Card games are a weekly, sometimes daily, occurrence in our home. I grew up playing card games with my parents and family and they were particularly popular at family events and holidays.
My husband also grew up playing card games with his grandparents. And funny enough, we didn’t grow up playing the same ones! So when we got married, we both learned some new games and we are now passing those on to our own kids.
These are some of our favorites and ideas on using card games in your homeschool to help you get started.
Homeschooling can be challenging at times. Sometimes you have a child that really struggles with a subject to the point that you (and they) are ready to give up. But rather than throwing in the towel, you work to find a way to help it click.
It can be as simple as finding a different word or way of explaining but more often than not it takes some out-of-the-box thinking and a little trial and error to get it to click.
Games are a fun way to both teach your kids a new topic, review an old one, or just to give you a fun day away from the “normal.” They are also a great way to break up a tough day or week of homeschooling. And the best part is your children don’t even realize they’re learning, they’re just having fun!
Celebrate Card Playing Day on December 28th with some of these. Of course…any day is a good day for games in my book.
Using Card Games in Your Homeschool for Math
Math is probably one of the hardest subjects to teach but one of the easiest to use card games! At least that’s my experience. There are so many different games that incorporate math that you could literally create an entire math curriculum with games. I find using different types of games to help my kids learn and memorize their addition and subtraction facts are the easiest. But that doesn’t mean you can’t find and/or create games for upper level math too! Here are some favorites in our home.
This Double Addition Free Printable from Bilingual Mami is can be used as a matching game!
The Total of 10 game from The First Grade Round-Up is a fun (and easy) way to learn addition to 10! It can also be played as a group or individually.
Need a fun way to teach addition and subtraction? This Nifty 50 game from Scholastic is a blast!
Want to count higher than 10? Play a fun game of 21 (no gambling involved)!
Denise Gaskins teaches kids to play Once Through The Deck as a fun way to practice addition, subtraction, and even multiplication all with a deck of cards!
Math Engaged shares several different card deck math games.
Get this easy set of Math War cards to help your kids with simple addition and subtraction equations.
Teach kids sequencing and number order with this game of Garbage using a single deck of cards.
Math Geek Mama has a great list of math games you can play with a deck of cards.
Practice Reading and Spelling with Card Games
Make learning sight words fun with this Go Fish! game from Teach Me. I’m Yours. for Kindergartners.
We just got my youngest daughter the Wheel of Fortune Jr. edition card game. It has some tougher words and phrases, so I would suggest this game for grades 3 and up, actually. But it is already helping her reading and spelling!
A few years back my parents found a fun game, Bananagrams. It is a fun game for kids of all ages, but you can also use My First Bananagrams to work on spelling words with early readers. They even have combination letters to make it easy!
Now you can bring all the fun of Scrabble without all the little tiles (that seem to go missing – at least in our house). This is perfect for practicing spelling and reading with kids.
Save money (and space) by using some of these Printable Games just for Kids!
Card Games for Preschoolers
Practice colors and numbers with UNO cards. My kids still love this game!
The traditional game of Go Fish! is a great way to practice numbers with little ones.
Need to practice letters? Try this Alphabet Go Fish game with your preschoolers.
Slap Jack is a fun (and sometimes violent) game in our house. Try this Number version for recognizing up to 20 and this Alphabet version for recognizing letters!
Family Card Games for Learning Fun
If your family loves trivia, try this Jeopardy Card Game to play anywhere, anytime!
Not a fan of the long, drawn out game of Monopoly? Check out this quick(ish), game of Monopoly Deal.
Skillmatics has a bunch of “Guess in 10” games perfect for families. From cities and countries around the world, states of America, and more! Check them out!
Play ten different card games with these two decks of GeoCards. Includes both U.S.A. and World decks.
Want more games? Check out these Two Player Board Games your kids are sure to love!
Find more homeschool resources on my Pinterest boards!
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Annette has been married to her husband and best friend since 2003. Together they are raising their six children to follow the Lord’s will, no matter what. Annette longs for the day when she will meet her angel babies who have entered heaven before her. She enjoys creating UNIT STUDIES and FREE PRINTABLES for homeschool families. You can follow her crazy life at In All You Do where she blogs about homeschooling, homemaking and marriage while trying to maintain her sanity. She is also the owner of Thrifty Homeschoolers where she shares her tips on homeschooling without breaking the bank.
