Games for teaching and learning Mathematics

We all know children love playing games, but how can we turn this love of games into rich mathematical learning experiences? What are the qualities of a good maths game, and should we be incorporating games into regular lessons and homework rather than a Friday afternoon filler activity?

Why use games in the mathematics classroom? First and foremost, they’re fun! Of course, that alone isn’t a good enough reason to use them. However, when children talk about fun and school, they often perceive fun lessons to be those where they felt challenged and learnt something new. In my research on student engagement, many students talked about fun maths lessons they had experienced, and these are some of their quotes:

“Maths is kind of fun when you get to play some maths games” (Year 6 )

“…if you sit on the carpet and the teacher goes on and on about what…