Drilling place values can be a fun game.
MAKE THE GAME BOARD:
For this game I wanted a little different looking board. So I cut three pieces of different colors of posterboard, each measuring 8 1/2 by 11 inches. I then used duct tape to tape them together in a long line.
I chose dinosaurs as my theme for this game board. I had a book of pictures of several neat looking dinos which I placed along the path. I drew this path. I simply used a black water color marker (I do not use permanent markers for anything I plan to cover with Contact paper as the colors tend to "bleed" over time.) and drew a path of stones. Since these did not need to all be exactly alike or perfect, I was able to draw the stone path.
Along the top edge of each of the different sections of the board, I wrote from left to right: "Hundreds," "Tens," and "Ones." This is to indicate the "Lands" that the players would be passing through during the game. The path began on the right, in the "Ones Land," with a stone marked "Start" and ended in the "Hundreds Land" with another stone marked "Finish."
CARDS:
On sheets of Bristol or Card Stock (heavier weight papers that come in a multitude of colors and can be purchased in small amounts or by the ream at most print shops), I grid out 12 cards per sheet. ACTUALLY what I did, is I have a master copy of several different cards sizes on white paper, then I xerox them unto the colored paper that I have chosen for the game. Now that computers are such the rage, I am sure there are easy ways of doing this using your computer and printer. I have yet to learn this, and my old fashioned ways work well for me.
On each card, I would write a different number between 1 and 999. I made about 50 cards for the game.
TO PLAY:
The cards are shuffled and placed in a draw pile. In turn, players draw one card, read the number and decide which digit is in the place of the "LAND" which they are currently sitting in. For example, if the card has the number 408, and the player is in the "ONES LAND," he would move 8 spaces. If he were currently in the "TENS LAND," he would move zero. If he were in the "HUNDREDS LAND," he would move 4 spaces. The first player to reach finish wins.
Now, if you wish to make the game a little more detailed, you can add some "FUN SPACES." The stone space near the T-Rex could say, "Hide from the T-Rex, lose one turn." Other "FUN SPACES" could be:
"Find a new digging site, lose one turn."
"Find a dino egg, take an extra turn."
"Lost your way, go back five spaces."
I am sure you get the idea. Theming the "FUN SPACES" to the game board's theme.
For other games to drill place values, see my articles:
Teaching Place Values?...Play a Game
A Million to One--Fun Place Value Game
