War Games in Math

This is not what you think... this is math!  Today my daughter was bored as we waited for her brothers' baseball game to get started.  Luckily I happened to have a deck of cards with me and so we worked on math facts  played several rousing rounds of War variations to happily pass the time.

War.  You know, the old game where each player flips a card and whoever has the card with the highest number value wins the hand.  This is a great game for teaching young ones numbers and higher and lower values.  But you can also put several twists on this game to help children practice basic functions and/or memorize math facts.  My daughter was having so much fun she didn't even think of it as math.

A big thanks to Joslyn Postma for sharing all these War variations at an LDSHE Enrichment Seminar last year in Virginia:

Addition War - Players turn up two cards for each skirmish.  The highest sum wins.

Advanced Addition War - Turn up three (or four) cards for each skirmish and add them together.

Subtraction War - Players turn up two cards and subtract the smaller number form the larger.  This time, the greatest difference wins the skirmish.

Product War - Turn up two cards and multiply.

Advanced Product War - Turn up three (or four) cards and multiply.

Fraction War - Players turn up two cards and make a fraction, using the smaller card as the numerator.  Greatest fraction wins.

Improper Fraction War - Turn up two cards and make a fraction, using the larger card as the numerator.  Greatest fraction wins.

Integer Addition War - Black cards are positive numbers; red cards are negative.  The greatest sum wins.  Remember that -2 is greater than -7.

Integer Product War - Black cards are positive numbers; red cards are negative.  The greatest product wins.  Remember that two negative numbers make a positive product.

Wild War - Players turn up three cards and may do whatever math manipulation they wish with the numbers.  The greatest answer wins the skirmish.

Advanced Wild War - Black cards are positive numbers; red cards are negative numbers.  Players turn up four cards and may do whatever math manipulation they wish with the numbers.  The greatest answer wins the skirmish.

Reverse Wild War - Players turn up three cards (or four, or five) and may do whatever math manipulation they wish with the numbers.  The answer with the lowest absolute value (closest to zero) wins the skirmish.

Multi-Digit War - Turn up two or three cards and create a 2-digit or 3-digit number.

Multi-Digit Subtraction War - Turn up three cards.  Make two of them into a 2-digit number, then subtract the third.  Example:  Suppose you turn up 3,4, and 5.  Should you arrange them as 54-3 or 45-3 or 35-4 or ... ?

Multi-Digit Product War - Turn up three cards.  Make two of them into a 2-digit number, then multiply by the third.  Example:  Suppose you turn up 3,4, and 5.  Should you arrange them as 5x43 or 4x53 or 3x54 or ... ?

NOTE:  These games work best if there is a full deck of playing cards per player (minus the face cards which don't come into play in these games).  Since a deck of cards is small, it fits easily into a purse or bag or glove compartment to have on hand for whenever you "need" them.

P.S.  The LDSHE Conference is my fa-fa-favorite.  If you get (or can make) the opportunity to go--DO!


And now a little math humor: