Gingerbread Man Addition Game

Since starting school, Adam has been introduced to the concept of addition. He is beginning to understand adding, the plus sign and the equals sign. As simple addition lends itself to lots of hands on practical activities we have started a new Maths Adventures series. You will be able to follow Adams new mathematical adventures as he discovers addition, subtraction, shapes and (eventually) division. Today we start with a Gingerbread Man Addition Game.

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When I discovered a cheap Cork Board Canvas from Wilco I knew it would be perfect for an addition activity using black rounded push pins (similar to these). I loved the idea of adding black buttons to a Gingerbread Man. However, I didn’t want to draw a Gingerbread Man directly onto the cork board. I wanted to be able to use the cork board for a number of different activities over time. I tried chalk, pencil and dry wipe pens but nothing would wipe away easily. Thankfully Duck Tape saved the day. I could use Cork Duck Tape on top of the cork board.

Cork Duck Tape has an adhesive backing and is easy to use. I made a Gingerbread Man template on paper, cut lengths of Cork Duck Tape and placed these under the template. I then drew around the template and cut out the individual sections. Next I used a Black Permanent Marker to make the outline thicker before peeling off the adhesive backing and positioning the Gingerbread Man onto the cork board.

Alongside the Gingerbread Man I wanted to have a plus and equals sign. I used another strip of Cork Duck Tape and added the two symbols using a Black Permanent Marker. I opted to use two dice which would show Adam the two numbers he needed to add together. I had one more dilemma to solve. How could Adam write the answer to the simple addition? Each number sentence would have a different answer and I had already discovered that other mark making methods would not wipe off. Yet again Duck Tape came to the rescue. I cut a square of Chalkboard Duck Tape, peeled away the adhesive backing and positioned it onto the cork board. I placed a stick of White Chalk next to the cork board so that Adam could write the answer to his addition number sentence.

Adam took to the Gingerbread Man Addition Game instantly. I demonstrated how to roll each dice and where to position them onto the cork board. Next I showed him how to push the black pins on the Gingerbread Man and count the total number of buttons. Finally I demonstrated how to write the answer on the Chalkboard Duck Tape. After one demonstration, Adam was able to complete the activity independently. See Adam in action:

Not only did our Gingerbread Man Addition Game work on Adam’s mathematical development, it also required him to use his fine motor skills whilst pushing the pins into the cork board and taking them out again. I look forward to seeing what other mathematical adventures Adam will have in the future!