Check out these cool math games (many of which are free!) that you can do with your children at home or school. Help them learn their addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division in a fun and exciting way!
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Was learning math a drag for you in school? Would it have been easier if you didn’t have to rote learn your multiplication tables? Would some fun math games have helped you stop dragging your feet?
Well, you’re children probably feel exactly the same! Learning math doesn’t have to be a painful chore for you or your kids.
Your child also doesn’t have to spend all their time glued to a screen to enjoy math.
I’ve put together a list of cool math games you can do offline in this article.
Let’s make math fun!
Affiliate links are included in this article.
Why It’s Important to Make Math Games Fun
Are cool math games just fun to do, or are they crucial to the future of enjoying and excelling in math? Can we stick to boring rote learning of multiplication tables, or should we strive to make math fun and entertaining?
Classical educator, Dorothy Sayers, believed we need to start teaching rudimentary mathematical concepts at an early stage when children take to learning these things with more enjoyment:
Mathematics begins with the multiplication table, which, if not learnt [between 4 and 8 years of age], will never be learnt with pleasure – Dorothy Sayers, Lost Tools of Learning, p. 11.
If children benefit from learning math at an earlier age, then using fun math games is an excellent way of introducing these concepts in a more natural and enjoyable way.
Like any subject, the more fun it is, the more likely kids will actually be to do it. And the more they do it, the more they’ll learn.
This is even true for kids who are already good at math. Using math games helps take the pressure off of having to get the right answer all the time.
Instead, your child can just practice and enjoy themselves whilst still learning. So, even if your children are already good at math, making it fun can help them excel further.
There are no disadvantages and many benefits to adding a little enjoyment to learning math. So, why not incorporate some of these fun math games into your curriculum?
Which Math Games Are Best?
The best math games are those that make the concepts being learned fun, interactive, and exciting. If they can incorporate all three learning styles, that’s even better.
Children are more likely to learn and retain information when they are engaged with all their senses.
Games also shouldn’t be too easy or too hard so that kids stay engaged throughout. And they should focus on a specific concept, so your child isn’t overwhelmed with too much information at once.
With all that in mind, let’s look at some of the best math games for kids!
Cool Math Games
This list’s math games consist of outdoor, board, and indoor games. They are great for kids in kindergarten through high school.
With a few adjustments, these games can be adapted for any age. I’ve made several up myself and modified a few from other sources.
Some are free, but a few board games are definitely worth buying! The cool math games I’ll be sharing are:
- Shops with American or Australian Fake Money!
- Number Recognition – Math Bingo
- Number Sorting – Suduko
- Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication & Division Game –Math Solitaire
- Addition and Subtraction Game – Math Tip
- Sharpen Math Skills Game – Quickest Wins
- Odds or Evens?
- Addition Game – Fun Finska
- Finding Numbers Game – Cool Math Scavenger Hunt
- Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication, Division, and Square Roots –Proof!
- Multiplication, Addition, and Subtraction Game – Math Dice
- Color, Number Recognition & Addition – Uno
- Number Recognition Math Game – Go Fish
Below I’ve included directions and tips for how to use them in your school or homeschool.
Affiliate links are used on this page.
Shops with American or Australian Fake Money!
Get some fake money or if you’re confident the kids won’t lose the money, you can use real money in your wallet or purse.
Draw out labels with different cent and dollar amounts (for example, 1 cent, 5 cents, 50 cents, a dollar, $10, $100 etc) and slip these labels under thier favorite toys.
Get children to hold the bag of fake money and ask them to purchase what they want. Help them figure out the right amount.
You can also help them figure out if there is any change they need to work out.
After they’ve had a go at ‘being the customer’ let them have a go at being the shop keeper and you (or their sibling) can be the buyer.
Modifications for different ages
Initiaully, you can ask children to sort the same coins in the same piles while saying what coin it is. This helps them recognize the money.
For slightly older children, you can get children to add larger numbers in their heads and buy multiples of a product (which incorporates times tables). You can also get them to work out how much a product would be if there was a 10%, 20%, 75% discount. This is incredibly practical and will help them quickly get practical math skills.
Number Recognition – Math Bingo
The first math game on our list is Math Bingo. I discovered this game when talking to a lovely homeschool mom.
She said her children loved math and believed it was because they taught with a lot of fun math games. Their favorite game was Bingo – with a cool math twist.
To set up Math Bingo, you give your children a bingo card with a set of math problems in each square. The teacher holds a set of cards that have the answers to the problems on them.
