How to Create a Math Board Game for Fourth Grade

"Make 17" is a great learing game for fourth graders.

Teach fourth graders strategy, arithmetic and problem-solving with this game, "Make 17." The purpose of this game is for a player to get three cards whose sum equals 17 first. Players will get double the practice when they make sure their partner has the correct answer as well. "Make 17" is simple to assemble with items you probably already have in your classroom. If not, they are easy to find at your local department or craft store. This game is perfect for indoor recess or to use when kids get their work done early.

Things You'll Need

• 1 piece of foam board, 18 x 24 inches
• Scissors
• Red construction paper
• Green construction paper
• 90 3 x 5 unlined notecards
• Black permanent marker
• Clear contact paper
• Paper and pencil

Instructions

Preparing Materials

1. Cut two 3 x 5 inch rectangles out of the red construction paper. Label one of the rectangles "Cards" and the other "Discard."

2. Cut six 3 x 5 rectangles out of the green construction paper.

3. Write the numbers one to nine on the notecards with black permanent marker. Each card gets one number. There should be ten of each number. You should end with ten "1's," ten "2's," ten "3's" and so forth up to the number 9.

Making the Board

1. Attach the two red rectangles in the center of the board with clear contact paper.

2. Attach three green rectangles in a row along one side of the board with clear contact paper. These are the placeholders for Player One's three cards that equal 17.

3. Attach the other three green rectangles in a row on the opposite side of the board with clear contact paper. These are the placeholders for Player Two's three cards that equal 17.

4. Put the stack of number cards on the red spot labeled "card." The game is now ready.

Playing the Game

1. Players One and Two take one card and places it on their first green placeholder.

2. Players One and Two take another card and place it on their second placeholder.

3. Players One and Two take another card and if it doesn't add up to 17 with the other two cards they have laying out, then they put it on the discard pile.

4. Repeat this process until one player has three cards that add up to 17. When they do, they say, "17!" and receive a point. Points can be tallied on a separate sheet of paper.

5. Once a player has 17 points, the cards are shuffled and the game is started over.

References

• Foam Board: How to Work with Foam Poster Board
• Pro Teacher: Indoor Recess Games
• Dr. Mike's Math Games for Kids: The 15 Game

Resources

• Math Forum: Internet Mathematics Library