Children often spend long durations using the internet on smart gadgets. This time span they spend on their smartphones may also be dedicated to academic purposes by ensuring recreations with the flavor of practice academics.
With young children, board games may be a noteworthy approach to acquiring diverse mathematical concepts and abilities. While offline versions need boards, cards, dice and other stakes to be the procedure, online versions may turn beneficial by offering all of these at one place anytime. Being aware of the same, here we listed out a few online board games that may assist your little ones in learning math as they play.
How board games can help build a stronger hold over math?
Board games are fun and engaging and this makes it an ideal tool for children to practice math. Below are the reasons for how board games build a stronger hold over math.
1. Finer Practice
Children are highly interested in board games, and this makes them play the board games more frequently as compared to their frequency of practicing in the traditional ways. This would give them adequate revision of the topic, and they will be able to understand it properly.
2. Boosts their confidence
When children are able to solve math questions in board games, their confidence in math increases. They can solve sums faster with their math skills and thereby may drastically mitigate the anxiety of math tests and solving the problems in the traditional way.
3. Develops different types of math skills
Each math game helps in the development of math skills. Each of these games focuses on one particular math skill. Children can choose the math game depending on the skills they require. They can also play more than one board game at a time to develop different math skills.
4. Develops their interest
When they study math in a fun way by playing games, they develop an interest in math questions. When they are interested in learning something, they will put more effort and be able to understand the concept in a better way.
Fun Online math board games- Our suggestions
Below are some of the best online board games which will help the little ones to improve their skills and, at the same time, keep them interested and engaged.
1. Decimals board game
Children can practice adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing decimals in this decimal game. The screen starts with an interactive board with 23 steps to finish. The player can roll the dice to move forward. But there is a twist here.
To start the game by rolling the dice, the player is offered a decimal-related question with four options. The player needs to choose the right answer and submit it to get one chance to roll the dice. This cycle continues until the player reaches the finish line. This game can be played in two teams, in couples, or alone. Further other engaging features include a voice assistant and an interactive host at the left-top corner of the question screen.
Children learn from the basics of decimals to performing the operations on decimal digits while relishing this game.
2. Addition 1 to 10 zombie shooter
This Online game is for kindergarten and first-grade students to add numbers from 1 to ten. Number addition from 1 to 10 can be taught in a variety of methods here.
The game starts with a scary screen with Zombies with two options: Start and Help. Clicking on start, the new screen appears with a board game with 27 steps to finish the round. A dice is provided at the top, rolling which the learner can move forward. But, before that, they may need to add two numbers which act as a mathematical twist. When the player falls onto a zombie, they may need to start again.
This game may be fit for young learners looking to master numbers and basic addition as operations. The gameplay is engaging, and scary visuals may give this recreation a unique experience for learners.
3. Crocodile board game
This is a fun online math game where you may subtract numbers up to twenty. The theory of subtraction remains the same, with the exception that whether working with one-digit or two-digit numbers, it tends to alter.
Set up in a countryside pond, one can notice multiple leaves as steps of the game with frogs or crocodiles. While frogs are safe points, crocodiles are danger points. To start with, the learner needs to press on the dice to roll it. After the bot moves to the new position, a subtraction question is displayed. Students can roll dice again after answering these questions appropriately. Evidently, four options were provided to make it easy.
As the game goes on, falling onto a crocodile may make the player start from first. Logically, it stipulates additional practice. Children will be able to practice subtraction questions easily in this game.
4. Math Jungle Board Game- 3 Numbers addition
This game has a setup of a jungle with a number of animals. The game starts with steps set up in a deep forest. The path from start to finish is not too easy.
The game starts with the player rolling the dice at the top of the screen. The girl moves through the path as per the number that comes. Now, to roll the dice again, the player needs to solve a question. This query is an addition of two three-digit numbers. On choosing the right answer, the learner can roll the dice and move forward. This game has a twist in terms of animals. Whenever the pupil falls on the grid of an animal, they may go back to a few positions as a punishment.
This online game manages to be enticing with a noteworthy interface, visuals, and easy gameplay. The site offers similar themed games for other math concepts like even/odd numbers, multiplication, spelling, and algebra too. This provides a diverse set of practice sessions for the student.
5. DinoPark- Mixed Fraction T Rex Game
Dinosaurs may make the session grand with their unique screen presence. The game starts with the theme name of Dino Park and a couple of options. Choosing the Start button, the user can see the setup of the board game in a park full of t-rex dinosaurs and a guy looking to pass through.
To start with, the player needs to roll the dice by clicking on it from the top. Once the guy moves forward, a mixed fraction addition game is displayed on the screen with four options to choose from. Answering it correctly, will gain the player a chance to roll dice again. The dinosaurs on the way often look to constrain you backwards.
With good visual and facile gameplay, it ensures to take learners a ride in the game as they practice mixed fraction notions. This way, it can maybe an addon to the practice,
6. Rento Fortune
A board game with a pragmatic essence may be preferred. Rento fortunes let the players learn about money transactions and estimations online. At the first glimpse, this board game looks similar to monopoly but may be considered a learning version of the same.
The game starts by asking the user with some preferences like difficulty level, amount to start with, and player count. As the main screen starts, the player can see a board with cards and dice in the center. Pupils can click/tap on the dice to roll them and move their pawn accordingly. If they fall in a country, they can buy it. While they fall on chance, they may need to pick a card and follow what is written.
As the game needs transactions to buy, build or to mortgage, money-related knowledge may be ameliorated in children. Further, admirable visuals and easy gameplay are edges. Mentors may accompany students to teach them lessons, or a single player mode may be selected for personalized gameplay
7. Qwirkle Online
Qwirkle is a board game that involves the pupils to learn about various shapes. While it is known as an offline game, an online version is also available to make gameplay easier. With a simple and distraction-free screen, this may be a good game for learners.
Opening the screen, the user can see a board of 13*9 grids and 6 tiles below it to start with. Player needs to drag the tile to a grid on the board. The next player (computer here) takes tile and keeps beside the previously placed tile on a condition:
- If the shape is same, then it is placed horizontally beside the previous tile
- If the color is same, then it is placed vertically beside the previous tile
As the number of tiles increases in either direction, the scores of players increase. The one with the most points may be the winner.
Woven around different shapes, it assists the learners to master geometrical concepts and also be able to differentiate between various colors and sizes effortlessly.
Conclusion
As a mentor, you may opt for these online math board games to enhance the math skills of children in a fun and entertaining way. Evidently, children may be enticed by the thought of play instead. This may keep them engaged and, at the same time, enhance their skills. With these diverse sets of options, you may be able to choose the right difficulty levels which may add to the online advantage. Traverse and see if you can choose a fitting option among our suggestions.
An engineer, Maths expert, Online Tutor and animal rights activist. In more than 5+ years of my online teaching experience, I closely worked with many students struggling with dyscalculia and dyslexia. With the years passing, I learned that not much effort being put into the awareness of this learning disorder. Students with dyscalculia often misunderstood for having just a simple math fear. This is still an underresearched and understudied subject. I am also the founder of Smartynote -‘The notepad app for dyslexia’,