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At GCDS, games play a large part in building students' basic fact fluency. We use a strategies-based approach in which students work towards fluency by learning and applying a set of strategies rather than by memorizing over a hundred discrete facts for each operation. These strategies are useful not only for mastering basic facts but also for computing with larger numbers. To learn more about our approach, read this short article from the Math Learning Center.
Benchmarks for basic facts are as follows:
Benchmarks for basic facts are as follows:
Kindergarten: Fluently add and subtract within 5
Grade 1: Fluently add and subtract within 10; have strategies to add and subtract within 20
Grade 2: Fluently add and subtract within 20; know FROM MEMORY all sums of two 1-digit numbers
Grade 3: Fluently multiply and divide within 100; know FROM MEMORY all products of two 1-digit numbers
Note: Many of these games are played with 10-sided dice. Order a pack of 10 here because let's face it - they WILL get lost.
Games to Practice Addition Strategies
Games to Practice Addition Strategies
These strategies help students to see how sets of facts are connected and how they might use what they know to master tough facts. Under each addition strategy tile, you will find printable games that will help build fluency for each of these.
Moving Toward Automaticity
Moving Toward Automaticity
Once students have internalized strategies to support their basic fact mastery, it is important that they be able to recall any and every fact without too much thought. This lightens the cognitive load so that they can take it a step further and compute with larger numbers. These games encourage flexibility, accuracy, and efficiency with all basic addition facts.
Roll a 10-sided die, choose to add 7, 8, or 9 to the number on the roll, and then place your counter on the sum.
Start with 20 cubes, organized into two towers of 10 cubes. One partner snaps the towers, puts one part behind their back, and shows the other part to their partner. Their partner figures out how many cubes are behind their back.
Each student picks 5 cards and chooses 3 of them to write an addition expression with 3 addends. The student whose sum is closest to 20 wins a point for the round.
Spin to get a number and roll a 10-sided die and find the sum. Connect the dots to box the sum.
© 2021 Illustrative Mathematics®. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license.
Games to Practice Multiplication Strategies
Games to Practice Multiplication Strategies
Strategies help students to see how sets of facts are connected and how they might use what they know to master tough facts. One of the greatest benefits of thinking about fact mastery in this way is that these strategies are scalable. In other words, they work for basic facts, but they also work when multiplying larger numbers by single-digit factors. Multiplication strategy tiles are formatted to help you see how derived strategies are built on mastery of foundational ones. Under each multiplication strategy tile, you will find printable games that will help build fluency for each of these.
Note: In these games, the 0 on a 10-sided die should be considered as 10.
Foundational Strategy
Foundational Strategy
Derived Strategies: Built on Doubles Facts
Derived Strategies: Built on Doubles Facts
Foundational Strategy
Foundational Strategy
Derived Strategies: Built on Tens Facts
Derived Strategies: Built on Tens Facts
Moving Toward Automaticity
Moving Toward Automaticity
Multiply using factors of 1–5 and 10. Partner A chooses two numbers and places a paper clip on each number. They multiply the numbers and place a counter on the product.
Generate factors with two spinners, one that shows 1–5 and one that shows 6–10. Create rectangles to represent the product on a 20x20 grid.
Each student picks 4 cards (playing cards: Ace-10) and chooses 2–3 of them to use to create a multiplication expression. The score for the round is the difference between each student’s product and 100.
Spin to get a number and roll a 6-sided die and find the sum. Connect the dots to box the product.
© 2021 Illustrative Mathematics®. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license.
Basic Facts by 🧡
Basic Facts by 🧡
Digital flashcards with amazing visuals for addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.
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