This fun, hands-on game is a great way to introduce children to the addition and subtraction symbols. To get started you only need; some bowls, paper, a deck of cards and marbles.
Preparation: Remove face cards from a deck of cards. Take 20 small pieces of paper and write a "+" symbol on half the cards and a " - " symbol on the other half. (The backs of old business cards work great).
How to Play:
First, place a large bowl of marbles and both decks of cards face down, in center. Each player then gets to take 15 marbles and place it in their bowl. To start the game, a player picks a card from the number pile and one from the symbol pile. The cards will determine if he will get to add marbles to his bowl or give some away. For example: If he chooses the number 3 and a plus symbol, he will then add 3 marbles from the big bowl into his bowl. However, if he draws 3 and a minus symbol, he will need to give away three marbles from his bowl to the big bowl in the center. The game ends when all but one are out of marbles.
