This is another very late (6ish weeks overdue) #SundayFunday Post. I should actually be able to catch-up now that it seems there will be monthly prompts rather than weekly :) Here is more info if you'd like to join in the fun.
I've been meaning to write a long series of posts about my favorite math games. In the past, I've written much about practice structures. In my mind, practice structures are fun ways to practice recently learned skills while games would be more review of slightly older skills. I'll start with posting my two favorite math review games. Eventually, I'll follow-up this post with other game summaries.
In general, my favorite review games focus on content, get every student involved, do not reward speed over deep thought, and involve some type of chance. The first two items on this list are pretty obvious. Jo Boaler has written much about the harm teachers and schools do to students when focusing on speed in math. Here is one article explaining the concept and a poster (see the last page) for setting up classroom norms based on Boaler's work.
The reason that I like to involve a chance based component to math review games is that it keeps all students involved. Sometimes, when one student or teams gets far behind the other teams, they can give-up and start opting out of the game. I like to use game design that keeps everyone in the game.
My first favorite game is Ghosts in the Graveyard. Read the previous link for a good explanation of the game. The short version is that students earn ghosts to place on tombstones by answering review questions correctly. I even require students to correct their work until they have answered the question correctly before moving to the next question. I number the questions and teams of 3-4 work on one question at a time, bringing me their solutions to be checked. If they are correct, I give them a ghost to place on a tombstone. I mark the ghosts with group numbers. During the last 5 minutes of class, I stop the game and we calculate scores. I'll use a random number generator to make each tombstone worth a random number of points. This means that a team could "win" even if they have fewer ghosts than another team because the ghost placement is based on chance. This game is also easily adapted for other times of the year. I've played Pirates on the Sea, Turkeys in the Oven, Flowers in the Garden, and many others. Here is a pirate version that I made for solving equations in algebra 1
Another game that I like is Risk. Again, read the linked post first for a clear explanation of the game. Basically, students start with a certain number of points. They attempt a question and wager a number of points based on their level of confidence. The answer is revealed and students add or subtract the number of wagered points depending on whether their solution was correct or not. Little prep is needed other than having a bank of questions. I will sometimes pull from the textbook or from a generator like Kuta. Here is a form that I created for this game. You could just as easily play the game with no form though.
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