It’s hard to find a better game for teaching the joy of playing with numbers. When playing Math Dice, my family likes to see all the different ways we can rearrange numbers and use different operations to get to our target number.
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I bought our game of Math Dice Jr back when we first started gameschooling. Iâm glad I got it, and we do love the little mat it comes with, but itâs a really easy game to DIY, too. (There is a regular Math Dice, but it looks like the Jr. game is a better game.)
The Junior game comes with bigger-than-normal dice. There is a d12 (twelve-sided die) to roll for your target number and 5 d6s. Three of the d6s are standard d6s, with numbers 1-6. The other two d6s have two 1âs, two 2âs, and two 3âs. According to the game rules, you only use addition to get to the target number. However, weâve always allowed any operation.
As my kidsâ math skills got more advanced, we added another d12 and they either add or multiply to get to the target number. Once they started multiplying, we had to substitute the d6s with only smaller numbers with regulation d6s. Getting up to those higher numbers when youâre only rolling 1âs and 2âs isnât very possible.
Playing with numbers
The game mat is just a piece of fabric with 16 squares on it. Halfway through thereâs a spot to finish a short game (which is excellent for younger kids with shorter attention spans!). For every die you use to get to your target number, you get to move one space. Whoever gets to the end first wins.
We love playing with numbers and seeing all the different ways we can get to a number! Iâve also taken to writing down my kidsâ equations on a whiteboard or writing tablet. This way they can see mathematical equations written out. Since we donât do worksheets or workbooks, my kids donât have many opportunities to see math equations written out. However, they are excellent at figuring them out.
If youâre not sure about Math Dice, just grab a handful of dice, designate one or two distinctive ones for your target dice, and start rolling! It can actually be a lot of fun to see all the different ways you can manipulate numbers to get where you want to be.
Math Dice Worksheet
Do you love Math Dice and want a way to record your equations? This Math Dice Worksheet is just the free download you need!