Gamification Is Making Learning Maths Fun For Kids. Hello everyone, I hope you are well. In today’s post, I will be sharing a guest post from Jon Goga. Jon Goga is a maths tutor and founder of BrainySpinach Math. Jon will be looking at the five ways gamification makes learning maths fun for kids and how this can help you help your child. Not all children love maths (shocking, I know!), but almost every child loves gaming. Gamification offers an alternate way of learning and can foster a love of maths.
Gamification Is Making Learning Maths Fun For Kids
Lots of kids around the world say that they hate Maths. But what they dislike likely is how the subject is taught. Gamification offers an alternative method. Gaming knows how to get their attention. It challenges them to try to figure things out. Kids love it and are willing to spend hours on it.
Gamification is the middle ground between gaming and learning. This technique has enabled so many kids worldwide to develop better Maths skills. It helps to make learning Maths fun and interactive. It allows students to see real-world situations and enhances the learning experience.
Here are five ways gamification makes learning Maths fun:
Students Love Gaming Already
It’s an inescapable fact that games are FUN. Kids love to play games! And educational games are a great way to get your “I hate Maths” kid to love it.
Getting students to learn and practice Maths is usually tricky – including games is sure to entertain them. When we teach, we often ask the kids to come into our world to learn and get confused or bored. Going into theirs makes learning more exciting.
Learning on platforms they already adore playing on is fantastic, as it takes away the dull look of the subject. When kids play games, they feel comfortable and in control, which is a better environment in which to learn.
So, combining gaming and learning helps reduce their fear and dislike of the subject. Simple!
Makes Learning A Habit
If you’re struggling to get your child to learn regularly, gamification can help. They’ll quickly form a habit of playing games because they find it enjoyable, and when it’s channelled into something productive, this is so worthwhile.
When Maths becomes a challenge they want to beat, most students push themselves to play/practice it.
Not only does this help to improve Maths skills, but it also improves their fine motor skills. In a study involving a group of surgeons, researchers found that those who played video games were faster at performing the advanced procedure and made 37% fewer mistakes than those who didn’t.
It Takes The Anxiety Out Of Maths
Many kids suffer from Maths anxiety – they find the subject challenging and stressful. This usually causes feelings of apprehension when faced with a Maths problem. Deep down, they feel they aren’t good at it, which is likely false.
Gamification helps to ease the stress and make them comfortable practising. It shifts their focus from a Maths problem to a problem they can have fun solving. So they can play and learn for a long time without feeling anxious.
An example of a game like this is BrainySpinach Math. It teaches kids aged 7-11 Maths through fun and innovative Roblox games so that they no longer fear Maths and are prepared for STEM vocations.
Not only that, their Maths Teacher “BrainySpinach” hosts free and entertaining Livestreams regularly on their YouTube Channel, playing through his and other educational games on Roblox with the “BrainySpinach Squad”. They welcome anyone else that wants to join in! Suffice it to say, his students love him for it, and many parents report that their child’s Maths Anxiety has vanished after just a few hours with BrainySpinach.
Virtual Rewards Motivate Them
What makes gamification work is that it encourages small wins, motivating students. Games give simple prizes, usually when a goal is achieved. It could be a virtual badge, unlockable/upgradable items, or even an in-game currency.
Kids learn better when they have targets and achievements to aim for.
Most of the time, a big reward isn’t needed. Sometimes they just like recognition from you for their efforts, and even playing alongside them can be rewarding as they show off what they’ve unlocked.
Improves Neuroplasticity
Rote memorisation and repetitive exercises have had a bad rap to date. Still, recent discoveries in the neurological sciences show that a certain amount of repetitive activity promotes neuroplasticity, the brain’s ability to learn and keep new information.
Regular practice and application are critical; neural connections are strengthened when you practise applying concepts. The more your kid practises a physical action or mathematical concept, the easier it becomes.
Gaming is a workout for your kid disguised as fun. Studies have shown that playing video games regularly improves neuroplasticity.
Bottom Line
Gamification offers an alternate way of learning instead of boring traditional methods. If you want a highly fulfilling career for your child and them to enjoy their journey towards it, this is the way to go.
I hope you enjoyed that.
Talk soon.
ABOUT BRAINYSPINACH MATH
Jon Goga is a math tutor and founder of BrainySpinach Math, on a mission to help inspire children everywhere to catch up with their learning today, so they succeed tomorrow. BrainySpinach Math creates fun and exciting online games on the Roblox platform for children to play that teach them essential math skills, all while inspiring them to learn by playing games they love – and allowing parents to ensure their child’s screen time is always productive. BrainySpinach Math is also the creator of the Roblox Math Camp – a course with children learning math while playing tutor-created Roblox Math games. https://brainyspinach.com/
Web: https://brainyspinach.com/
Roblox Group: https://www.roblox.com/groups/12756085/BrainySpinach-Math#!/about
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/brainyspinachmath
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/BrainySpinachMath/featured
Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/brainyspinach
12 Comments
khoingn | The Broad Life
Gamification is a really good way to create motivation for people, from the tech industry to math learning now.
Nyxie
I wish I had had this growing up. Math has always scared me – I see numbers and I panic! But something like this may have helped me a great deal in not only learning math, but overcoming that fear.
Beth L
It’s so important to make learning fun for kids. Teaching the love of learning is far superior to the actual learning of facts!
Melanie E
Having seen the games my son has to help with his maths work it’s quite impressive. This is such a great way to learn maths.
abzstylz
Wow! I always struggled with Math in school and wish I had these programs to help me for sure. Love this!
Fransic verso
That’s awesome, making math fun for kids is very important. Because it’s not really good since it’s heavy and this is good idea.
Rose Ann Sales
Making kids learn math while having fun is hard and amazing at the same time! Thid is a really amazing idea!
Bryan
This is an excellent idea! Like you said, kids already love gaming so why not integrate it with math skills?
Anosa Malanga
This is so nice! I will we have something like this in our time. It is very convenient to learn nowadays! Thanks to technology!
Ben
This is why I love technology. When I was a kid, math was so hard for me. I hated every minute of it, and I never got better at it. If I’d had something like this to make it fun, I might have done much better.
Beth
I WISH we’d had this kind of thing when I was a kid. I absolutely hated math. I wasn’t very good at it, and I really did not enjoy it at all. This would have made it so much better.
Christine
YESSSSS! Games make everything more fun for kids. My students love math games of all kinds. We take advantage of all the sites and apps that make math more meaningful and fun!