The teacher then draws a card and calls out the sum. The student then has to solve the problems to find the correct problem that matches the answer.
They’ll have to solve several different math problems as they hunt for the right answer. When they find the right one, they can cross it out, color it in, or place a bingo marker on top.
The first student to fill in their card calls out, ‘Bingo’, and wins!
You can make the tokens and board pieces yourself or save yourself a lot of time and get one for addition and subtraction here and one for multiplication and division here. The first is for ages 5+; the second is for ages 9-13. They both accommodate 3 to 36 players so you can play it with many children in a classroom if you’re a teacher.
Modifications for different ages
To modify this game for different age groups, you simply have to change what types of math problems are on the bingo card. Some good math concepts to practice with this game would be:
- addition
- subtraction
- multiplication
- division
- variable equations
- exponents
Any short math equations or problems that you can fit in the bingo square will work. Be sure to have some extra paper on hand for students to work out the problems if needed.
Number Sorting – Sudoku
Another fun math game kids can do offline is Sudoku. This game is a brilliant way for emergent mathematicians to enjoy learning their numbers while practicing problem-solving skills.
To complete a Sudoku, your child must place each number from 1-9 in every row, column, and 3×3 square only once. That means no number can be repeated in any row, column, or square.
You can play this game for free by printing some free sudoku puzzles.
Or you can simply buy a sudoku book (this kid’s version is a great and educational present idea) to give to your students.
Modifications for different ages
For younger students, try using a smaller grid. Instead of the big sudoku puzzles with 9 different squares using numbers 1-9, try a small grid with 4 different squares using numbers 1-4.
As your child masters the 4×4 grid, you can move up to bigger grids.
Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication & Division Game – Math Solitaire
A really fun math game to play with kids is Math Solitaire. This game is great for practicing addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.
To play this cool math game, you need to have an ordinary pack of playing cards. Place two cards in the middle of the table and give your students 3 cards which they can pick up when the educator says, ‘Go.’
Using the 2 original cards on the table, the students try to add, subtract, multiply, or divide the numbers to get an answer that matches one of their cards. If students can’t do this with the cards they’re holding, they each draw a card until they can make a match.
The first to do this wins the round! Play 5 rounds, and the person who has the most round wins then wins the whole game.
Modifications for different ages
To modify this game for different ages, you can switch up what type of math the children need to do to make a match.
For younger students, have them add or subtract the two cards in the middle. For older students, have them multiply or divide the two cards in the middle.
Addition & Subtraction Game – Math Tip
If you don’t want to be stuck indoors the whole day, check out this active fun math game I like to call ‘Math Tip.’
The aim of this game is to learn addition and subtraction while getting outdoors and doing a little exercise together! Hopefully, nerds and jocks alike will enjoy this one!
In Math Tip, children have numbers attached to their body (wrist, back, or chest), and you have 10 chairs with the numbers 1-10 written on them.
The teacher calls ‘Add’ or ‘Subtract,’ and then the students need to find other students with the appropriate number before going together to the correctly numbered station.
For example, if a teacher says, ‘Subtract,’ a student with the number 9 on their wrist finds another student with a 6 and then runs to the appropriate station, which would be a 3.
If the teacher says, ‘Add,’ a student with a 2 might find a student with a 3 and then run to the station marked 5.
The remainder of the students can help the other students by calling out so as many students as possible can get to a station. In this way, it is collaborative rather than competitive.
Modifications for different ages
To modify this game for different ages, you can switch up what type of math the children need to do to make a match. For younger students have them add or subtract before finding their station. For older students have them multiply or divide before finding their station.
Or you could change how many children need to pair up to make their number. So instead of 2 students adding together to make 15, make it 3 students.
Sharpen Math Skills Game – The Quickest Wins
The Quickest Wins is a fun math game that helps students sharpen their math skills. It’s a two-player game students can play with their teachers or parents if they’re homeschooled.
The aim of the game is to sharpen your math skills and make you super quick at coming up with correct answers. For this game, you’ll need a deck of cards.
To play, each player picks two numbers out of the deck of cards. They then have to quickly add the numbers together, subtract them, multiply them, and divide them.
The quickest person to do this wins the round. Have five rounds and see who wins the game.
Modifications for different ages
For younger students, you could just stick with smaller numbers in the deck. As students get older, they can choose larger numbers to add, subtract, multiply, and divide.
Odds or Evens Game – Odds or Evens?
Odds or Evens is another cool math game that allows children to get out and about. The aim of the game is to teach students odd and even numbers, so it’s probably a good math game for Kindergarten or Year 1.
