To be honest, I have a couple boxes of math flash cards on a storage shelf in my son’s bedroom that are collecting dust. They are okay to use from time to time, but my kids don’t always enjoy just reciting the numbers to me.
I was recently introduced to Matics and I have to agree with their slogan of “throw away boring “flash cards”, play Matics instead!” Matics is a card game geared at children who are five and above. I think some four-year-olds could probably play it too.
Matics is a deck of 52 cards for 2 players that are numbered from 0-12. To play, simply deal each player half the deck and have the cards placed face down in two piles on the table. From that point, 5 variations to the game may be played.
They are broken down by skill level –
- Greater Than/Less Than: For the youngest of players. Each player turns over one card. He/She announces the value of each card. The larger number in the hand wins.
- Addition: Each player adds his/her two cards. The larger SUM wins the hand.
- Subtraction: Each player turns over two cards. Subtract the smaller number from the larger number. The larger DIFFERENCE wins the hand.
- Multiplication: Multiply the two cards in the hand. The larger PRODUCT wins.
- “Matics‘ Challenge”: This is geared for ages 7 and up. I’ll leave this one as a surprise. 🙂
Before starting the game, you will want to think of a way to resolve any ties. We had each player turn over an additional card and the largest number won and broke the tie. For young learners, 11 and 12 can be removed before dealing out the deck too.
My daughters had a blast with Matics and even enjoyed challenging each other to a game. And who wouldn’t want to play and beat mom or dad too? My girls immensely enjoyed playing this game and of course coming out victorious was an added bonus.
Matics cards feature colored shapes that can be counted by young learners or the numbers printed on them may be read. Each number has the same identifiable shape in green, yellow, red, and blue, like the cards with 10 all have 10 rectangles or bricks printed on them that differ by the four primary colors (the card suits in this game).
This card game is amusing and educational, perfect for young minds. 🙂 It retails for $9.95 and comes with a sturdy plastic case for storage. This game can be purchase at Kabuki Helps.
Disclosure: I received a Matics game to review. No other compensation was received for this post. The thoughts and feelings expressed are my own.
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