In response to sickness and the Ohio weather shifting from mid 70s to upper 30s overnight, we present to you some indoor fun…
**drumroll please**
Let ’em Fly!
[jetpack-related-posts]
This Math Card Game is Rubbish!
This Math Card Game is Rubbish!
We have played the math card game Rubbish approximately one billion times, and I’ll play it 1 billion and one if it means our boys practice the skills this game sharpens.
My five-year-old loves it, my three-year-old wants in, and we all enjoy the time together.
It’s quick, and super simple, too!
The Rules
1.) Lay out two rows of five cards, horizontally for each player. The rest of the cards are for the draw pile.
2.) Choose the first player. We rock-paper-scissors for it. 🙂
3.) The first player chooses a card. Each of the cards you laid face down represent a number (left-to-right) Ace-5 in the top row; 6-10 on the bottom row.
4.) If the card drawn is Ace-10, pick up the face-down card in the corresponding spot, and replace it with the card drawn (lay it facing up).
5.) The face-down card you pulled to replace with the drawn card is now the next card you play. If it fits in to what’s left, you pick that spot’s card up and lay the one in your hand down in its place. Your turn continues until you don’t have any more spots available for the switch out.
Example: I draw a 5. I pick up the card face down that’s in the 5 spot (top row last card on the right) and lay the 5 I just drew where it was. The card that was face down was an Ace. I pick up the first card on the top row and lay the Ace down in its place…keep going until you run out of spots to fill.
The first to fill all his or her spots is the winner!
Other Handy Rules:
1.) If you pick up a Jack or Queen, you automatically discard into a discard pile next to the Rubbish draw pile.
2.) If you pick up a number you already have face up, discard.
3.) If you pick up a King, it’s wild and can be used as any number Ace-10!
4.) When you run through the entire deck of draw cards, shuffle the discard into a new draw pile and keep going until you get a winner.
The Best Part
The best part about Rubbish is that it looks exactly like the ten-frames my oldest is learning in Kindergarten math!
He works with numbers, placement, and I was really surprised by how quickly he learned the numbers associated with the face-down cards.
For our three-year-old, this has been great to help drive home learning his numbers.
Final Thoughts
I love this silly game called Rubbish and how it helped the boys’ skills grow so quickly, how it’s teaching and reteaching number sense, and most of all how it always brings us together.
A bowl of popcorn, a game of Rubbish, and our two boys makes for a great time in our homeschool day!
Marshmallow Numbers Game
Marshmallow Numbers Game
Our boys don’t have a particular love for sitting still or being serious when it comes to learning, so this marshmallow numbers game is great!
Learning Numbers 1-5 with Marshmallow Yummyness!
I noticed one day while reading with Hudson that he just didn’t seem to have a great grasp on his numbers 1-5.
I had the next day at home on Christmas break, and I happened upon some of those K-Cup- type filters in my cabinet.
How We Do The Marshmallow Number Game!
I wrote 1-5 on the inside of each filter with a Sharpie.
We could’ve gone to 10, but if there’s one thing I know about Hudson (and a lot of kids in general) is that overwhelming him in the beginning can shut him down completely.
Also, I know I have to scaffold (or break down) the game and build up to the final goal for better success.
So, I grabbed some marshmallows, my kid, and asked if he wanted to play a game where he’d win a marshmallow if he won. Um, yes! He was definitely in.
The Break Down
Here’s how I broke down the marshmallow number game for Hudson, my three-year old.
He had mastered the numbers 1-3, so we were ready to move up to five.
He was having some success by the end of our first try, but it was slow-going, especially since he happens to be the particularly ornery type, who think it’s funny to eat the marshmallows Elf-style.
Patience is a virtue, my friends. 🙂
Steps
1.) I asked for his pointer finger, and we tapped the numbers in the filters as we recited them. We did this about five or six times. It is important to keep the numbers in order for a while.
2.) He was really interested in those marshmallows by that time, so I had him drop one in each cup as he looked at the numbers. We did this five or six times.
3.) We dropped one in each cup reading them backwards five or six times (5,4,3,2,1).
4.) I started asking him to put a marshmallow into the cup with the number I called out.
If he got all five right, I gave him a mini-marshmallow.
He was starting to lose focus, and the marshmallows were pretty much the whole reason he showed up to the party, so I figured by then it was time to let the kid eat a couple. He agreed.
5.) There were some times when he got them mixed up. If so, we’d take his finger or the marshmallows and repeat the verbal recognition together. “1,2,3,4,5. 1,2,3,4,5..”.and backward, “5,4,3,2,1…” Repetition is key.
Just Keep Swimming…
From there we kept at the guessing for a while until he started to get most of them right.
After that I switched two of the filters around, went back through steps 1-3, and then started guessing again.
Once he got those I moved a couple more filters around so they were all mixed together.
This was tougher because he was so used to seeing them in order. He can also count aloud really well and was using that to help him, so this made it tougher.
Building Confidence
Each step of the process helped build his confidence.
If he lost that confidence, we’d just go back to me helping him with tapping the numbers with his finger over and over until he was ready to try again with guessing.
I will get this game out only every once in a while. In between, I’ll try different games with numbers.
Patient Pants
It takes a lot of patience, a lot of practice, and a lot of repetition, but it’s worth it in the end.
Our next step, once he’s mastered 1-5, is to slowly add in filters up to ten for this marshmallow number game.
I will also use pennies the next time that he can add to his piggy bank.
I find that changing up the way I teach is important for our boys.
They like activities much better than workbooks.
They like movement much better than sitting.
And they really, more than anything, love when the game is over and Momma lets them set up a marshmallow catapult.
Left over marshmallows, a spoon, and a block is all you need to laugh and laugh as the marshmallows fly, zip, and zoom across the room!
