Lesson Evaluation Maths

During the 20th century mathematics has become one of the most important subjects in the school curriculum, throughout those years there has been many different teaching methods used. One strategy used both in schools and at home is the use of games to support the teaching of numeracy and mathematical strategies. This essay will look at the effectiveness and value of using games to teach numeracy to primary school aged children. It will be supported using further research and investigation. Links to the National Curriculum will be highlighted. The essay will also review a game and reflect on its effectiveness and value in developing mathematical skills.

I decided to create a game to support the development of number facts specifically counting. (Appendix A) The game I created was based on the well-known board game Guess Who. It consisted of 8 different monster cards (See Appendix B) all with different amounts of body parts i.e. 2 arms, 3 noses etc. The game is played in pairs and the aim of the game is to guess the monster that your partner has by a matter of elimination. For example child A would ask child B does your monster have 3 arms, child B would then have to count how many arms their monster had and reply accordingly. It is then up to child A to remove all monsters that do not match the answer that child B had given. After this initial interaction it would be the turn of child B to ask the questions until eventually one of the children has only one monster left and if played correctly should be able to name the other child’s monster. They would therefore be classed as the winner and according to Ainley (1988:241) ‘the most effective mathematical games are those in which the structure and rules of the game are based on mathematical ideas, and where winning the game is directly related to understanding this mathematics’.

The teaching of mathematics consists of developing number skills, reinforcing those skills and then giving children lots of chance to...