Prime Climb game

[Eilonwy]

Has anyone tried Math for Love’s Prime Climb game?  If so, did you find it fun, and what ages/skills does it require?

[4atHome]

Yes, we have it. It's fun.  It's better if they can multiply but addition is workable from what I remember. Haven't played lately.  Probably 8 or 9 yrs old is a good starting age.

[4atHome]

 

[Hillcottagemom]

We own it and, although he's been playing it for a couple of years, (starting at age 7) my nine year old is getting the most out of it now, when he can multiply and divide more easily. He's become very strategic, and it's made him more aware of factors/multiples and prime numbers. It's a simple game to learn but the strategy can become fairly complex. It's an elegant way to get to see and interact with prime factorization. As far as how much fun it is, my kids don't choose it in their free time. It's been relegated to school time status, but they often ask for a second or third round when we do play.  

[Shoes+Ships+SealingWax]

My DS-nearly-8 likes it. A basic understanding of the four operations is really all that’s needed; it even comes with a multiplication chart “cheat sheet” if those facts aren’t memorized. 

[Eilonwy]

8 hours ago, Hillcottagemom said:

As far as how much fun it is, my kids don't choose it in their free time. It's been relegated to school time status, but they often ask for a second or third round when we do play. 

That’s ok, we have other games like that which fall into “math games”.  That is great info, and likely how my kids would treat it too.

[Eilonwy]

9 hours ago, 4atHome said:

Probably 8 or 9 yrs old is a good starting age.

I have a 12, 9 and 7 year old, so that should work.  Thanks for the instructions! You can use adding, as you thought.  My youngest will not like the bumping aspect of it.

[wendyroo]

For us it depends on who is playing.

My 7 and 9 year olds can play, but they are slow and often don’t see the best strategic moves. I feel like my 11 year old really became a strong player once he made it through prealgebra...but he enjoys the game a lot more now that he is entering algebra 2. 

So I play with each child separately at their skill level. (I even play with my 5 year old just adding the dice.) With my middle kids, I don’t exactly lose on purpose, but I definitely choose to make some suboptimal moves to level the playing field. 

And my 11 year old’s new favorite thing is playing virtually with his (extremely patient) Spanish tutor. I think that now that the math is less mentally taxing for him, he enjoys the added challenge of discussing his moves in Spanish. 

[Not_a_Number]

We have it. It’s all right, but it’s not one of my favorite math games, because it doesn’t really illustrate much of anything. Plus, there isn’t much fun stuff to do once you get past 50 — I’m not sure they’ve thought the strategy through enough.

I think of this as one of math games that’s mostly drill for things you already know how to do. So DD8 is perfectly fluent at it and has been for more than a year, but I wouldn’t play it with a kid who’s still working on their models of the operations.

I tried it in my homeschool classes, and kids were very “meh” about it. Honestly, for drill games, they preferred addition/multiplication war, lol. No thinking required, plenty of math facts reviewed.

[kirstenhill]

We love both math and board games here but my kids never pull it out.  One DS really disliked the "sorry" style mechanic of purposely sending another player back.  Youngest DS was almost too young for it when we first got it though, so I should try it again with him. 

[Not_a_Number]

19 minutes ago, kirstenhill said:

We love both math and board games here but my kids never pull it out.  One DS really disliked the "sorry" style mechanic of purposely sending another player back.  Youngest DS was almost too young for it when we first got it though, so I should try it again with him. 

Do you have any math board games that are genuinely fun?

We also love math and we like games, but we’ve gotten the most bang for our buck out of games not designed as “math games.”

[Hillcottagemom]

10 minutes ago, Not_a_Number said:

Do you have any math board games that are genuinely fun?

We also love math and we like games, but we’ve gotten the most bang for our buck out of games not designed as “math games.”

We've had the same experience. The only exceptions I can think of are Dino Math Tracks and Sum Swamp for the younger crowd and Mythmatical Battles for learning multiplication. 

[Lecka]

Zeus on the Loose had a sweet spot.  First it was too hard, then it had a sweet spot of being actually fun for a while, then it was too easy.  

Sorry was a popular game here, and it's not "a math game" but there is a lot of math in it.  We played (not sure this in the directions) where we could split up a number to move more than one peg (like -- if you have a 9, then you can move 6 and 3 between two pegs).  

[Lecka]

One of my kids actually liked Dragonwood.  

One of my kids benefited a lot from Reflex Math (online) for math facts.  I wouldn't say he thought it was actually fun.  He did actually like some of the games.  

[eastcoastmom]

We really like prime climb. Me and DD12 like it the most. My 10 year olds don't like it as much. I like that it can be short and sweet and there are lots of different strategies. 

