Collect 20

One of the first games we played in math was called Collect 20.  We are practicing not only counting to 20, but also making sure that we do have exactly 20.  The second day we played this game we talked about ways to make sure that we had 20.  Some students suggested counting again, counting by 2's, putting them in groups of 5.  Then I gave them a 20 board, a board with exactly 20 boxes.  They thought it was so much easier to know when you had 20, they could also tell me how many more they needed to get to 20.  I LOVE playing games in math, it is such a hands on way of learning.