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Jump Numbers
Pros: Kids are so excited about saving the Snortles that they don't realize they're building core addition and multiplication skills along the way.
Cons: Students can skip the hard thinking by using the Hint button.
Bottom Line: Absorbing gameplay helps students hone their addition and skip-counting skills.
Jump Numbers is best used to help students practice basic addition and multiplication concepts. Use it when you explore counting and skip counting. Kids can continue to use it throughout their elementary school years to practice and build their addition and multiplication fact fluency. The game might also work well as part of Math Workshop or other math station routines. The game has unlimited user accounts, so more than one student can use the same device to play. However, it's important to have each student set up an account so the game adapts to each child's specific skill level.
Jump Numbers is an app that uses skip counting to build addition and early multiplication skills. Students start with a story about a population of Snortles whose volcano home has popped. Now, they need to be rescued from the sea. All the while, Stompers and Fuses are waiting to shoot Snortles off the screen.
Students can save the Snortles by jumping from number to number in a particular pattern, such as by twos or threes. Since the game adjusts as the user plays, it works for kids age 5 to 10. Alternatively, you can customize skills practice by selecting a starting number range and designating the "count by" number. Even adults may find the game fun as they try to quickly figure out patterns and count by twelves. As players get better, the game throws in another challenge: The number they need may not be immediately available, and they'll have to drag and add nearby numbers to make the one they need.
Jump Numbers is remarkably adaptive. The same game lets kindergartners build early addition skills and upper elementary school-age kids learn to multiply. Although time isn't a huge component, students will feel a sense of urgency when they play. On-the-spot adding has to be done accurately, and finding success in this game might help build math fact fluency.
Students may figure out how to game the system by hitting the Hint button repeatedly instead of trying to figure out the next number themselves. As a result, the game may not end up properly aligned to a student's capabilities. Teachers will need to monitor this and build a culture that encourages and rewards kids who take the time to puzzle through challenging problems.