 

We also have Election night, which is supposed to be good for civics, geography, and math. It is, but it's a longer game to play so we don't pull it out as much. It has an addition side or a multiplication side (you can play either way). I like that it covers a lot of skills and I heard a podcast with the creator who talked about making certain states common difficult multiple facts so that kids have some reason to remember them. 

[Not_a_Number]

39 minutes ago, Hillcottagemom said:

We've had the same experience. The only exceptions I can think of are Dino Math Tracks and Sum Swamp for the younger crowd and Mythmatical Battles for learning multiplication. 

Ooh, I haven’t heard of Mythmatical Battles! How does it work?

[Eilonwy]

4 hours ago, wendyroo said:

So I play with each child separately at their skill level.

I thought this might be a possibility, also with their playing style because some kids are more competitive. 

1 hour ago, Lecka said:

 

Zeus on the Loose had a sweet spot.

 

I will look this one up since my kids love Greek myths, what ages did it work well for?

[Eilonwy]

2 hours ago, Not_a_Number said:

but I wouldn’t play it with a kid who’s still working on their models of the operations.

Do you think it would set them back if they were not solid with the concept, or just not be much fun or pointless?

[Eilonwy]

1 hour ago, Not_a_Number said:

We also love math and we like games, but we’ve gotten the most bang for our buck out of games not designed as “math games.”

Do you mean gaming bang for your buck, or math practice?  It is a problem about math games not necessarily being super fun.  My kids see addition war that way too, they will play it with me and they are fine, but they wouldn’t choose it if I didn’t pull it out.  
 

Kingdomino has some multiplying practice when scoring.  My kids like that one. 

[Hillcottagemom]

58 minutes ago, Not_a_Number said:

Ooh, I haven’t heard of Mythmatical Battles! How does it work?

Mythmatical battles is a war style card game. There are four decks based on Celtic, Norse, Greek, and Egyptian mythology. Any deck can battle any other deck. I have the Greek/Celtic set. Each card features a hero, god, or monster and a short description of him. Each card has a defense and attack value that are expressed in multiplication. I'll include a picture of one of the cards because it's a bit tricky to explain. It was most engaging for my kids when they were learning multiplication facts. There's an "oracle" (a multiplication chart) they could consult if they needed help with an answer so they were able to enjoy it for a couple of years.  

[Lecka]

Zeus on the Loose — K/1st I think?  Maybe more on the 1st side?  
 

Honestly I’m not sure.  Maybe more like 2nd/3rd.  

Edited February 5, 2021 by Lecka

[Not_a_Number]

2 hours ago, Eilonwy said:

Do you mean gaming bang for your buck, or math practice? 

I meant math practice. Although both, really.

 

2 hours ago, Eilonwy said:

It is a problem about math games not necessarily being super fun.  My kids see addition war that way too, they will play it with me and they are fine, but they wouldn’t choose it if I didn’t pull it out.  

How do you play Addition War? We play with normal cards (taking out the face cards), so they can count to add if they need to. Pretty much all the kids in my classes loved that game. 

They also loved blackjack with poker chips for bets, and they liked Don’t Break The Bank, and 1-2 Nim and Blockout. I curated the games pretty carefully to actually be fun.

[Not_a_Number]

2 hours ago, Eilonwy said:

Do you think it would set them back if they were not solid with the concept, or just not be much fun or pointless?

What do you mean about not being solid with the concept?

[kirstenhill]

4 hours ago, Not_a_Number said:

Do you have any math board games that are genuinely fun?

We also love math and we like games, but we’ve gotten the most bang for our buck out of games not designed as “math games.”

I would say that we've had better luck with games aimed a bit younger to use when my kids were PreK thru 1st or 2nd grade -- Sum Swamp, Zeus on the Loose, Alien HotShots, the RightStart math card games (especially Corners and different variations of War), and Speed (this version). 

I have had my eyes on Proof, but haven't gotten it.  I own both Equate and Smath but we haven't really pulled either out more than once or twice. 

[Not_a_Number]

1 hour ago, kirstenhill said:

I would say that we've had better luck with games aimed a bit younger to use when my kids were PreK thru 1st or 2nd grade -- Sum Swamp, Zeus on the Loose, Alien HotShots, the RightStart math card games (especially Corners and different variations of War), and Speed (this version). 

I have had my eyes on Proof, but haven't gotten it.  I own both Equate and Smath but we haven't really pulled either out more than once or twice. 

For small sums, I just had kids play Chutes and Ladders with two dice. And for bigger sums, Addition War and blackjack.

We liked Blockout for multiplication. And I was designing a variant of blackjack for multiplication when the pandemic hit.

Anyone else love blackjack?

