Bridgewater Land Math Game

The classic childhood favorite game, Candy Land, has been adapted to create the
Bridgewater Land Math Game! Find out how to play this community friendly, fun,
learning game below!
Object:
Be the first one to get to John Wayland Elementary School!
Game

Details:
2-4 players.
Appropriate for children ages 8 and up.
Each card color stands for a different multiplication fact family.

Set Up:
Lay out the game board.
Each person will choose a person to use as his or her marker and place at the
starting line.
Assemble or set out the spinner.
Divide the cards into colors and place each stack to the side of the board.
Each player receives a recording sheet.
Directions:
Spin the spinner.
Pick a card off the top of the pile that is the color you land on (purple,
orange, etc.)
Move to the next spot on the game board trail that is the color that you
drew and solve the multiplication problem that is on your card (players must
try their best to solve the problem, but may get help if needed to come to a
final answer. They may still move if they get the problem incorrect).
Write down the problem that was on your card and the answer that you come
up with in the correct spot on the provided recording sheets (1 per player).
Continue by taking turns with other players until one reaches the finish of
the game (John Wayland Elementary School) and wins.
Rules:
Players must try to solve the multiplication problem on the first color that
they spin. They may only spin once per turn.
If a player lands on a spot that has a red licorice X on it, they lose their
next turn.
If a player spins and lands on a spot with one of the pictures on it, they must
move ahead or backwards to that space. They get a brain break if they
land on one of these spaces and do not have to solve a problem.

If a player lands on the space right in front of the Peppermint Trail or the
Gumdrop Pass, they may take a short cut to the space directly on the other
side.
The player that reaches the end of the game (John Wayland Elementary
School) first wins.

Variation of the game:

For children that are a little more advanced in multiplication and their times
tables, a possible variation would be to make the stakes higher for moving to the
next space.
Directions for the entire game would stay the same except for one.
In order to move to the next space, the player must answer the
multiplication problem on their card correctly without any assistance from
other players.
If the problem is answered incorrectly, then the player must stay in the
spot he or she is in and may not move forward.

Bridgewater Land Math Game Recording Sheet

Space Color/Fact
Family
2 Family

3 Family

4 Family

5 Family

6 Family

9 Family

Problems Solved





Morgan Sears
ELED 433
Math Game Project
Written Analysis
October 14, 2014


For my math game, I chose to use revise the game, Candy Land. I chose this game because it
was my personal favorite as a child and I think that any child (and their parents) would enjoy
playing it. The main idea of the game is also fairly simple, which made it easy to adapt and will make
it easy to play.
I chose to revise it in one way by making it specific to their community. Instead of each area
of the original game being in place, I altered it by making each spot a place in their community. For
example, Candy Cane Forest from the original game became Oakdale Park, one of their favorite
places from the Bridgewater community. I also revised it by making it specific to math and
multiplication. Instead of simply spinning the wheel, landing on a color, and moving forward to that
color, each different colored space represents a multiplication fact family and has a multiplication
fact on it for them to solve on a corresponding colored card. For example, orange spaces will have
orange cards with multiplication facts for them to solve on it from the twos family (for example, 2x3
or 2x5). As explained by the directions of the game that I created, a player may work with another
player to solve their multiplication fact if needed. Getting the answer incorrect does not inhibit
their ability to move to the next space (this is specifically for players that are in the process of
becoming fluent in their facts). However, in the variation for players that are already fluent in their
facts, he or she must solve the fact without assistance in order to move forward in the game.
Another revision I made was adding a recording sheet for players to write down the facts that they
have solved in each family.
The math game that I created specifically addresses Virginia mathematics SOL 3.5:
Students will recall multiplication facts through the twelves table, and the corresponding division
facts. This game also connects to social studies because I have altered it to include places from the
students community. This causes them to consider learning in a community based approach by
making connections to their favorite, or frequented, places within the Bridgewater area. The

