Math Card Games To Engage Learners

Card Game Fun

Math games engage learners in so many ways. Kids love games and card games help them practice skills. Once students learn the rules of the basis of a game, they are better able to concentrate on the concept at hand. Go Fish is my favorite card game to teach. The rules are simple. Once done there are other uses for the cards.

Rules

The rules of Go Fish are as follows:

1. Starting with the oldest player in the group and going Clockwise (right), a player will take turns asking for a card that matches their card. I.e., If playing addition Go Fish a student would have a card say 5+6 = ? they would ask another player if they have a card that has 11 on it.
2. If that player has the card, they hand it to the over, and the player adds it to their paired pile, and they get to go again. When a player makes a catch, they must reveal the card so that the catch is verified.
3. If the other player does not have the answer card, they will say “Go Fish,” and the player will pick up a card from the middle deck. The next person then gets a turn asking.
4. The game ends when there are no more cards to draw from the Middle deck or there are no more pairs to make.

The rules change slightly only to match the math concept being covered in the game. For example if playing measuring protractor angles then one card would have an angle with a protractor and the matching card would have the degrees.

Other Uses

Once done playing as a card game, the cards are not useless. I usually keep my card games in photo cases labeled for the duration of a unit and the next for early finishers to pull out and play. This is a great way for students to play a game and review the concept again and again throughout the year. Read on for more uses for the cards.

Matching/Memory

A matching game can be played in small groups or independently. Students can flip the cards upside down and play a matching/memory-type game where they flip to find the matches. Or the cards can be right-side up and mixed up for students to make a match.

Task Cards

A variety of uses for task cards include using the question cards in small groups, with the teacher, independently, or around the whole room group. Using answer documents, students can work on solving the questions and writing the answers down on their paper.

Also, this is a great quick review before heading out somewhere. I have had students pull out whiteboards or pieces of paper quickly. I pick 3-5 (or more if extra time) and project the questions. Students write down the answer and show me by holding it up. A super easy formative assessment to see who I need to pull for extra help on the topic.

Conclusion

Card games are incredibly versatile and cover a vast array of concepts. Math games engage learners in a variety of ways. They can be used multiple times – one of my favorite things is multi-use! I have many in my TPT store if you’re interested in any of the above or others. They can be used in the above ways to engage your learners and so many other ways! You can check them out by clicking HERE or on any of the images below.

Do you use card games in any other way I didn’t mention above? Let me know in the comments! I love learning new ways to use items I already have in my classroom.

Check out my other blog posts: This is about grading boundaries.