I’m sure I’ve told you before that our family uses non-traditional approaches to math twice a week. We do this partly to get away from falling into the textbook rut, and partly because I believe varied approaches to any subject are good for raising a well-rounded, educated child.
One of our most favorite things to do during math time is play games! Today I’m going to focus on a couple of our favorite logic related games – Qwirkle and Logic Links.
If you’ve ever played SET (which I also LOVE), Qwirkle is similar – yet different! You draw several blocks at a time and, in the manner of Scrabble, place pieces that either match a shape or color on the playing surface. Points are scored according to how many lines you’ve connected, with extra points being scored for making a Qwirkle – a complete line of six.
It’s easy enough for a first grader to play, but complex enough for adults to enjoy as well! I’ve even used the pieces to practice matching and sorting with my three year old.
Logic Links is a game your children can play by themselves – woohoo!
Numbered cards show you logic puzzlers from easiest to hardest. On the cards, clues are written that help your children decide how to organize a series of colored chips. I only own the level A game, but there are three more levels available, too.
This is the perfect thing to pull out when one child is finished with a school activity, but you’d like to keep them engaged in “thinking” for a little while.
I have an entire coat closet full of wonderful learning games, some of which I might share at other times. For now, I’ll leave you with these two and wish you happy math time!
The biggest reason Cindy chose to homeschool was because she loves experiencing life with her children and watching them grow inside and out. She's sure that’s why the Charlotte Mason method first caught her attention. It allows her to be creative in scheduling, rigorous in learning, yet opens the door for plenty of close-knit time, opportunities for her children to explore their interests and offers enough free time for them to be children. She implements many of Charlotte Mason's methods with an eclectic twist of things that work for her family! At Cindy's website, Our Journey Westward, you will find a blog packed with fun learning ideas and a shop full of creative curriculum, including the NaturExplorers studies.
I love logic games. These look like great ones to add to our collection. Thank you, Cindy.
Brenda
.-= Brenda´s last blog ..Ideas from my schoolroom 2nd edition =-.
Ooh, new games! Thanks I hadn’t see these. We got a new one for Christmas called Q-bitz. (I think I’m spelling it right.) I found it at Timberdoodle. I think you’d like it.
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I love Timberdoodle! They seem to find the best of the best games.
.-= Cindy´s last blog ..Preschool =-.
I love these kinds of games! And Mindware has great ones. I started incorporating them into my school schedule because I think it is very important to learn HOW to think and reason logically. We are using Mindware’s Venn Diagrams this year (he’s just 5 and has gobbled up a ton of it already) and will keep moving up the logic ladder indefinitely. Thanks for the suggestions!
Thanks so much for sharing these games!!
.-= Kelli´s last blog ..Thoughts for Thursday =-.
I keep seeing Qwirkle at the store while looking for Blokus Trigon. Blockus Trigon is an awesome logic game that I played one evening and now I want to find it! LOL! It says ages 5 and up, but my daughter didn’t get the fact that the points could only touch at the corners. I’m thinking maybe 7 and up is more accurate for Blokus Trigon. I guess it depends on your child.
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