Here's how playing simple, paper-and-pencil games can go beyond fun and also serve as practice for higher-level, abstract thinking.
Game: Ghost
How to play the word-building game Ghost.
All AboutGames
Simple, cheap, paper-and-pencil strategy games are fantastic ways to practice higher-level thinking. Don't just play the games, but encourage students to notice patterns, develop strategies, and change the rules around.
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Game: Number Scrabble
Let’s play Tic-Tac-Toe with numbers. But instead of three-in-a-row, we’re summing to 15.
Order and Chaos (Tic Tac Toe Variant)
Imagine Tic-Tac-Toe if both players could play as both Xs and Os!
Strategy Game: Chomp
Let’s play the simple (but surprisingly strategic) game of Chomp!
Strategy Game: Sprouts
With Sprouts, students draw a small set of dots and then connect those dots with lines. The first person who can’t make a connection loses.
Math Game: Cram
A surprisingly strategic game played on a simple grid.
Math Game: Heaps
Heaps is a lovely math-y strategy game that requires no more than paper and pencil to play.
Let’s Play Tic-Tac-Toe Variants!
Sure, tic tac toe is too boring for most people. But oh golly are there some fun variations!
Fizz Buzz – A Divisibility Game
Here’s a quick to learn but difficult to master math game. Start with some basic divisibility rules, but then feel free to extend it to any math topic.
Quick Strategy Game: Domineering
Wanted to share another cheap, quick, and simple game that has interesting complexities and connections to math. This game is called Domineering. All you need are paper and a pencil. Graph paper would be a luxury.