Roll the Dice

Math facts have to be learned. Unfortunately, there is no way around that reality. But, with a few dice and a little creativity, even learning math facts can be turned into a time of play and fun!

Practice place value and numbers with these ideas.

• Use two to seven dice to have fun with place value from the tens place to the millions place.
• Roll the dice and arrange them to make the highest number possible.
• The number of dice will determine which place value you are working on. Use fewer dice for younger children and more for older.

Challenge: Turn it into a game by keeping score, pulling addition skills into the mix. Depending on the place value chosen, pick a score goal. First child to reach the goal wins the game!

Using four to six dice, enjoy a variation of the popular game of Yahtzee to practice beginning math concepts.

Counting Practice: Call out a number. Roll the dice and have your child count the dots on each die to see how many of that number were rolled.

Sequences: Roll six dice and look for runs or sequences of two or more dice, starting with the lowest number rolled. Extra credit for multiple sequences!

Practice addition, subtraction, and multiplication facts with two dice instead of flashcards.

Basic Facts Games

• Roll the dice. Makes these numbers your addends, multipliers, or minuend and subtrahend. Have your child either say the answer or write it on a portable chalkboard or whiteboard.
• Use three or four dice instead of two for an extra challenge.
• Instead of the normal six-sided dice, find dice with eight, ten, or even twelve sides to offer more variations.

Math Facts Challenge

• Call out a number. Roll the dice and have your child find two numbers that work either as addends, multiplicand and multiplier, or minuend and subtrahend to equal the number called.
• Challenge older children by encouraging them to use as many of the dice and as many signs as possible to find the called solution.

Turn the popular card game War into a two-player math game for addition or multiplication practice.

Supplies: 4 dice and a pile of pennies, poker chips, or other counters

• Give each player two dice.
• Place a single counter in the center.
• Have the players roll their dice at the same time. Add (for younger children) or multiply (for older children) the numbers rolled. Whichever player has the highest answer gets the counter.
• If both players have the same solution, it’s time for battle! Place two more chips in the center, and have each player roll their dice again. The player with the highest solution gets all the chips.
• Play until all the chips are gone. The player with the most chips wins!