I was going through a whole lot of digital games and resources the other day. Trying to find resources to use for my tutoring sessions. This involved, in part, going through a lot of online addition games. Some of the resources were good. Others did not seem to be as good. In this time, I am sure that a lot of parents are looking for a lot of supplementary games and online resources. Therefore, I wanted to share with you some considerations that may help you to discern useful resources for your children.
1) does the game involve calculation or reasoning or do they just involve clicking a number? A lot of mathematic games involve clicking the correct answer. This can be really good for developing the speed with which they can respond to questions (ie. it develops their fluency) but it does not necessarily develop their understanding of concepts. Especially, if it does not include open questions, visual representations of mathematical ideas, or content that students can investigate to extend their understanding.
2) what content is my child ready to explore? Where possible it is good to pick games that target their specific mathematical needs. To give an extreme example of what I mean, if you have a grade six student who can comfortably solve algebra there will possibly be little use in giving them simple addition questions to solve.
3) is it engaging? If you are trying to make learning a bit more engaging then there is little point giving them games that they find boring.
I am not saying don’t use online educational games to support your children’s learning. But only that one game does not fit all. And to think of their learning and personal needs to guide your selection of games.