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Eleven Marvelous Math Games to Supplement Your Homeschool Classroom

Let’s face it. For many children, math is not a favorite subject. Numbers and math concepts can be challenging, confusing and…monotonous. As a homeschooler, you want your child’s learning experience to be not only effective, but fun.

Of course, if you’ve been homeschooling for a while, you’ve probably found a certain math curriculum that’s right for your kids. But maybe you’re looking to supplement that program with other number activities. Below is a list of eleven games which help to improve those mathematical skills in a fresh and fun way and offers a nice break from those frustrating math moments.

1. SUM SWAMP. This game of addition and subtraction takes kids on a journey through the swamp. They’ll meet all sorts of critters and crocodiles while improving their math skills. How fun is that! Recommended for grades K-2.

2. RACK-O. This oldie but goodie challenges your child’s sequential numbers abilities. So rack ’em up! Instructions include multiple game variations. Recommended for 3rd grade+.

3. PAYDAY! Teach your child the basic money-management skills they will take with them into adulthood. Recommended for 3rd grade+

4. HONEYCOMB HIKE. Young learners will be buzzing over this one! As they take their bears along a paw-print path around the board toward the honey-filled bee hive, your kids will learn early math concepts like size relationships and color recognition, as well as game-play strategy. Recommended for grades PreK +.

5. TOUR DE TIME. Includes a double-sided game board for two levels of play – Leaving for Vacation and Bike Challenge. Teaches and reinforces skills in time calculation and comparisons. Recommended for grades 2+.

6. BANK ACCOUNT. Want to teach your children what’s involved in writing checks, making deposits and keeping accurate records? This game is great for older children and will allow them to practice real-life transactions such as making car payments and buying groceries. Recommended for grades 5-12.

7. DIRTY FEET GAME. It might sound gross to you, but this fast-paced game on measurement will delight your kids! Includes silly feet and inch dice with lessons in converting inches to feet to yards. Guaranteed to grow smiles a mile wide! Recommended for grades 2+.

8. CONCEPTUAL BINGO. This award-winning series offers your kids the chance to improve on specific mathematical aspects while playing the classic game of bingo! Try different versions, including decimal, integers, fractions, rational numbers, whole numbers, polynomials, time, and money. Grade recommendations range from 1st to 12th.

9. CHASE! Kids can compete and race their pawns around the game board as they learn to recognize decimal place value. Available versions include Decimals and Large Numbers for grades 4-7 as well as Whole Numbers designed for grades 1-4.

10. TRI-OMINOS. This classic game combines strategy and a little bit of luck as kids match their triangular shaped numbered pieces to those already laid on the table. The first to score 400 points, wins! Recommended for grades 3+.

11. MATH MAGIC. A challenging game for middle-schoolers and beyond that teaches often difficult-to-grasp concepts like square values and roots, cubes and cube roots. Recommended for grades 6 – 12.

Check out www.educationallearninggames.com and www.1888toys.com for more information on these math games, plus a more extensive selection sure to be a fun and effective supplement to your homeschool math curriculum.

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Homeschool Halloween: Christian Alternatives to Halloween

Just because you’ve decided to forego participation in the Halloween festivities doesn’t mean you can’t make fun on your own. Furthermore, there are ways to use the Halloween season as a way to spread Christ’s love and the redeeming power of the gospel message. Here are just five ways to have some fun without risking the safety of your Christian children.

1. Have a Game Night

So your kids are longingly looking at the kids outside with tear-filled eyes. What is a homeschool parent to do? Why not create your own fun? Have a family game night complete with a variety of board games and fun activities. Go wild with candy prizes and autumn-themed goodies. If your homeschoolers want, you can even dress up. You can still pass out candy to the neighbor children if you stay home. I know parents who pass out candy accompanied with small tracts or Bible verses. This is a great way to expose kids to God’s word. Whatever you do, don’t shut yourself in and ignore knocks on the door. That only sends the message that you are strange and even unfriendly.

2. Go to a Harvest Party

Each year, my church throws a Harvest Party on October 31st. There is a leaf pile surrounded by bales of hay that kids can dive into for a period of time to search for candy. There are competitions of all kinds, including target shooting, jousting, pillow fights, wrestling, and more. Each room of the church is devoted to a specific Bible-themed game. The cafeteria cooks pizza, popcorn, and nachos that come free with admission. My homeschoolers usually come home from the harvest party marveling as to how the harvest party has to be so much more fun than trick-or-treating. If your church doesn’t have one, why not look into starting one of your own? You could even host one with your homeschool co-op.

3. Go Bowling

On Halloween night, bowling alleys are usually pretty empty. You can take your family and to a bowling alley and have an all-night bowling party. Don’t just limit your fun to bowling. Laser tag, goofy golf, and other fun activities can be easily substituted. You could even get together with other homeschooling families for some friendly competition. You can make it especially fun by turning your family into a team. Each Christian homeschooling family can have its own colors or even uniforms. Be creative!

4. Throw a Costume Party

So your kids really want to dress up. Well, what’s wrong with that? As long as they don’t dress up as anything evil, a costume party can be a great activity for a church or homeschool co-op. Award prizes for the best costumes. One Christian homeschool friend of mine threw a Noah’s Ark party. Each homeschooler dressed up as a different animal and they put on a short play about Noah’s Ark.

5. Pumpkin Party

Carving Pumpkins was always my favorite element of Halloween. I can’t think of a good reason to not carve a pumpkin. Why not have a pumpkin party with your homeschoolers and other Christian friends? You can go to a pumpkin patch, pick out your favorite pumpkins, and then carve them into silly faces. I heard of one ambitious family carving Bible verses and inspirational messages like “Jesus is Lord” into a series of pumpkins. Just don’t throw away those seeds. Dry them out and add some salt for a fun snack!

Mimi Rothschild is a homeschooling parent, author, children’s rights advocate, and Founder and C.E.O. of Learning by Grace, Inc. She and her husband of almost 3 decades reside with their 8 children in suburban Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Rothschild co-founded Learning By Grace, Inc. because “our current system of education has broken its promise…” Learning By Grace, Inc. delivers Internet-based multimedia education to PreK-12 children in the United States and throughout the world.

Rothschild has authored a number of books about education published by McGraw Hill and others. Her Daily Education News Blog contains feature stories on alternatives in education.