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Math Games
With Jane and Joanne

Beginners' Skip Counting

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LEVELS

Grades 2 - 3

SKILL

  • skip-counting (in preparation for multiplication and division)

PLAYERS

  • 2 - 4

EQUIPMENT

  • playing cards Ace (= 1) through 5 and 10's

GETTING STARTED

Deal cards so each player begins the game with six (6) cards. Player 1 selects a card from an opponent's hand. Beginning with the number on that drawn card, the player must skip count for five consecutive numbers.

    Example
  • If Player 1 draws a 4, he must skip-count aloud 8, 12, 16, 20, 24.
  • If Player 1 draws a 7, she must skip-count aloud 14, 21, 28, 35, 42.
  • If Player 1 draws a 10, he must skip-count aloud 20, 30, 40, 50, 60.
If Player 1 skip-counts successfully, he keeps that card and sets it aside in a special "pool" of cards.

At the end of each round, each player must maintain a hand of six cards.

  • If Player 1 was successful at skip-counting, the player from whom he drew the card must choose a new card from the deck to replace it.
  • If Player 1 was unsuccessful at skip-counting, he must return the card he drew to the player from whom he drew it.

Players continue the game by alternating turns. After a set time, players count up the cards in their set-aside "pool" of cards to determine the winner of the game. The player with the most cards is the winner.

Joanne Currah and Jane Felling have created two best-selling math game books -- Shuffling Into Math (for teachers of grades K-3) and All Hands on Deck (grades 1-9). Each book includes simple instructions for more than 100 math games that help children discover math concepts and reinforce math skills. Education World is pleased to present a selection of those activities in this series.

Click to learn more about these books and other exciting products and service from Joanne and Jane's Box Cars and One-Eyed Jacks.

More About Box Cars and One-Eyed Jacks

Joanne Currah and Jane Felling created their company, BOX CARS & ONE-EYED JACKS, for the sole purpose of making math fun -- not threatening or frustrating -- for children. Joanne and Jane spend many days each year on the road as they train teachers to make math fun for kids and run Family Math Nights at schools. To learn more about the authors, their books, and the services they provide, visit them at www.boxcarsandoneeyedjacks.com or email them at [email protected].

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