How to Solve Math Problems
It’s Math time. Are your palms sweating?
Math doesn’t have to be stressful, especially for kids. We often imagine worksheets, textbooks and stressful drills when we think of early math learning or teaching kids how to solve math problems.
What if we flipped the script and used board games instead? Making it a more playful situation instead of an anxious one?
Games engage kids, tapping into motivation, fun, and social interaction. In this post we’ll share how to solve math problems (and how to solve math equations) using rich problem-solving strategies, and highlight five fun SimplyFun games that bring these strategies to life:
We’ll explore how these games address concerns like math problem solving strategies, math problem solving steps, problem solving math questions, and present different ways to solve math problems, math problem solving examples with solutions, and mathematical problem solving examples. We’ll then show how each game can help achieve your goals for your kids (or even yourself!)
Why Game-Based Learning Helps with “Solve Math Problems”
Let’s start by covering some fundamentals: when you say you want to "solve math problems," or "how to solve a math problem," what you’re really talking about is developing a process and mindset for mathematical thinking that helps make math a bit easier to tackle. Before you begin, you need to focus on:
- Understanding the problem: what is being asked, what information you’re given
- Choosing a strategy: will I add, subtract, multiply, divide, set up an equation, use a diagram, draw a table? What exactly am I going to anticipate before I start this game?
- Carrying out the steps: performing the operations, following through carefully
- Checking: verifying the solution makes sense, and maybe trying a different way to confirm. Checking your work is a really important step in academics, particularly when it comes to math.
- Reflecting / generalizing: what could I learn from this that helps next time?
These are the math problem solving steps. Experts often call them Polya’s four steps (understand, plan, execute, review) in mathematical problem solving. Games can embed these steps naturally, with built-in opportunities for strategy, decision-making, feedback and reflection, making them a fantastic resource to support mathematical education.
Also, when we talk about different ways to solve math problems, a rich game gives players multiple routes: e.g., choose which cards, which path, which operation, rather than just one fixed worksheet problem. That variety strengthens flexibility and deeper understanding.
Time to explore each game and how they support these ideas:
Arctic Riders
2-4 players • 20 min • 7 & up
It’s Springtime in the Arctic Circle! Add and subtract card numbers to feed the narwhals and place treats on the board. Score points when the narwhal munches on your treats or swims by. The player with the most points wins the frosty fun. This is an adorable game that focuses on addition and subtraction skills for children ages 7 and up.
Players take turns adding or subtracting the numbers on their cards and placing treat tokens on the correct answers on the gameboard. Two narwhal pawns travel the board trying to land on the spaces with the treats. Different point values are scored when a narwhal lands on your treat or swims by. The player with the most points at the end of the game wins!
How this game supports “solve math problems”
- It centers on solving small equations (add/subtract)
- Players must choose cards (strategy) and then compute: that’s the “plan” stage of problem solving
- Placing the tokens based on their answer introduces a “real consequence” for the math: if you get it right, you score. This motivates checking, verifying, and thinking ahead (“Where will the narwhal move?”).
- The game includes treatment of negative or more complex answers (the board tracks <0, >100) which introduces richer thinking.
- Because movement and token placement matter, the player is effectively solving a “problem” (which card combination gives me the answer I need to place my treat strategically?). That means they are working through “how to solve math” in a dynamic context.
Planet Voyagers
2-5 players • 30 min • 8 & up
Let’s blast off on a cosmic adventure! Explore the planets, learn cool astronomy facts, and strategize with your cards to advance your rocket or research for points. Each round, players play one card from their hand with the goal of gaining the most points. Points are earned by advancing their rocket pawns across our solar system, by sending out 'research probes' and by identifying planetary information on their data boards. The first player to reach Neptune or earn 12 points wins the game.
What makes this a great game to “solve math problems”?
While the primary skill is astronomy/strategy, each round players must practice basic math when playing certain cards. They also have alternative ways to practice math: when a player uses a data card, they have to create a math problem. For example, ‘How much longer is a day on Earth than on Neptune?’” (and other real-world comparative math questions).
This game gives children a chance to tackle how to solve math equations in a broader context, not just arithmetic, but comparative, reasoning, even word-problem style math.
Mirror Mansion
2-4 players • 30 min • 8 & up
Mirror Mansion is a geometry & memory game with a spooooky twist. Children ages 8 and up learn the basics in the geometrics of reflection by using mirrors to explore every twist and turn, testing their memory, and uncovering hidden treasures.
At first glance this game is less “pure math equation” and more spatial reasoning, yet it still strongly ties into mathematical problem solving. especially for geometry, planning, and reasoning. This spooktacular game helps kids understand concepts of angle and measure angles which is customarily introduced around the 4th grade.
