Disclaimer: I received a FREE copy of this product through the HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way.
Runners take your mark. Get set. GO! Run along with Byron and his friends in Math Sprint – The Mental Math Game from Byron’s Games. Math Sprint is a high quality, Olympics inspired, board game for 2-8 players. The Game comes with a game board (the running track), eight runners (game pawns), 258 game cards, blank dry erase cards, dry erase marker, and an instruction pamphlet. Game pawns are not your typical cone shaped pawns that come with most board games. The pawns look like actual runners ready to spring around the board and come in an assortment of vibrant colors. Instructions have a Meet the Runners section so players can get to know their runner. The game cards include addition and subtraction facts, multiplication and division facts, wild cards and challenge cards (these contain word problems and multi-step or multi-digit math problems).
My boys really enjoyed playing this game. This was a pleasant surprise as I would describe neither one of them as being “mathy” kids. We have played other math games before, and they felt too much like boring math lessons. Math Sprint is actually fun, colorful, and extremely easy to modify to fit our needs. We played by the actual rules once, after that we started making up our own rules to make the game fit the differences in their skill levels. For me, that really is the draw of this game. It is easy to make it work for all abilities and skill levels. Mental math is not a strong point with my kids, so they were allowed to use manipulatives when needed. I actually saw improvement in their mental
math skills after playing this game. They were motivated because manipulatives take time to provide the answer and they wanted to be the first one to answer the questions. Overall, we feel like this game is a winner!
Grade Level/Age
The recommended age for Math Sprint is 7 and up. I think it can definitely be used with younger kids that are learning their math facts since the game is flexible and easy to modify to fit all skill levels. The game pawns are on the small side, so keep that in mind if you have really little kids.
How to Use
Each player picks a runner and takes their mark on the track, preparing to “sprint” to the finish line. On his turn, the player becomes the coach and selects a card. Each card contains two math facts and the coach selects one to read. The other players are the runners and they try to be the first one to solve the problem. Whoever answers the question first advances two spaces on the track. The first person to cross the finish line declares victory!
You can choose the length of the game and the level of difficulty. There are options for a 100m Dash, 200m Dash, or 400m Dash. The cards are color coded so it is easy to determine the level of difficulty. Wild cards contain a mix of coaching tips (math tips), or things like move back or forward spaces. You can choose to only use the addition and subtraction cards, only the multiplication and division, or you can play with all of the cards for a challenge.
This game is a fun supplement to your regular math curriculum. Since the math facts are pretty straightforward, this can compliment any homeschool math curriculum you choose.
Things to Consider
I have just a couple of small considerations to point out. My youngest found the game a little bit frustrating at first, because his brother was able to answer more of the questions than he was. We were able to easily modify the game to work for us, but that is something to consider as you play the game. You may need to change the game rules a little bit to work for mixed ages and skill levels.
The other issue we found was with the game pawns. Some of the bases don’t sit flat on the board so the runners topple over frequently. We turned it into a joke and laughed about it, but it is definitely a part of the game that could use some improvement. It is entirely possible that I got a bad batch of runners, and I hope they can improve this one little detail. The runners look like mini action figures and add a really fun element to the game. This was the only quality issue I found in the entire game and it is really a small issue. I would still recommend the game even with the toppling runners.
Summary
Math Sprint is a fun way to practice mental math skills. The game is easy to modify and can be used for anyone learning their math facts. Aside from some issues with toppling runners, the game is excellent quality with vibrant colors and a fun running/track theme. Even non-mathy kids will find this is an enjoyable way to practice mental math and parents won’t have to break a sweat to teach it!
Read More Reviews
Check in on the other runners from the Homeschool Review Crew as they report on their Math Sprint races!
