Weekly Report & Reflection Week #7

      For this week's blog post I decided to write about the math game website I've been exploring called Cool Math Games.  Cool Math Games is a valuable math gaming site because of the extensive variety it offers to students in terms of both game play and mathematical content.  The site organizes games by mathematical subject, such as, "numbers," "logic," "strategy," etc.  Each of these categories offers dozens of games for students to choose from.  The site is also useful because not only do the games vary in terms of content but they also vary in terms of difficulty.  You can find games that help students learn the basics of addition and subtraction, suitable for primary grades.  But you can also find games that are more advanced, for example, on fractions, multiplication, and division, appropriate for the early junior level. The games all vary in quality of game play and, significantly, in terms of the quality of their learning experience.  For this latter reason it would be up to instructors to test the games for the actual value they offer students relevant to their learning the curriculum requirements.  However, that being said, this site could be offered as an incentive to students.  For example, let's say a student has finished and handed in their homework, they can play Cool Math Games for 10 minutes at the end of class for a reward, or, if the student has finished all their in-class work correctly they may go on the site, etc.
       While the educational experience of Cool Math Games will vary with each particular game, the site does offer some engaging material.  In my opinion, the primary value of this kind of site is not so much in the learning experience students receive, but, rather, it is the interest in math that it helps to develop.  Too often students are turned off by mathematics because they find the content boring or believe it inapplicable to their everyday lives.  Sites like Cool Math Games assist instructors in showing students the kind of mathematics that can be simultaneously enjoyable, interesting, and challenging.  Having these games geared towards younger students is therefore beneficial, as they are more impressionable and will begin to form opinions about mathematics at this stage in their education.  Finally, it is not only important that instructors teach students the required curriculum expectations, as it is important for future learning that they also foster interest in the subject as well.  Sites like Cool Math Games can do precisely that.

TapToLearn, 2015