Number Heads - Easy, 5 Minute Math Games

You don't always need a lot of equipment to play some really fun math games - often, all you need are some dice or a pack of cards. We play lots of games to practice skills in math class, and I am always on the hunt for games that are quick, and that can grow and expand as the students' understanding does. We start simple, and go from there ... sometimes I introduce the trickier versions, and sometimes the students come up with their own variations. This allows all students to find their "goldilocks" level - just enough challenge so that it is really fun, and ensures that they are building on the skills they already have.

Number Heads is a game where you roll dice a certain number of times, add them up, and try to come as close as you can to get to a certain number.

We started last Monday with rolling two dice three times. We called this 2 Rolls to Make 100.  Each time you roll, you write down a two digit number, deciding each time what "place" the numbers should go (a roll of 1 and 3 could make 31 or 13, for example). The goal is to get as close to 100 after three rolls. Once a number is written down,  you may not change it, and you can only add the numbers after all three rolls are written down.

The skills we are practicing include:

* estimation
* adding with renaming
* adding more than two numbers
* place value
* number sense

Then, we started rolling three dice three times to make 1000, or 3 Rolls to Make 1000. Each time you roll, write down a three digit number, again deciding what place the numbers should go.

More advance versions could include:

5 Rolls to Make 200: Roll 2 dice five times to create three, 2-digit numbers. Add them together. Aim to get as close to 200 as possible.

2 Rolls to Make 7000: Roll 4 dice two times to create two, 4 digit numbers. Add them together. Aim to get as close to 7000 as possible.

Of course, the possibilities are endless. I wonder what the students will come up with?