Multiplication practice shouldn’t be boring. Dice create a fun and inexpensive way to practice multiplication facts in a variety of ways. These are just a few simple games that take very little effort and are easy to learn. Let’s get right to it!
1- Roll to 100 (or 500, or 1,000, or just 50…point being, it’s very adaptable.)
This is one of the easiest games for multiplication practice. For this game students roll 2 dice, multiply the numbers to get the product, and then write that product down on a sheet of paper. The next player goes. Students add up their own product numbers as they go and the first person to get to 100 wins. This game goes fast, so feel free to up the winning number to 500 once they get the hang of it.
Differentiation strategy:
– Use different dice. You can play with 1-6 using regular dice, or use a four sided die to make it easier, or use an 8 sided, 10 sided, or 12 sided dice. You could really challenge kids with a 20 sided dice! You can also mix these. For example, use a 6 sided and a 12 sided. The larger the numbers available, the larger goal number you want to allow because the number will get reached faster. Also, if you’re just starting multiplication, you can start with the 4 or 6 sided, and then change the dice to a higher number after the students have learned more times tables. I taught fourth grade, so multiplication was review (much needed review, but still review) so I usually started with the 12 sided dice right off the bat with most students, only using the smaller ones with students I knew were coming to me already struggling.
Changing it up for time allowance:
-If you have a few minutes to kill and want to review, just go to 50. If you want the game to last longer, go to 250 or 500. Make an epic game to 1,000! Make it up to go with whatever you need.
Since this game takes very little preparation/set up it’s an easy one to fill time with.
2- Tic Tac Toe
This is just what it sounds like, but students get their game square by rolling dice and covering (or coloring in) the product. These game boards are easy to make on your own. There’s also a small set of game boards I made for this in the pack you can sign up for at the bottom of this post.
A great idea is to have students make their own. Just guide them to not pick random numbers, but use products that are possibilities with the dice they’ll be using. If they have printed multiplication tables somewhere, students can pull from one of those.
I have included some free tic tac toe boards at the bottom of this post that are geared for anywhere from 6 sided dice to 12 sided. This makes it easy to use the game for multiplication practice for 3rd grade, using different boards as they learn more and more tables.
3- 6 in a Row
Almost everyone teaching multiplication has a multiplication table blackline master. All you need is one of those and a set of 12 sided dice. Students take turns rolling two dice, finding the product, and filling it in on their own chart. The first student to get 6 in a row, in any direction, wins the game.
You can, of course, laminate these pages or put them in page protectors so students can use dry erase markers and reuse them. And just in case you don’t happen to have a blackline table, you can get one in the pack below via email.
4- Game of 6.
This one is easy for kids to create a game board for, but I’m also including one for you for free (directions for getting that at the end of this post).
Students play by rolling a die and multiplying it by one number on the game chart. They can choose which number (on the left of the chart) but they cannot use the same number again. In the example below, Kinsley rolled an 11, chose to multiply it by 6, and put a 66 in that space of her column. Then the next student goes, etc…
Everyone only gets 6 turns so they have to decide strategically which numbers to chose on their chart. At the end, students add up their products and the player with the highest total wins.
-5- Fill It In – Multiplication Practice Game That Uses Strategy
This is another game that students can use scrap paper for, but I have included a game board in the pack you get below.
Students roll 2 dice. I like to work with 12-sided dice but you can remake this game board to fit any amount of sides. Once a student rolls, they multiply to get the product. They can choose one of the spaces on their game column to fill in. For example, if a student rolls a 2 and a 6, they can choose to put 2×6=12 next to the two space or they can choose to use 6×2=12 next to the six space. Each space can only be used once.
If a student rolls numbers that are already taken up, they lose that turn. When one student has filled their whole column, the game is over, but they aren’t necessarily the winner. Players add their products and the highest product wins. It is possible to be the first to fill your column and still not have the highest sum of products.
Want some of these awesome game boards for free?
Check this out! When I started this post, I was thinking about how easy it is to make each of these game boards, or for the students to do it themselves, or not even use one, just keep track on a scrap piece of paper. But as I kept adding game ideas I was thinking, “It’d really be easier on the teachers reading this if I had the game boards as printables and teachers could just download them if they want to.” I put them together real quick and you can get your free pack of multiplication dice game boards for the activities I talked about in this post below.
Note, this opt-in form to get the multiplication game boards is immediately below. Farther down, at the bottom of all my blog posts, is my main opt in freebie for the equivalent fraction mystery picture pack. You’re welcome to that too! I just wanted to make sure you got the freebie you wanted and weren’t confused or disappointed by getting the wrong one. 😉
3 Responses