Math & Science in Games and Stories

II. The Dirty Dozen (Handcrafted Oak Sliding Block Puzzle for Ages 8 and Up)

A. Reference: Square Root Games, Inc., 945 Eichler Dr., Mtn. View, CA 94040

B. Ideas: -There are 12 challenging puzzles within the Dirty Dozen. This kinesthetic experience could serve as a Geometry activity in correlation with problem solving standards.

C. Learning Goal: Students will implement problem solving strategies by starting with the first position, and trying to slide the largest square out through the slot in the bottom without removing, lifting, or turning any of the pieces.

IV. Mancala (The Century-Old Game of Collecting “Gemstones”)

A. Reference: Mancala can be bought at www.pressmantoy.com

B. Ideas: This game could be used to reinforce problem-solving skills and numerical operations. Students have to use number sense to manipulate the amount of gemstones in each pocket. This would be a great game to use during free-time and is conducive to a quiet classroom as only 2 students can play.

C. Learning Goal: Students will implement problem-solving strategies and number sense to accumulate the most gemstones by the end of the game.

V. The Tower of Hanoi

A. Reference: An online version to this activity can be found at: http://hanoitower.mkolar.org/HTonWebE.html

B. Ideas This game would be appropriate for older elementary and middle school classrooms, but only with 3 pieces. Students must think several steps in ahead to be successful at this game. This would be a good game to reinforce the concept of exchanges.

C. Learning Goal: Students must manipulate the round wooden disks and stack them on top of one another without putting a larger piece on a smaller piece by exchanging pieces. Students always have to begin with the smaller pieces and manipulate them around the posts so that the larger piece is always on the bottom. This game encourages students to use multi-step reasoning.

Anno’s mysterious multiplying jar- can be used throughout grade school levels. It contains simply counting and goes into instructions on how to develop factorials.

TicTac Toe game is a visual, spatial intelligence. It can be used at various levels of teaching. For primary grades you can use it to make patterns or counting. For higher levels you can do a multilevel tic tac toe game.

Challenge cubes are a great way for students to problem solve how to put together 2-3 dimensional blocks. It has a lists of games to play on the inside of the cover.

The dirty Dozen is 12 games within one. You have so many moves to slide the thinner square through the slot. Another problem solving skill that limits your moves to solve the problem.

Adam’s Cube: Reference: Can be obtained from http://www.iqpuzzles.com/cgibin/webc.cgi/st_prod.html? p_prodid=329&p_catid=1 for $9.95

Ideas: 1) This game could be used in a lesson dealing with tanagrams. 2) Problem solving 3) Basic Geometry

Challenge Cubes: Reference: ETA. Challenge Games. Vernon Hills, IL. Ideas: 1) Work with tanagrams 2) Problem Solving 3) Shapes 4) Degree of angles 5) Properties of a cube

Yote—The African Game of Checkers: Reference: Great American Trading Company (1996). Yote—The African Game of Checkers. York, PA: Authors. Ideas: 1) Problem solving 2) Addition and subtraction 3) This game can be used in a unit about Africa. Mancala is a game of problem solving and strategy. This game is suitable for all ages.

Dragon Dominoes. Springfield, MA. Milton Bradley Company.  Practice multiple of 5’s because of the scoring system.  Students can make patterns using the different number of dots.  Students can add or subtract the dominoes. Learning Goal: Students will learn different ways to use numbers 0-12, including adding, subtracting, patterning, multiplying.

Moving the Circles.  Students practice exchanging with sizes.  Strategy experience Learning Goal: The student will understand how to exchange the circles back and forth in order to make the same “object” in another place.

Challenge Cubes-Manipulite. ETA, Vernon Hills, IL.  Teach volume of a cube  2 and 3-D geometry Learning Goal: Use spatial relationships to put the cube together.

Tangrams Wooden pieces used in a base put together to create a square.

Playing Cards

Students can use these to play cooperatively together with such games as Go Fish, War, and Slap Jack.

Long, Lynette, 1996. Domino addition Watertown, MA. Charlesbridge Publishing. o Use real dominoes as manipulatives to explore addition by reading the book aloud in class or in groups o Learn addition-students make big dominoes to use in groups on the floor o Expand to subtraction Learning Goal: The students will learn to add up to the number 12 using dominoes as manipulatives.

Birch, David, 1988. The king’s chessboard New York, NY. Penguin Group. o Learn about ounces, pounds, and tons o Learn about doubling numbers; multiplying by 2 Learning Goal: The student will understand how to double a number, or multiply by 2. Learning Goal: The student will learn the basic information about ounces, pounds, and tons.

McKissack, Patricia, 1992. A million fish…more or less New York. Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. o Learn big numbers – thousands, millions-throughout the year, decorate fish for a bulletin board, each one numbered to see how many fish the students end up with . Could write different names of fishes if you had a science unit on fish o Count by 1,000’s-number off by 1,000’s Learning Goal: Students will learn how to count and write numbers up to 1,000’s and millions.

Silverman, H., Oringel, S, 1996. Math activities with dominoes White Plains, NY. Cuiseniare Company of America, Inc.

Learning Goal: The student will become aware of different math concepts including sorting and classifying, comparing, finding values, graphing, patterns, paths, addition and subtraction.

Dragon Dominoes. Springfield, MA. Milton Bradley Company.  Practice multiple of 5’s because of the scoring system.  Students can make patterns using the different number of dots.  Students can add or subtract the dominoes. Learning Goal: Students will learn different ways to use numbers 0-12, including adding, subtracting, patterning, multiplying.

Moving the Circles.  Students practice exchanging with sizes.  Strategy experience Learning Goal: The student will understand how to exchange the circles back and forth in order to make the same “object” in another place.

Challenge Cubes-Manipulite. ETA, Vernon Hills, IL.  Teach volume of a cube  2 and 3-D geometry Learning Goal: Use spatial relationships to put the cube together.

Mancala: A problem solving game where you think ahead to see future moves.

Math Puzzles (“Heart”, “Ring & Rope” and “Rope & Balls”): Hands-on activities where students create mental pictures to try different possibilities to figure out the puzzles.

Wooden Cube Puzzle: To learn how to manipulate odd shaped objects into one compact area (cube).