Bridgewater Land Math Game also addresses the following process standards: making
mathematical connections (to other disciplines) by connecting it the students community,
mathematical communication by having the opportunity to discuss possible multiplication fact
answers with other players, and mathematical problem solving by using cognitive skills and
knowledge to solve multiplication facts during the game.
The game that I created can be used for children in third grade and above. It will be a helpful
learning tool for those that are just learning multiplication and working towards becoming fluent in
their facts and fact families. It will also be a helpful review for students in other grades. One major
connection is to fourth grade. In fourth grade, students will be responsible for solving single-step
multiplication problems and finding greatest common factors, factors, multiples, and least common
multiples of figures, making this game a great review for them (Virginia SOL 4.5).
If I were to use this game in my classroom, it would be implemented as part of a lesson,
maybe with other games in a center format. Therefore, it should assess learning objectives. The
ones that would apply in this lesson are below.
Understand what are the broad
generalizations/concepts the
students should begin to
develop? (These are typically
difficult to assess in one lesson.)
U1: Students will understand that
patterns and relationships exist in
the facts.
U2: Students will understand that
relationships can be used to learn
and retain the facts.

Know what are the tools,

vocabulary, symbols, etc. the
students will gain through this
lesson? (These knows must
be assessed in your lesson.)
K1: Students will know how to
use mental math and
relationships between facts to
solve multiplication problems.

Do what are the specific

thinking behaviors/procedures
students will be able to do
through this lesson? (These will
also be assessed in your lesson.)
D1: Students will state their
multiplication facts within
various fact families.

As mentioned before, when creating this math game, I related the game to the community of

the students in my practicum classroom. In ELED 434, for our Community Profile assignment, we
were required to research the community within our schools district lines, and, in the case of John
Wayland Elementary School, it was primarily the Bridgewater community. I used the information
gained from this assignment to revise Candy Land to make it culturally relevant for my students. I
replaced the settings from the game (for example, Grandma Nutts house) with settings from the
students community (for example, Oakdale Community Park). This allows the students to make

connections to places they may enjoy or frequently visit within the Bridgewater area. It makes their
learning culturally relevant and causes them to participate in less traditional learning experiences.

While playing this math game, children will practice fluent multiplication facts. To do this,

when they draw the card with the math problem on it, they will have to use the strategy of
visualizing the problem using mental math. They will not have the opportunity to use manipulatives
or paper and pencil for computation. I anticipate that they will picture equal groups in their head or
use their fingers to count if they are earlier multiplication learners. If they are more fluent, they
may simply know it right away or may make relationships between numbers to reason about the
problem to come to a conclusive answer.
While I anticipate this will be a fairly simple and fun math game for children, it is likely that
they will make mistakes, especially if they are beginning multiplication learners. If they are fairly
new to multiplication, they may have a lot of difficulty using mental math and visualizing the
problems, as opposed to using manipulatives and being able to write or draw out their problems for
reasoning to come to an answer (however, this game is meant to be used for children that are more
comfortable with their facts). They may make guesses and not really think about the problem out of
frustration. For more advanced students, they may make mistakes such as making incorrect
relationships between multiplication facts or making simple mistakes in mental computation,
causing their answers to be off by a few.
When referencing the Dos and Donts of Effective Basic Fact Practice, I found that this game
fit fairly well within the guidelines. In the Dos, this game asks children to self monitor by provoking
them to evaluate themselves on the multiplication facts that they are and are not comfortable with,
drills in short time segments because they are taking turns during the game, and makes this drill
enjoyable because it is a game that makes fact practice fun. Although one of the Dos is to focus on
self-improvement by having them only compare their knowledge to themselves and not other
people, and this game causes students to observe other peoples knowledge, I think it focuses on
self-improvement because each student will have their own personal recording sheet that shows
what they know and what they may need to improve on. It can also involve families because it can
be played at home. It also allows children to work on facts over time because it can be played by

