Making maths fun - or how I've stitched some fun into maths for my kids!

Yesterday I made a 'lockable' fabric box to use as an incentive to get my kids to practice maths problems. You can read about that here!

It got me to thinking about other things I've sewn when trying to help them with their maths!

First there were the giant foam dice 

 and a large chalkboard scoring pad I made so we could play Yahtzee outside. Yahtzee is a great game for practising basic maths skills of adding and multiplication.

Next I made Fabric Battleship Folders.

Battleships is great for practising co-ordinates, and it's a really fun game - and one than can be taken out and about to play in the car, waiting rooms etc. For a free printable battleships sheet go here. I sometimes slip word searches or other puzzles into the folders to so they can play on their own too.

Later on I made a set of Times Tables Memory Pockets.

Each pocket has as set of cards with a different times tables on so you can play the game memory with them, matching '2 x 3' with '6' for example.

We had this hanging on the wall next to our dining room table and often just grabbed a set to play a quick game.

I also wrote a free e-book for learning your times tables in just 5 minutes a day, which is available on my other blog - Be our Best. This book includes the printable templates for the memory game.

So that brings me to what I stitched yesterday to make maths fun for my girls.

A lockable fabric box, with a combination lock. I used scrap fabric and an old plastic place mat to help it keep its shape.

Now I'm going to use it to hold treats in that the girls can only get at if they can solve the maths puzzle correctly!  I can change the combination on the lock each time I set a new puzzle!

All of these things can be done without sewing  - but it's what I love to do, and my girls are always appreciative of things I make. Adding some colour and interest makes some simple boring things just a little more fun!

This is my favourite kind of sewing - something with a use and a purpose. Not necessarily something that we need, but something that we can use!

What's your favourite kind of thing to sew?

Jill