Snake & Ladder Math Games

Landing on a snake should offer a math-based challenge.

Snakes and Ladders is a fun game for younger children and can be used to incorporate math into less formal learning situations. Add questions to an existing Snakes and Ladders game or design your own board to bring math challenges into the game.

Question Cards

Make a set of cards with a math question on each one. Divide them into categories, such as addition, subtraction and multiplication, or just throw them all in together. Play the game as normal but set the rules so that every time a person lands on a snake or ladder, he must answer a question from the cards to either avoid going down the snake or to go up the ladder.

Multiply and Divide With Die

Play with three die but set the rule that each person must pick one of the numbers rolled to start with, multiply by one of the other numbers and divide by the other. He can choose whichever dice he likes in whatever order. However he must end up with a whole number or he can't go. The player then moves the number of spaces equal to the answer of the sum. This teaches factors and multiples, as well as sharpens mental arithmetic.

Make Your Own Board

Make your own board and write a math question on each square. The answer to the questions must from 2-12. On each turn, the player can go to the next square along in which the answer to the question it contains is equal to that which they have rolled on the die. Put more difficult questions the further up the board you go. These questions should have answers that are less likely to appear on a pair of die, such as 12 and two. If there is no square ahead of the player with a question which their dice roll answers, they must miss their turn.

Super Hard Combination

If the players are getting a too good at the game, combine all three versions into one difficult version. Use the board you have made, along with the question cards, to give challenges when they land on the snakes and ladders. Use the three die, but now the product of multiplying and dividing the numbers has to answer one of the questions on the squares of the board ahead of the player's counter.

References

• Math Sphere: Board Games