Early Math Counts

This last spatial reasoning game we have for this month is a two player game where the goal is to get four markers in a row. This game is great because it provides a productive struggle. The board is constantly changing as each player moves a marker each turn. This will help our children strengthen not only their spatial reasoning skills but also their problem-solving skills and perseverance. Players will have to look at the position of the markers on the board and think of different outcomes for different moves they could make.

Materials:

• Quartette board print-out QUARTETTE BOARD
• 8 markers in two different colors ex. 4 red and 4 blue

Directions:

• Give each player their 4 markers in whatever color they choose
• Take your 4 markers of the same color and place them on the board so the colors alternate on the top and bottom rows
• Take turns moving your markers vertically or horizontally into any square that is adjacent and empty
• The first player to get four in a row wins!
• You must always move one of your markers on your turn, markers cannot be moved diagonally, and you cannot “jump” over someone else’s marker

As you are playing this game, it’s a great opportunity to work on logic with your child and have conversations about directions. Some things you could say are, “My marker needs to go up one space for me to get two next to each other, how many spaces does your marker need to move?” “Are you going to move yours right or left now?” “I have three markers next to one another, how many do you have?”