The teacher calls out a number. Students must hop up and down on one foot if the number is odd. If the number is even, they have to crouch down on the ground with their head between their legs.
The students who get it right stay in until there is only one person left who wins.
Modifications for different ages
For older students, you could add in more complex rules like if the number is a multiple of 3, then they have to do a certain action, and if it’s not, they have to do something else.
Addition Game – Fun Finska
Fun Finska (or Molkky) is a fun math game for Kindergarten or primary school-aged children. It teaches them simple addition as they need to add the number they’re up to to win the game.
To win the game, students must knock over a set of blocks with numbers on them. They add the numbers up as they knock the pins down.
If they get to 50, they win. If they go past this number, they have to go back to 25 and start from midway. This helps them calculate simple sums in their head.
Grab a copy of this game here.
Finding Numbers Game – Cool Math Scavenger Hunt
I found the following fun math game from Samantha’s website, Learn in Color, and thought it was a wonderful idea!
Using the list of objects on the paper at this link (which you can buy), sit your children down with a good newspaper or magazine and get them to search for the appropriate corresponding lines or math subjects.
I found the following fun math game from Samantha’s website, Learn in Color, and thought it was a wonderful idea! This game is great for helping children learn number recognition and how math applies to the world around us.
Using the list of objects on the paper at this link (which you can buy), sit your children down with a good newspaper or magazine and get them to search for the appropriate corresponding lines or math subjects.
Modifications for different ages
For younger children, you could have them simply find different numbers throughout the newspaper or magazine.
Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication, Division, and Square Roots –Proof!
Proof! is a cool math game that suits Kindergarten to high school level students. Suitable for a homeschool, school, or family night in, this board game aims to strengthen mental agility as children learn addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and square roots.
The game is very simple. Players set out several cards. Then they analyze the numbers and find an equation in the numbers.
They then call out, ‘Proof!’ and have to show the other players their equation. If the math is correct, the player can keep the numbers they guessed.
Then someone deals more cards into the blank spots and does it again. The player with the most amount of cards in his hand at the end wins the game!
You can get Proof! here.
Multiplication, Addition, and Subtraction Game – Math Dice
Math Dice Chase is a cool math game that can be played anywhere. It consists of four specially made dice, two of which are purple and two of which are blue.
Players sit in a circle, and the people on the opposite side of the circle each get a pair of dice. They quickly roll the dice and multiply the sum of the two numbers that come up. They call out the answer and then quickly pass the dice to the left, and the next player rolls it and calls out the multiplied sum.
The person caught with 4 dice (two pairs) loses the game and is out. You can read more about it here.
Modifications for different ages
For younger children, you can use addition or subtraction instead of multiplication.
Color, Number Recognition & Addition – Uno
I’ve recently started my son on Uno. Uno is a card game where players are dealt seven cards. They need to put down the same number or color, depending on their hand.
This game gently introduces homeschoolers to number and color matching. It also requires them to do some easy math.
I found it quickly helped my son get familiar with numbers when he was originally learning them.
There are also some fun alternatives to Uno, like Uno Emoji, Uno Flip, or Super Mario Uno.
Modifications for different ages
For slightly older children, you can get children to add 2+ and 4+ themselves. Younger children will need you to add for them.
Play open hands if playing with very young children.
Number Recognition Math Game – Go Fish
This old game requires a pack of cards. Players are dealt seven cards each and need to pair them with cards in their own hand OR by taking turns and asking each other for a specific card they have in their hand.
There are full instructions on how to play this cool card game here.
I’m A Puzzle – Interactive Jigsaw Puzzle
Are there any virtual activities that help with the process of deschooling?
These days schooling and homework already require your kids to be online for a while, especially for growing teenagers.
While examples of offline activities mentioned previously are a boost of refreshment from staring at a screen for hours, many kids love online games and would not appreciate being completely cut off from their favorite pass time.
We can encourage them to play more infotainment-based games such as word games and puzzles.
Games like Scrabble and I’m a Puzzle help improve hand-eye coordination, problem-solving skills, and kids’ ability to process information, and with proper regulation, they can help children find familiarity with the ongoing process of deschooling.
Conclusion: Make Cool Math Games Fun!
Math doesn’t need to be boring. We can do it anywhere, like in our kitchen, backyard, or grocery store. We can teach it in a way that turns children off the subject OR teach math in a way that makes them want to take the subject further.
That’s what these cool math games do. They turn the (what many children find) boring math subjects into fun games that children enjoy and learn from as well. So, why not try them out and make math more enjoyable for everyone?
