Developing math intuition and strategic thinking
Practice guessing! Teach kids how to estimate confidently—a critical skill they won’t necessarily learn in school.
Background
Age group: Grades 1-6 (content varies according to topic)
Pedagogical purpose: Build and improve estimation abilities and skills. Try to round answers under the pressure of time. The goal is to guess rather than completely solve an exercise or equation.
Pedagogical challenge: Understand how to teach kids general thinking skills, learn to estimate confidently, and trust their math intuition.
Story: One-on-one competitive challenge to see whose guess is closest.
Game task: Estimate the answer! You don’t need to guess the right number—you just need to get closer than your opponent.
Game challenge: We had to determine the correct circumstances for ensuring that estimation skills would offer a significant advantage and give players the best chances of winning.