Transform any math lesson into a thrilling day of learning with these educational games! This collection of fun-filled math games is geared toward your 3rd-grade brainiacs and is specifically aimed at developing your students’ knowledge of numbers in an engaging way. It’s a great way to introduce your learners to new mathematical concepts like multiplication, fractions, and more. We guarantee that their love for numbers will be overflowing at the end of each lesson!
Addition and Subtraction
1. DragonBox Numbers
DragonBox is a unique app that allows 3rd-graders to deepen their intuitive understanding of numbers and algebra. The fundamentals are hidden within clever drawings and cards. The intuitive problem-solving games allow kids to have fun while learning.
Learn More: App Store
2. Math Tango
Math Tango has a unique, classroom-tested combination of puzzle and world-building activities. 3rd-graders will enjoy building up their maths fluency in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division while going on missions.
Learn More: App Store
3. Subtraction Mountain
In Subtraction Mountain, students help a friendly miner with three-digit subtraction. This game is good for practicing subtraction. Students might find it useful to think of the concept of subtraction as a movement downwards.
Learn More: Education
4. Professor Beardo
Help Professor Beardo create a magic beard-growth potion in this fun online game. Not only will students practice their addition skills, but it will also reinforce the use of place value in addition.
Learn More: Education
5. Properties of Addition
3rd-graders are introduced to the commutative, associative, and identity properties of addition in this great addition game.
Learn More: Splash Learn
6. Can You Make It?
Give students a set of numbers and a target number. See how many different ways they can use the numbers to get to the target number.
Learn More: Games 4 Learning
Multiplication and Division
7. 3D Multiplication with Legos
Using Lego to build towers introduced students to the idea of grouping, multiplication, division, and commutative property all at the same time!
Learn More: Frugal Fun 4 Boys
8. Candy Shop
Candy Shop makes multiplication a little sweeter (haha, get it?) by getting 3rd-graders to find the candy jars containing the correct multiplication array. In the process, they will gain an understanding of counting rows and columns to represent multiplication.
Learn More: Education
9. Count Your Dots
Count Your Dots is a way of strengthening both the concept of multiplication as an array and multiplication as repeated addition. Using a deck of playing cards, each player flips two cards. You then draw horizontal lines that represent the number on your first card, and vertical lines to represent the number on your second card. On this gird, you make a dot where the lines join. Each player counts the dots, and the person with the most dots keeps all of the cards.
Learn More: Teach Beside Me
10. Mathgames.com
Mathgames.com is a great online platform for practicing maths skills. This multiplication game gives students a chance to practice multiplication and get instant feedback. This division game encourages students to think of division as a function by creating an input-output rule for division.
Learn More: Math Games
11. Flip Dominoes and Multiply
This is a good way to help your 3rd-graders memorize multiplication facts. Each player flips a domino and multiplies the two numbers. The one with the highest product gets both dominoes.
Learn More: Fun Games 4 Learning
12. Divide and Conquer Division Pairs
Another variation on Go Fish, but with division. Instead of matching cards according to suite or number, students form pairs by identifying two cards which one can divide evenly into the other. For instance, 8 and 2 are a pair, since 8 ÷ 2 = 4.
Learn More: Cuppa Cocoa
Fractions
13. Paper Fortune Teller
After folding the traditional paper fortune teller, you can add your own math facts to the sections. For the fraction game, the first layer represents circles broken into fractions. The next level of flaps includes decimal numbers, and students have to figure out which ‘flap’ matches the circle. The last layer has a bar that students have to color using their fingers.
Learn More: Kids Activities Blog
14. Gem Mining Fraction Conversion
Help our little underground gopher friend mine jewel fractions in this game about mining fractions.
Learn More: Education.com
15. Seashell Fractions
This game about collecting seashell fractions gives students practice with identifying fractions in different contexts.
Learn More: Education.com
16. Using Lego Bricks to Create Fractions
Using Lego Bricks to create fractions is a great way of getting 3rd- graders to consider which part of the whole each brick represents.
Learn more: J 4 Daniel’s Mom
17. Fraction Match Game
Download the fraction match flashcards to play a modified version of Go Fish or Snap.
Learn More: Deceptively Educational
18. Comparing Fractions with Like Denominators: Space Voyage
Use the context of space travels to develop fluency in comparing fractions with like denominators. You can play this game here.
Learn More: Education
19. Equivalent Fractions
Your 3rd-graders will be able to identify equivalent fractions in no time with this awesome website! Start by inviting them to watch the fun and educational video that will explain the basics of equivalent fractions before challenging them to complete a few quizzes.