What math problem solving elements are involved?
- Spatial visualization: You must anticipate how a beam of light will reflect across mirrors. That’s “how to solve math problems” in a geometry context.
- Strategy: Players plan where to place mirrors, which path the light will take, and must recall which “treasure window” hides what. That’s akin to planning and executing a multi-step problem.
- Checking: Once you place the mirrors, you check by looking through the open window. If you’re incorrect you lose a “jewel”. That forces verification and reflecting on mistakes.
- Memory and reasoning: You must remember where treasures are and predict outcomes. That strengthens metacognitive skills which support solving math under different contexts.
Watch My Wings
2-4 players • 10 min • 4 & up
Get ready for a butterfly match-up! This super fun game has players spin to see if you’re matching colors, shapes, or both, then race to find those fluttering friends. Watch My Wings is a fun game for people ages 4 and up, and can be played with 2 to 5 players.
In this game, players will practice their matching skills as they spin, search and match the colors and shapes on the main butterfly’s wings, reinforcing those geometry skills as they begin to recognize, describe, compare and name common shapes, their parts and attributes.
It’s great for children 4 and up to be introduced to matching, sorting, putting in a series and regrouping objects according to one or two attributes such as color, shape or size. Comparing is the principal skill developed while playing Watch My Wings, as players look for and successfully find matching colors, shapes, or both.
How Parents and Educators Can Assist Learning
In Watch My wings, determining and comparing happen simultaneously. Parents can encourage language development by having children declare which color, shape, or both they are trying to match.
Bug Crafts
2-4 players • 10 min • 4 & up
A new release for us at SimplyFun this year, Bug Crafts is a resource-management, planning & strategy game for ages 8+ that reinforces math problem-solving skills. Players buzz into a vibrant bug market where they collect and trade materials to craft for bees, ants, and ladybugs. The goal is to outsmart fellow artisans and build the best Bug Crafts.
Though its focus is on decision‐making and planning, there is a deep math strand inside (factoring, decomposition, value trading) which links well with “solve math problems ” and “math problem solving strategies ”.
How it supports math problem solving
- Using basic math skills (including an introduction to factoring), players evaluate the market value of the materials, the number of materials saved, and the crafts available to build to make the best decision each round.
- Players roll dice that determine values for materials; then they decide whether to build, trade or collect. That involves comparing values, making trade-offs, computing potential gains. That’s basically solving mini-problems: “If a flower token is worth 8 this round and two sticks are worth 1 each, is it worth trading two sticks for the flower?”
- It introduces the idea of different ways to solve math problems: players can decompose numbers (like 8 = 4 + 4, or 2 × 4) when deciding value trades.
Why These Games Are Worth It
Beyond extreme fun and enjoyment, these games help support your math goals and create a safe space for your early learners to grasp these mathematical concepts. Often times, math anxiety can be a major road block for young learners. Providing them with effective math games introduces these crucial skills to them within a less threatening activity. A game can be a game without the added stress of the academic outcome or grade.
These problem-solving math games are effective options as:
- They make math active, not passive. Instead of just answering “12 + 7 = ?”, kids are choosing, strategizing, and solving within a meaningful context.
- They embed real consequences: their decisions lead to victory or loss. This motivates children to engage with the math rather than skip it.
- They integrate metacognitive thinking: kids discuss what they did, why they did it, and how they might improve.
- They cover multiple operations and problem types: addition/subtraction (Arctic Riders), decomposition/trading (Bug Crafts), geometry/angles (Mirror Mansion), comparative algebraic questions (Planet Voyagers).
- They promote collaborative reflection: after playing, parents/teachers can lead a debrief: “What was your equation? Why did you pick that card?” This strengthens understanding.
Practical Tips for Parents & Educators
Once you’ve played the games, have a debrief: ask your kids what math strategy worked for them? What didn’t? How could they apply this to a school math problem?
Another fun tip is to make the math visible so they can then translate that action into every day school work. Keep a sheet of paper beside the game where you write the equations chosen each turn. This helps children see their work and promotes transparency in their thinking.
When teaching Math, choose fun games!
If your goal is to help children solve math problems, understand how to solve a math problem, or learn how to solve math equations, then embedding those goals in rich gameplay can make the process both effective and enjoyable. The games we spotlighted each offer unique entry points into problem-solving math, providing fun contexts for kids to apply, reflect on, and generalize their math thinking.
Whether you’re a parent looking for a game night that builds math fluency, or an educator seeking engaging tools for your classroom, these memorable games offer bridges between math problem solving strategies, math problem solving steps, and mathematical problem solving examples with solutions. Because games allow different ways to solve math problems, it provides children the opportunity to find a method that makes the most sense to them.
