Playing Is Educational

It’s become somewhat fashionable of late for people to shrug off their mathematical ineptitude during conversation. If they fail to add up a few numbers correctly or make some other minor mistake, they will chalk it up to “being an English major,” or some other typically weak excuse. These adults are struggling with addition and multiplication – skills that come naturally to many children – and they just don’t care.

With this in mind, it’s important for parents to encourage their children to embrace math as a concept that deserves to be studied but that can be fun as well. Arithmetic games help kids get a head start on their school studies, and they come as a welcome relief from rote memorization. With any luck, today’s kids will grow up to take pride in their math skills rather than reveling in their own ignorance.

When I was young, there was only one way you could keep me inside during the summer: a massive thunderstorm. I can still remember waking up early and preparing to grab my bike from the garage before noticing how little light was filtering in through the windows. Luckily I come from a large family, and we could always find something to do in doors. More often than not this meant sitting down and enjoying a board game.

At a very early age I stuck to Candy Land and other board games for kids. Eventually I graduated to checkers and my personal favorite, chess. Dad was the undisputed chess champion, and my siblings and I would take turns challenging him for the crown – with very little success. It’s a shame we didn’t get all that much practice, because the second the sun came out I was back to basking in the warm summer air.