(1)Math Games for 3rd Graders: how many times?

Excitement and enthusiasm are two words you don't normally associate with learning math, but this game will make you wonder why not! Your child and his friends will have a blast shouting out answers in this competitive game that will put their critical thinking skills to the test! Playing cards are placed out two at a time, and whoever yells out the number it would be if it were doubled wins the cards. The player who ends up with the most cards wins the game.

What You Need: Deck of cards with the face card (jacks, queens and kings) removed

What You Do: 1.Ask your child to remove the jokers from the deck and then shuffle the cards. 2.Lay out two cards face up on the center of the table. Whoever correctly shouts out the number of the sum times 2 wins the cards. Example: If you lay out a 2 and 3, 2 + 3= 5 x 2 = 10. The correct answer is 10. 3.If this becomes too easy, try laying out 3, or 4 cards at the same time, or having the players multiply by 3, or 4. 4.Whichever player ends up with the most cards wins! Helpful Tip: Increase the excitement by playing in teams!

(2 )Third Grade, Probability & Data

Okay, engaging in a graphing activity may sound ho-hum, but if you use fun data, it changes the picture entirely. Combining an analytical activity, like graphing, with real world experiences shows your child that math is all around him. Graphing shows him a method of organizing and displaying the data he has collected. Using tally marks to record data is a fun way of keeping count. These skills will help your child master advanced graphing in the middle school as well as in high school.

So take advantage of the fresh air outdoors and your child's energy level, and start pitching, hitting, and graphing!

What You Need: Baseball Bat Paper Pencil Markers Ruler What You Do: 1.Have your child take a few practice swings and then start pitching the ball to him. Pitch the ball 10 times. Record the number of hits using tally marks. 2.Now it's your turn. Have your child pitch the ball to you. Ask him to record the number of hits using tally marks. 3.Help your child construct a bar graph to show the results. On the x-axis, the horizontal line, label each of your names. On the y-axis, the vertical line, show numbers 0 through 10. 4.Using the data, the number of hits, have your child fill in the graph. Have him draw a bar showing the total number of hits for each player. 5.Compare the ways of showing data with your child. Ask your child if it is easier to see who had the most hits by looking at the bar graph or by looking at the tally marks. Discuss with him other ways to show data, such as comparing numbers or using a picture graph. Ask him which method he prefers.

(3)Great Math Games for 3rd Grade Your child's multiplication skills will help him move around the schoolyard in this fun game. Once you've drawn a school map, outlining favorite locations such as the main building, swing sets, lunch room and basketball court, it's time to race around the yard while mastering the all-important times tables.

What You Need: Pair of dice White paper for game board Black marker 1 marker per player (beans, coins, foam shape, etc.) What You Do: 1.Encourage players to come up with a list of their favorite locations at school. 2.Have each player draw the locations in a large oval shape on their respective piece of paper, then tell them to connect the locations with lines to create the game board (see picture). Make sure the main school building is one of the drawings, as this will be the starting point. 3.Ask each player to come up with different numbers that are products of potential dice rolls. This means, of course, that prime numbers shouldn't be included. Also, keep the numbers under 36. 4.Encourage them to assign each location a different number they happened to come up with. 5.Have all of the players place their game pieces on their main school buildings. 6.Decide which player will go first (we played roshambo) and have this player roll the dice. 7.Have the player find the product of the two numbers he rolled and say it out loud. If the product is the same as the number of the next location on the game board, he can move his game piece to the next location on his game board. If he doesn't end up rolling the product he assigned to the next location, must stay where he is. 8.Whoever goes all the way around the schoolyard first wins! Variation: For younger players, use addition. The highest number on the game board should be 12.

This activity is a great opportunity to introduce the concept of probability. Before the kids create their game boards, explain to them that there are certain product that will occur more frequently than others and hint that it may be in their best interest to pick the "popular products for their game boards so as to increase their chances of winning.

3 ACTIVITY

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All About Addition: 8 THIRD Grade Math Activities ADDITION)

Watch your child's addition skills improve quick as lightning as he plays this competitive addition learning game with friends. Players begin by drawing different places in their home. Then, they'll assign each location a number from 2 to 12. They take turns rolling the dice, adding the sum and advancing through each place on their map. The player who moves around the house first wins! What You Need: Pair of dice White paper for game board, one piece per player Black marker 1 game piece per player (beans, coins, foam shape, etc.) What You Do: Encourage players to come up with a list of their favorite locations around their homes. Let them pick whatever places they want.

Have the players draw the locations in a large oval shape on their piece of paper, then connect the locations with lines to create the game board (see picture). Make sure to feature a house as one of the drawings; this will be the starting point. Ask the players to number each location on the map from 2 to 12, writing the number next to the drawing. The numbers don't have to be in numerical order. Have everyone begin by placing their game pieces on the house. Start moving around the house by having the first player roll the dice. Have him add the two numbers he rolled to find the sum. If the sum a player rolls is the same as the number of the next location, he can move his game piece to the next area. If he rolls a different sum, he must remain where he is. Whoever goes all the way around the house (game board) first wins! Helpful Tip: For older players, use multiplication. The highest number you use should be 36.

4 Activity

Become a Problem-Solving Machine!

This board game focuses on the art of finding remainders. With a few simple materials you can find around the house, you can create a fun new way to work on an important concept. Your child will start out by creating a bunch of division problems, then he'll solve them and, finally, he'll turn the remainders into a game of bingo. What You Need: Index cards or white paper cut down to size Pencil Paper Activity: playing bingo Ruler Counters (plastic chips, pennies, beans) Scratch paper What You Do:

Have your child and all other players write a unique division problems on 24 index cards. Distribute the cards evenly among the players and figure out the answers on scratch paper. Double check the answers to make sure they are correct. Write the correct answer on the back of the index card. Create a bingo card by making a grid on paper. The grid should be 5 squares across and 5 squares down, with the center square being the "Free" square. Write B-I-N-G-O at the top of the grid. Read aloud all of the answers on the back of the index cards. Have the players write down the numbers inside the squares on their bingo cards. They should choose which square they wish to write each number in and continue writing numbers in the squares until each square has a number in it. Shuffle the index cards and place them face up in a stack in the middle of the table, so the answers cannot be seen. All players should place a counter on the "Free" space. Read aloud the division problem on the first card and let all the players work out the answer on their pieces of scratch paper. The first player to call out the correct answer gets to use that number on his bingo card. Continue playing until the first player to make a full row on his card shouts, "Bingo!"