[Not_a_Number]

1 hour ago, kirstenhill said:

I would say that we've had better luck with games aimed a bit younger to use when my kids were PreK thru 1st or 2nd grade -- Sum Swamp, Zeus on the Loose, Alien HotShots, the RightStart math card games (especially Corners and different variations of War), and Speed (this version). 

I have had my eyes on Proof, but haven't gotten it.  I own both Equate and Smath but we haven't really pulled either out more than once or twice. 

What’s Corners? 🙂 

[kirstenhill]

5 minutes ago, Not_a_Number said:

What’s Corners? 🙂 

https://store.rightstartmath.com/rightstart-corners-games/

There's also an app version for iOS.

[kirstenhill]

Oh, I also forgot about Skyjo: https://www.amazon.com/SKYJO-Action-Magilano-exciting-Adults/dp/B082YWGB3R/

We have a slightly different version but I am assuming it's similar. It's a lot like the card game Golf, but with negative number cards too. 

 

[Not_a_Number]

20 minutes ago, kirstenhill said:

https://store.rightstartmath.com/rightstart-corners-games/

There's also an app version for iOS.

Thanks!! 

[Lecka]

None of my kids cared for Chutes and Ladders.  They preferred Sorry and Candy Land.  

Ime -- Candy Land is easier but still fun.  

Sorry is harder but more entertaining.  

I loved Chutes and Ladders when I was a child, and was disappointed my kids didn't care for it.  It was my favorite!  

[Not_a_Number]

14 minutes ago, Lecka said:

None of my kids cared for Chutes and Ladders.  They preferred Sorry and Candy Land.  

Ime -- Candy Land is easier but still fun.  

Sorry is harder but more entertaining.  

I loved Chutes and Ladders when I was a child, and was disappointed my kids didn't care for it.  It was my favorite!  

Candyland doesn’t have numbers, though 😉 

[Eilonwy]

2 hours ago, Not_a_Number said:

How do you play Addition War? We play with normal cards (taking out the face cards), so they can count to add if they need to.

I think we play it the same, a normal deck with faces (and aces) removed, and then each person turn over two card from their deck, adds it, highest sum takes all. 

 

2 hours ago, Not_a_Number said:

What do you mean about not being solid with the concept?

Not realizing that 4x7 is 4 sets of 7 and 7 sets of 4, as an example.   We haven’t really talked about or done examples of multiplication with my youngest much yet.  I think I’d actually just play Prime Climb (if I buy it) with her on her own, with adding/subtracting.  She’d get upset if my other two bumped her off her circle, and they’d want to use all operations.  I think my question is whether you think drill without understanding is harmful or just pointless, but really I’m just wondering because I’m not planning to do that. The main risk might be boredom, which would bring us back around to how to make math games fun.   
 

We have done blockout, but not blackjack, break the bank or Nim. I’ll look those up. Thanks!

[Eilonwy]

4 hours ago, Lecka said:

 

Zeus on the Loose — K/1st I think?  Maybe more on the 1st side?  

 

On the GameSmith website they gave it an 8+ rating, so it’s interesting that it works better for younger kids. Thanks!

[Not_a_Number]

38 minutes ago, Eilonwy said:

Not realizing that 4x7 is 4 sets of 7 and 7 sets of 4, as an example.   We haven’t really talked about or done examples of multiplication with my youngest much yet.  I think I’d actually just play Prime Climb (if I buy it) with her on her own, with adding/subtracting.  She’d get upset if my other two bumped her off her circle, and they’d want to use all operations.  I think my question is whether you think drill without understanding is harmful or just pointless, but really I’m just wondering because I’m not planning to do that. The main risk might be boredom, which would bring us back around to how to make math games fun.   

Well, I definitely wouldn't use multiplication facts before someone knows what multiplication is, if that's what you mean 🙂 . But as you say, you could use it with just addition, although at that point, there are better games for that. 

38 minutes ago, Eilonwy said:

I think we play it the same, a normal deck with faces (and aces) removed, and then each person turn over two card from their deck, adds it, highest sum takes all. 

Maybe kids like it better in the context of a math class! Do you do the wars where you get to take LOTS of cards at once? I feel like that really made the game for my kids. 

How did your kids like Blockout? 

Edited February 5, 2021 by Not_a_Number

[Eilonwy]

1 hour ago, Not_a_Number said:

Maybe kids like it better in the context of a math class! Do you do the wars where you get to take LOTS of cards at once? I feel like that really made the game for my kids. 

How did your kids like Blockout? 

