Games in the Classroom

My Preppies absolutely LOVE playing games.  I use them in our Literacy and Maths rotations, and then move them to be a 'free choice' option for a bit of learning disguised as play!  Here's a few of our favourites (that I'm sure you've seen online before!):

1.  I call this one 'Power Tower'.  The kidlets take turns to choose a cup from the pile.  If they can read the sight word written on it, they are able to add it to the Power Tower.  For low-ability groups I help and we figure the tricky words out together.  The motivation of missing out on adding a cup to the tower is enough to make the other groups think long and hard about the tricky words, and we rarely have to pass on a word.

2.  My 'Splat!' mats were the best thing I made this year for my classroom.  I'd been using 'Splat!' as a way to practise sight word recognition, but I was forever losing my laminated flies and bugs - of which I had hundreds in order to cover all of the words in our sight word program.  These mats make it so easy to play - grab the mats that cover the lists you want to revise, grab the fly swats and off you go!

3.  I'd say that 'Gone Buggy' is the favourite of all the Maths games we play in my classroom.  I use a pocket dice, some dollar store bugs and laminated jars.  The kidlets love to add bugs to their jar when they roll a number, but are always disappointed when they roll the bug spray or a fly swat!  First to 10 bugs wins. :)  I originally saw this idea over at Kindergarten... Kindergarten.

4.  Oh iPads... is there anything you can't do? I have 10 iPads in my room and I use them for independent skill practise, listening stations, as a reward and for those kidlets who respond well to the visual/auditory/kinaesthetic combo (uh... that may be all of them!).

Do your kids love games as much as mine? :)

Lauren