Looking for a way to make math practice feel like playtime? A simple deck of cards is the ultimate 1st-grade learning tool. Whether you are in the classroom or at home, these games build number sense, addition fluency, and place value skills.
[Click Here to Download Your FREE Printable Instructions and 100 Chart!]
The Games
1. Make 10 Take the face cards out and deal three cards to each player. On your turn, pick up a new card and discard one you don't need to try and make 10 exactly. Once your cards add up to 10, you win the round! Skill: Building fluency with number bonds to 10.
2. More Than, Less Than Split the deck and take turns being the leader to call out "More" or "Less." Flip your top cards, and whoever matches the leader's rule wins both cards. The player with the most cards at the end is the winner! Skill: Comparing values using "greater than" and "less than."
3. Same, Same Use your cards to find two different ways to make the same total number. You might show 10 using a King, and then show 10 again using a 7 and a 3. See how many matching sets you can create before the deck runs out! Skill: Understanding that numbers can be composed in multiple ways.
4. “Sum” Are Odd and “Sum” Are Even The leader chooses "Odd" or "Even," and then both players flip a card. Add the two cards together to see if the total matches the leader's rule. If the sum matches, the leader keeps the cards! Skill: Identifying odd and even sums through addition.
5. 3 in a Row Draw one card from the pile to be your "starting" number. Keep pulling cards until you can make a line of three numbers in a row, like 4, 5, and 6. You can count forward or backward to make your line! Skill: Sequencing and counting forward and backward.
6. Don’t Get Busted! Pick four cards and arrange them to make two-digit numbers that add up close to 100. If your total goes even one number over 100, you are busted! Try different combinations to get as close as possible without going over. Skill: Two-digit addition and place value strategy.
7. Subtraction Action Everyone starts with 100 points on their paper or 100 chart. Pull a card and subtract that number from your total to get a new, smaller number. The first person to reach zero exactly is the winner! Skill: Subtraction from 100 and mental math.
8. Go Fish…For 10! This is just like the classic game, but you are fishing for pairs that add up to 10. If you have a 3, ask your friend, "Do you have a 7?" to make a match. Skill: Learning addends that compose the sum of 10.
9. Place Value War Flip over three cards and move them around to build the biggest number you can. Compare your number with your friend’s number to see whose is larger. The person with the biggest number wins the cards! Skill: Comparing three-digit numbers and understanding place value.
10. Total of 10 Lay out 20 cards in a grid on the table. Look for any cards that add up to 10 and pick them up as a pair to clear the board. Try to use all the cards until the table is empty! Skill: Scanning for combinations of 10.