10 Fun Math Games You Can Play at Home (No Screens Required)

The best math practice doesn't feel like practice at all. These games use materials you already have at home to build real math skills—while everyone has fun.

Card Games

1. War (Addition or Multiplication Version)

What you need: A standard deck of cards (remove face cards or assign values: J=11, Q=12, K=13)

How to play:

• Each player flips two cards
• Add (or multiply) your cards together
• Highest total wins all four cards
• Player with most cards at the end wins

Skills built: Addition facts, multiplication facts, mental math speed

Modifications:

• Younger kids: Use only cards 1-5
• Challenge mode: Flip three cards and add all three

2. Make 10 (or 24)

What you need: Deck of cards, face cards removed

How to play:

• Deal four cards face up
• Race to find combinations that equal 10 (for younger kids) or 24 (for older kids)
• Use any operations: addition, subtraction, multiplication, division
• First to find a valid solution wins the round

Skills built: Number relationships, flexible thinking, operation fluency

3. Fraction War

What you need: Two decks of cards, face cards removed

How to play:

• Each player flips two cards to make a fraction (first card = numerator, second = denominator)
• Compare fractions—larger fraction wins
• Discuss: "How do you know 3/4 is bigger than 2/5?"

Skills built: Fraction comparison, equivalent fractions, number sense

Dice Games

4. Target Number

What you need: 2-4 dice, paper and pencil

How to play:

• Roll all dice
• Everyone tries to use the numbers (with any operations) to reach a target number (like 20, 50, or 100)
• Award points for getting closest, bonus for hitting exactly

Example: Rolled 3, 4, 6, 2. Target is 20.

• Solution: (6 × 3) + 4 - 2 = 20

Skills built: Operations, order of operations, creative problem-solving

5. Pig (Probability Game)

What you need: Two dice

How to play:

• On your turn, roll both dice and add the total to your running score
• You can roll as many times as you want OR stop and bank your points
• BUT if you roll a 1, you lose all unbanked points for that turn
• First to 100 wins

Skills built: Addition, probability thinking, risk assessment

Active Games

6. Math Scavenger Hunt

What you need: Paper and pencil, objects around the house

How to play:

• Create challenges: "Find something that weighs about 1 pound" or "Find 3 things that are each about 6 inches long"
• For older kids: "Find objects whose total weight is 2 pounds" or "Find a right angle"

Skills built: Estimation, measurement, geometric thinking

7. Store

What you need: Household items, price tags (sticky notes), play money or coins

How to play:

• Set up a "store" with priced items
• Take turns being customer and cashier
• Practice making purchases, calculating totals, making change

Skills built: Money skills, addition, subtraction, real-world math

Board Game Math

8. Modified Monopoly Math

What you need: Monopoly or any game with money

How to play:

• Play normally, but require mental math for all transactions
• No calculators allowed
• Bonus: Have the banker explain their calculations

Skills built: Multi-digit addition and subtraction, money management

9. Estimation Jar

What you need: Clear jar, small countable items (beans, pasta, coins)

How to play:

• Fill a jar with items (count as you go, secretly)
• Everyone writes down their estimate
• Count together—closest estimate wins
• Discuss estimation strategies

Skills built: Estimation, number sense, counting strategies

Cooking Math

10. Recipe Scaling

What you need: A recipe and ingredients

How to play:

• Choose a recipe and scale it (double it, halve it, or make 1.5x)
• Have your child calculate the new measurements
• Cook together and eat the results!

Example: Recipe calls for 3/4 cup flour. If we double it, how much do we need?

Skills built: Fractions, multiplication, measurement, real-world application

Making Games Work

Keep It Light

The moment it feels like homework, the magic is gone. If your child gets frustrated, take a break or simplify the game.

Play to Win (Sometimes)

Don't always let your child win. Healthy competition motivates, and learning to lose gracefully is valuable too.

Talk Through Thinking

The richest learning happens in conversation:

• "How did you figure that out?"
• "Is there another way to solve it?"
• "What would happen if...?"

Build a Game Rotation

Keep math games fresh by rotating through different ones. Make "math game night" a weekly tradition.

The Hidden Curriculum

These games do more than build math skills. They teach:

• Persistence: Trying different strategies when one doesn't work
• Flexibility: Seeing numbers in multiple ways
• Confidence: Success without worksheet pressure
• Joy: The radical idea that math can be fun

That last one might be the most important of all.