can be a tricky concept to teach. It’s different from addition because it involves taking away or removing an object. This is why it’s important for kindergarteners to have a grasp over addition before moving on to subtraction.
One way to help students understand the difference between adding and subtracting is through hands-on activities. These games will engage your students, build math skills, and foster a positive learning environment.
Play dough is a great manipulative to use for subtraction problems because it’s easy to work with and allows for hands-on modeling. To start, make a ten frame by taping off sections of tape on a wall or desk.
Then, have your students fill each frame with 10 balls of play dough. Once the balls are formed, have them SMASH them to represent subtracting them!
Another fun way to practice subtraction is through a game of bees. In this game, students roll a die and move that many spaces on the number line to solve a subtraction problem. The first player to reach the finish line wins!
This game is great for practicing place value, as it gives kids a chance to see that subtraction is not the same as addition. They also get to see how regrouping helps them solve subtraction problems.
A fun partner activity that’s easy to pull together, hoop dice is a great way for kids to practice subtraction and counting back! You can set up a number line on the floor or write numbers on the sidewalk, and invite kids to hop, skip, and jump their way to the correct answer.
Bump-style games are a popular choice for teaching kids subtraction because they can be played alone or as a partner. These 11 free bump gameboards are a great option for teachers looking to keep their math lessons engaging.
Measurement
Measurement is a foundational math skill for kids and can be learned early on in the classroom. This can help them build their confidence when learning more complex concepts such as addition and subtraction later on in school.
Kindergarten measurement games are a great way to introduce the concepts of measurement in a fun and interactive way! They can also give kids a chance to practice measurement skills in a real-life setting.
First, children need to learn about basic measurement concepts such as length, weight, and area. These are important skills that they will use for many years to come!
Next, they need to learn about standard units of measurement and how these are different from non-standard units. This can be a tricky concept for younger students, but it can be addressed through reading books and other activities.
One book that can be used to teach students about standard units of measurement is How Big Is a Foot? This story explores the difference between standard and non-standard measures of length.
Once students understand that length is the distance from one end to the other, they can practice using a tape measure with objects to measure their own heights or the height of others. They can also practice using a ruler to measure objects that are a specific length and then compare the measurements between two different objects.
Finally, they can learn about volume by measuring liquids with cups, jars, or other containers that have markings on them to show how much is in each container. They can then use these tools when making measurements in their own daily lives!
This list of 9 Fun Hands-On Measurement Activities for Kindergarten will be sure to get your students excited about measurement and give them a chance to practice these essential math skills!
Geometry – Free Math Games For Kindergarten
Geometry is a fundamental part of the kindergarten curriculum. It helps kids understand the shapes in their world, develop problem-solving skills and apply geometry to other math domains like measurement and fractions.
Developing this knowledge early in childhood is essential because it gives them a strong foundation to tackle more advanced concepts in future. It also allows them to form the necessary understandings to make connections between their learning and their real life experiences.
The Australian Curriculum has a geometry strand, and teaching it is an important step in preparing young students to tackle the rest of their schooling. It includes a variety of activities and resources that focus on shape analysis, movement language, and positional language in an investigative play-based setting.
One way to start is with a game that encourages students to identify and name different geometric shapes, using their own language as well as pictures. This can be done with picture books, puzzles, and paper or felt markers at a table.
Another game that uses math vocabulary is called “Polygon Snowballs.” In this game, students are given a stack of snowball-like cards, and they must flip one over to see if it is a polygon. If it is, the student gets to keep it. If not, they have to explain why it isn’t and remove it from play.
A great resource for learning more about geometry is the Geometry Mega Bundle. It includes hundreds of easy-prep resources that are aligned with the Common Core State Standards for Kindergarten Geometry.
The games and resources in this collection can be used at home or in the classroom, and are suitable for grades 3 to 5. They are all highly engaging and allow children to practice and build their geometry skills in a fun way.