the maths games & puzzle day 
To achieve our objective of making mathematics enjoyable for children, we deliver an exciting range of fun and effective educational programmes in schools throughout the UK.
Our top progamme, the maths games & puzzle day, has been successfully delivered in schools for many years and utilises some of the best board games available anywhere in the world today. The children find the games fun, while the teachers see how the games positively affect the children, both academically and socially.
After a school visit, we also fully encourage teachers to build on the unique experience by continuing to play and enjoy the mathematical games in the classroom and possibly setting up appropriate clubs. Parents are also informed that the games used during the event are available for purchase, so they can also be enjoyed at home.
The resources utilised during our programmes are described elsewhere on this website. They are suitable for children aged 7 and older, including adults, so they are ideal as a family activity.
We regularly get asked if certain games are suitable for particular age groups. If you are like-minded, please get in touch as many of our games are extremely flexible in that the rules can be adapted when used with younger or less able children.
Organisation of the Day
We usually discuss the aspects of a future school visit with a representative prior to working with the children. Before making contact, here are a few points you may wish to consider before booking a visit to your school:
- there are usually three or four sessions organised during the day in Primary schools
- in the above case, each session would typically last for 1 to 1½ hours
- in Secondary schools, five sessions are usually delivered, lasting 1 hour each
- all the activities are carried out in the classroom
- a normal-sized class of 25 to 30 children would take part in each session
- the children normally work in groups of four or five, sometimes six, to a table
- the programme is designed for Years 1 to 6 in Primary and Years 7 to 9 in Secondary
- the cost is £395 for a full day, plus a daily maximum cost of £75 for travel/accommodation
One additional thing to consider! You may be a small or rural school with a limited number of children on roll. If so, why not get together with another local school in your network or cluster and share the cost? As has happened on a number of previous occasions, I can spend the morning in your school and the afternoon in a neighbouring school, not too far away I hope!
Although we work regularly with children in Years 3, 4, 5 & 6, we have recently delivered a lot more sessions in Years 1 & 2 as many of the games can be adapted for their use. If you wish to book a visit for the younger pupils, we would love to work with these children. It is advisable, though, for them to be assisted at each table by parents, helpers or older children to enable them to get the most out of the games during my visit.
Many schools now organise their own Maths Week which emphasises to the children that maths can be taught and learnt in a variety of different ways. We have been invited on numerous occasions to take part in such activities and usually come away from the schools amazed at the creativity of the teachers. We’d only be too glad if our programme can form just a small part of such an interesting week for the children.
Social & Etiquette Issues
Many different types of research have revealed that we only learn and recall about 10% of what we read and 20% of what we hear, but over 80% of what we actually do for ourselves! As our activities are very much ‘hands-on’, we feel that children will undoubtedly learn more through such fun experiences, thus becoming more confident when confronted with mathematical problems in future years.
As well as the obvious objective of improving their mathematical skills, the programme is also designed to teach children the value of ‘working with others’ - an essential key skill - as the vast majority of activities involve working in pairs, groups and teams. Utilising these resources also teaches children the etiquette of playing board games, simple things such as having to wait their turn before playing again and taking turns in a clockwise direction. It is also vitally important for the children to discuss moves and decisions with their partner or team-mates.
Many of us take these things for granted, but sadly, many children do not possess such skills! This is due to the fact that many children never, or very rarely, play such games at home, so may be unfamiliar with the social skills needed to take part in these activities.
the maths games & puzzle day, and any follow-up activites the school may decide to undertake, can go a long way in vastly improving these social and interactive skills.
Problem-Solving
It is so vital that children learn to take on board skills such as decision-making, risk-taking and problem-solving.
A major current initiative is concerned with the issue of trying to get the children to learn how to think and prioritise when confronted with decisions. My activities are exactly what the children need to improve these skills.
When playing the games, the children don’t just roll dice, carry out some calculations and move their counter. They must also decide where to move, how many places to move, should they get nearer to the ‘finish line’ or perhaps decide to hamper their opponents’ chances instead, for example.
These are just examples of what the player could be confronted with during some of our games, but it is vital that they learn the skill of weighing up the pros and cons before making their decision. They will be faced with these decisions in the world of work, and life in general, so this is an ideal way of introducing this aspect of education, but in a fun and non-threatening environment!
Overall Benefits
As the maths games & puzzle day can be an extremely valuable learning experience for the children, it is vitally important that they are able to participate within your school. We certainly pride ourselves on giving the children a thoroughly enjoyable time, so please consider inviting us to give the children a positive mathematical and social experience that they’ll remember for a long time.
© the 7puzzle company 2012 paulgodding.com