Learn More: BrainPOP Jr.
20. Fraction Match-Up
This free printout gives your 3rd-graders a chance to make matches between the pictures and the fractions they represent. The trading element of this game reinforces the equivalence of the fractions.
Learn More: Deceptively Educational
21. Fraction War
Fraction War is a great game for your more advanced 3rd-graders. Each player flips two cards and lay them out as a fraction. It can be useful to place a pencil between the top and the bottom card to separate the numerator from the denominator. The students decide which fraction is the greatest, and the winner keeps all the cards. Comparing the fractions with online denominators gets a little tricky, but if the students plot them on a fraction number line first, they’ll be practicing two skills at once.
Learn More: Math File Folder Games
Other Topics
22. Match up LEGO bricks to tell time
Write times in a variety of ways on Lego bricks and have students see how quickly they can match them up.
Learn More: Scholastic
23. Array Capture
Using two dice, students take turns drawing arrays that represent the area of their throw. The student that fills us most of the page wins.
Learn More: Jillian Starr Teaching
Math Games Related to Time and Money:
41. Time Bingo
Turn the classic game of bingo into a lesson on telling time! To do this, encourage your learners to listen carefully as you call out different times instead of numbers. They can then search their bingo sheet for the corresponding time, which they will then mark off.
Learn More: Superstar Worksheets
42. Beat the Clock
Put your kiddos to the test with this time-sensitive activity. When assigning math problems, use a ticking timer to challenge them with solving problems in record time!
Learn More: TPT
43. Time-Telling Scavenger Hunt
Sharpen your learners’ time-telling skills by taking them on this swashbuckling adventure. Simply start by hiding digital and analog clocks around your classroom. Then, task your pupils with finding these hidden treasures whilst jotting down their findings as they go.
Learn More: Pinterest
44. Coin War
Sum up your math lesson with this riveting coin game. Deal out some coins to your learners and have them sit in pairs or groups as you encourage them to compare the value of their coins. The player with the greatest sum wins the round!
Learn More: The Activity Mom
45. Money Memory
Here’s a fun memory game for your little brainiacs. Start by setting out two sides – one side will feature coins and the other side will feature cards with corresponding values. Afterward, invite your learners to flip over the cards and then match the values on them to the corresponding cards.
Learn More: Homeschool of 1
46. Money Hide and Seek
Get your kiddos searching for some pirate booty with this money scavenger hunt. Simply begin by scattering coins all over your classroom. You can then challenge your learners with gathering as many coins as they can, before having them calculate the cumulative value of their discovered treasure.
Learn More: Buggy and Buddy
47. Clock Solitaire
Treat your pupils to the imaginative game of Clock Solitaire! Engage their creative side by having them align cards in their rightful places so as to mimic a clock’s face.
Learn More: What Do We Do All Day
48. Piggy Bank Game
Fatten up your little ones’ piggy banks with this adorable activity. Simply have them roll some dice and then task them with grabbing coins that match their roll. They will then have to insert each coin into their personal piggy banks – in the end, the richest piggy wins!
Learn More: Ginger Casa
49. Lemonade Stand
When life gives you lemons, turn them into a lemonade stand. Set up a lemonade stand in your classroom for your kiddos to run and then have them calculate and return the correct change to their thirsty customers.
Learn More: Jaime Costiglio
50. Time Zone Challenge
Listen up globetrotters, this activity is for you! Invite your kiddos to travel across different time zones by having them calculate what the time would be in different corners of the world, based on their local time.
Learn More: OnlineMathLearning.com
Math Games Related to Logic and Reasoning:
51. Magic Squares
A game of numerical wonder awaits your learners! Challenge them to fill in magic squares where each row, column, and diagonal line add up to the same number. They are sure to be entertained for hours as they work to crack each numerical code.
Learn More: Learn With Math Games
52. Sudoku for Kids
Soduku is a fantastic tool that can be used to enhance your kiddos’ logic and reasoning skills. Whether it’s 4×4 or 9×9 grids, Sudoku has the flexibility to suit all age groups.
Learn More: Puzzles to Print
53. Chess or Checkers
Here’s an engaging game for all your little grandmasters in the making! Reserve a lesson where you challenge them to games of Chess or Checkers. This old-school strategy game is not just a battle of wits but a wonderful way to instill the skill of forward-thinking.