We do tie breakers where you get to take all the cards in play at that time, but it doesn’t happen often that there is a tie. My kids like war better than math questions on a sheet, and if there were more kids to play it they probably would like it better.  I only tried blockout with my middle kid, and he liked it & I definitely think it increased his understanding. We played in cooperative mode.  I’ll probably try the same with my youngest soon.  I asked her at the dinner table and she does know what multiplication means, after all. 

[Not_a_Number]

1 minute ago, Eilonwy said:

We do tie breakers where you get to take all the cards in play at that time, but it doesn’t happen often that there is a tie. My kids like war better than math questions on a sheet, and if there were more kids to play it they probably would like it better.  I only tried blockout with my middle kid, and he liked it & I definitely think it increased his understanding. We played in cooperative mode.  I’ll probably try the same with my youngest soon.  I asked her at the dinner table and she does know what multiplication means, after all. 

Yeah, I think it helped that there was a classroom full of kids all excited to play, lol. I never did any games in cooperative mode, although I've been doing more of that in my Zoom math class, simply because it's hard to pair kids up while playing screen sharing games. 

That's good news that your youngest does know what multiplication means 😄.

[Eilonwy]

4 hours ago, kirstenhill said:

I have had my eyes on Proof, but haven't gotten it

This looks like it could be fun, though it is undisguised math practice.  

For younger kids 3-6, Tiny Polka Dot has a number of different card games in it, which my kids enjoyed, and sometimes would take out on their own. 

[Not_a_Number]

27 minutes ago, Eilonwy said:

For younger kids 3-6, Tiny Polka Dot has a number of different card games in it, which my kids enjoyed, and sometimes would take out on their own. 

Yeah, I like those! 

[Lecka]

Candyland can still have counting spaces, and more than/less than.  

If somebody happens to really like it, there can be math in it even if it doesn’t come with dice or number cards. 

I moved _______ more spaces, I moved ______ less spaces is pretty good stuff.

 

I would rather do it when there were amounts to compare using items, though.  But even without that (or doing that other times) there is at least a more/less thing going on if someone obviously does go a lot farther or shorter.

Edited February 7, 2021 by Lecka

[Eilonwy]

3 hours ago, Lecka said:

 

Candyland can still have counting spaces, and more than/less than.  

 

There are a lot of games, fortunately, that have some amount of math in them.    We played Azul today, which has a bit of adding, as well as scoring, and the idea that you get more points if you put the tiles in a rectangle (though Scrabble-style rather than multiplication).

[Not_a_Number]

3 hours ago, Lecka said:

Candyland can still have counting spaces, and more than/less than.  

If somebody happens to really like it, there can be math in it even if it doesn’t come with dice or number cards. 

Yeah, it's not nothing, just not a game I'd use in a math class 🙂 . We do play Candyland at home. 

Monopoly has a surprising amount of math, since it has the money as "manipulatives" :-) . 

 

[Jackie]

Mathy games that actually got played for fun around here include Zeus on the Loose, Dragonwood, Kingdomino, Qwirkle, Qwixx, Yahtzee, Fill or Bust, and Set.

Prime Climb was fine, but definitely a “school time” game for us. It was never chosen for fun. It basically plays like the game Sorry, but with more math.

[Eilonwy]

10 hours ago, Jackie said:

Prime Climb was fine, but definitely a “school time” game for us. It was never chosen for fun. It basically plays like the game Sorry, but with more math.

Sorry was one of the board games my family had when I was a kid, not a favourite. Thanks for telling me about this.  Zeus on the loose sounds like a better fit, I think. 

[Not_a_Number]

10 hours ago, Jackie said:

Mathy games that actually got played for fun around here include Zeus on the Loose, Dragonwood, Kingdomino, Qwirkle, Qwixx, Yahtzee, Fill or Bust, and Set.

Prime Climb was fine, but definitely a “school time” game for us. It was never chosen for fun. It basically plays like the game Sorry, but with more math.

I love Set!! I occasionally make my daughter practice her combinatorics in the wild in Set. 😛  "And how many possible choices of 3 cards are there are out of the 12 on the board?"

Edited February 10, 2021 by Not_a_Number

[Moncha]

We haven't played prime climb yet, because we're still learning multiplication. But I'll throw another one into the mix. My son (and other kiddo that I homeschool) (3rd & 1st grade)  enjoy Sums in Space. It's addition and subtraction and it has a cooperative aspect where you try to get everyone to the spaceship before blast off. I don't think you have to work cooperatively though, it's just one of the options. 

[Eilonwy]

18 hours ago, Moncha said:

My son (and other kiddo that I homeschool) (3rd & 1st grade)  enjoy Sums in Space. It's addition and subtraction and it has a cooperative aspect where you try to get everyone to the spaceship before blast off. 

Thanks for the idea! We like cooperative games.