children that are at various levels of fluency with multiplication facts. However, this game does not
address the do of using technology because it is not appropriate to use in this case.
This game does not apply to many of the Donts of Effective Basic Fact Practice. It does not
use lengthy timed tests, does not use fact mastery as a prerequisite for calculator use, and does not
proceed through the facts in order from 0 to 9 because the game is based on chance of the spinning
of the wheel, ensuring that the children will likely answer facts in random order. This game also
does not use public comparisons of mastery. Although it is played with other players, it does not
publically display knowledge to the whole class. It can also be played with students that are around
the same level mathematically to lessen the chance of embarrassment. However, another Dont is to
not use facts as a barrier to good mathematics. This states that, There is no reason that a child who
has not yet mastered all basic facts should be excluded from any mathematical experiences.
Therefore, just because some students may be less fluent in their facts does not mean that they
should not be able to play the game. The Bridgewater Land Math Game does not work on the facts
all at once. Although students have the opportunity during the game to work with a variety of fact
families, it is not emphasized that they must master them and does not appeal to specific things,
such as doubles. Lastly, this does not move to quick recall activities too soon, another Dont. I
personally do not think of this game as a quick recall activity. Players take turns, leaving them time
to relax between answering a fact. They are also not timed when they get a problem.




Morgan Sears
ELED 433
Math Game Project
Written Reflection
October 14, 2014

When completing this assignment, I learned a lot about effective basic fact practice.

Although I had already read the Dos and Donts of Effective Basic Fact Practice before working on
this math game project, I was forced to examine it more carefully while creating my game and I was
also forced to apply it. Some of the Dos and Donts were secondhand knowledge, such as avoiding
comparing student work and embarrassing them, making drill enjoyable, involving families, and not
forcing children into quick recall activities too soon because it may overwhelm them, some of the
Dos and Donts were new to me. Some of those included asking children to self-monitor and not
proceeding through the facts in order from 0 to 9. These kinds of realizations that I made through
this assignment are useful for my future classroom and instruction and were eye opening as I
created my math game.

As aforementioned, this assignment will influence my future classroom practices in a few

ways. One way is through usage of the Dos and Donts of Effective Basic Fact Practice. Another way
this will influence my future classroom and teaching practices is because it forced me to get
creative and showed me one way that I can make math fun, something that has always been
challenging for me. In the future, I want to create and find several games for my students to play in
class to help them in every aspect of math. I want my students to enjoy math and feel comfortable
doing it.

Although this game would ideally be played in my classroom or sent home with students on

loan, it could also be a cool game to play in a home-school setting. As we all know, it is important for
us, as teachers, to emphasize family involvement for ultimate student achievement. Home schooling
is the ultimate form of family involvement. Because the game that I created is super family friendly,
it would be good for parents to play with their children whom they are instructing on their own. It
implements a fun activity that is interesting and does not focus on drill, but is extremely
educational.

Completing this assignment also helped my self-improvement by helping me work towards

my S.M.A.R.T. goal that I created earlier in the semester. Specifically, my goal was, By the end of the
semester, I will be able to effectively plan a standards-specific mathematics lesson and execute it
successfully in a real classroom using methods and strategies learned through ELED 433. While
creating this lesson, I not only addressed specific SOL standards, but I also helped address
standards from other grade levels and made connections to other subjects within the curriculum.
Additionally, I was able to do this while making it fun in the form of a game. This is all good practice
for me in being able to create standard-specific lessons that are fun and educational in the future.

When referencing my mathematics timeline and reflection from the beginning of the

semester, I saw that one of the main things I pointed out while completing that assignment was
that, even though I had many negative experiences in math as a child and have never typically liked
the subject, it is important for me to be enthusiastic about it and make my students excited. This
game is one way to do that. I think that students will be excited about playing games in general, but
this version that I have created allows them to take the pressure of math class off and spend time
with their friends and families while learning. This will hopefully allow them to have positive math
memories from my classroom in the future.