Learn More: Super Teacher Worksheets
54. Riddles and Brain Teasers
Who’s ready for a mental workout? Simply provide your kiddos with mind-bending riddles and brain teasers that you can find with a quick internet search. Then, get their little minds working as you challenge them to solve these intricate puzzles.
Learn More: Fun With Puzzles
55. Code Breaking
Develop your pupils’ math fundamentals with this engaging activity. Start by crafting a coded message using multiplication, division, addition, or subtraction. Then, have them crack the code by using their correct answers to solve it.
Learn More: Twinkl
56. Math Maze
Send your little ones on a quest through a labyrinth of learning. Begin by crafting a maze where the correct answers to math questions will guide your students toward the exit. Task your learners with solving the questions in order to make it out of the maze, but let them be warned that incorrect answers could lead to dead-ends or traps!
Learn More: Treasure Hunt 4 Kids
57. Magic Triangle
Teach your kiddos the art of balance with this magic triangle game. Just like the magic square, the Magic Triangle demands that all its sides sum up to an identical magical number. So, let them get solving and encourage them to fill in the missing numbers.
Learn More: What Do We Do All Day
58. Number Sequence Puzzles
Pique your little detectives’ interests with this numerical mystery game. Set up number sequences that contain gaps, and then challenge them to unveil the hidden pattern needed to fill in the gaps.
Learn More: Fun With Puzzles
59. Tower of Hanoi
The Tower of Hanoi is a legendary and logical puzzle game that’s sure to test your students’ strategic thinking. To complete this game, task them with shifting a stack of disks from one peg to another. The catch? They cannot place a larger disk atop a smaller one!
Learn More: Scientific American
60. Math Tic-Tac-Toe
Add a mathematical twist to the classic game of Tic-Tac-Toe. To do this, task your learners with correctly solving a math question before they can proceed with marking the board.
Learn More: Rookie Road
Math Games Related to Shapes and Geometry:
61. Shape Sorting
This activity will have your learners eagerly sorting the world around them into shapes and forms. Simply invite them to classify objects or images based on their geometrical properties. For instance, they could classify the sun as a circle or a pizza slice as a triangle.
Learn More: Busy Toddler
62. Geoboard Shapes
This trendy tool is sure to become a favorite in your classroom. Provide your students with rubber bands and then invite them to create shapes of all sizes on their Geoboard. A little stretch here and there, and voilà: geometry made visual and tangible!
Learn More: Parenting chaos
63. Geometry Dash
Kick your lessons up a gear with this fast-paced game. Challenge your kiddos to answer a variety of geometry questions. It’s a race against time, as to move forward they will have to correctly answer each question.
Learn More: Quiz Global
64. Symmetry Paint
Hand your students a blank canvas, and watch as they create symmetrical masterpieces. Invite them to draw half a shape on their canvas before completing the picture by creating an identical half.
Learn More: Free Training Tutorial
65. Origami
Origami is a serene way for your kiddos to explore geometric concepts. Guide them in folding paper to create 3D shapes of all sizes and colors.
Learn More: DREME Stanford
66. 3D Shape Hunt
Ready, set, hunt! Send your students outdoors or keep the fun in your classroom as you task them with finding real-life examples of 3D shapes. You are sure to be amazed at what they discover.
Learn More: Twinkl
67. Pattern Block Pictures
Bring out your students’ inner architects with this creative activity. Simply provide them with some pattern blocks. Then, let their imaginations run wild as you task them with using their blocks to create intricate new shapes and interesting images.
Learn More: Preschool Inspirations
68. Angle Tag
Physical activity meets geometry in this active classroom game. In this game, the player who is “it” begins by yelling out a type of angle – such as acute, obtuse, or right. After each angle has been called out, prompt your kiddos to create that angle using their arms. Last one to get the angle right gets tagged!
Learn More: Math is Fun
Final Thoughts
Whether you are teaching complex properties of numbers, multiplication, and division, or introducing your 3rd-graders to fractions, we’ve got a math game for you! Remember that we are trying to use games to improve learning, not just to fill time. You want your 3rd-graders to be engaged and having fun. But you need to do this in a way that supports your teaching and supports their learning.
Frequently Asked Questions
What math standards should I focus on for my 3rd-grader?
The 3rd-grade is the start of multiplication, fractions, and more complex number properties.
Are online or face-to-face games better?
Playing a combination of online and face-to-face games with your students is always best. Online games give your 3rd-grader a chance to move at their own pace and are good for practicing maths fluency. In face-to-face games, you can help your 3rd-grader when they get stuck and make sure that they really understand the concepts.
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