Pre-Algebra Games for Math Students

How Can I Help My Child Learn Pre-Algebra?

In eighth grade, your child will be learning pre-algebra skills before entering high school. The best way you can help your child is to provide meaningful practice at home. It will also help if these home practice sessions are fun for your child.

You will want to help your eighth grader learn about exponents. It will be important that your child is able to express a whole number with an exponent. Understanding how to multiply a whole number by an exponent is another main exponent skill.

Before entering eighth grade, your child will have learned the difference between rational and irrational numbers. This school year, your child will extend that knowledge as he or she learns how to calculate the rational estimates of irrational numbers and then arrange them on a number line. For example, your child may determine that the square root of two is a decimal amount that is between one and two. Then, your child would insert this decimal amount in the appropriate place on the number line.

Line It Up!

On a piece of poster board, draw a large number line. You can fill in all of the whole numbers, or you can leave it empty for your child to complete on his or her own. On index cards, write a variety of rational and irrational numbers. You may want to include some decimal amounts, fractions, square roots and even whole numbers.

Place all of the cards in a bowl. Ask your child to draw out a card and to determine where the number should be placed on the number line. Continue until all cards have been used and placed correctly on the board.

Exponent Match Up

Before beginning this activity, you will need to write a variety of numbers expressed with exponents on index cards. On separate index cards, you will need to write how the numbers are written without the exponent. For instance, you may have one card that shows ten with an exponent of two (10^2). Remember, this is read as ten to the second power or ten squared. The matching card would be 100.

Turn all of the index cards over on the table. Players will take turns flipping over two at a time in search of matching cards, one with an exponent and one without an exponent. When a player successfully matches two cards, he or she will take possession of them. If a match is not made, the cards are returned to play. At the end of the game, the player with the most cards wins!