Lemonade stands are valuable learning tools related to math at any grade level. You can find math games associated with lemonade stands at LemonadeStands.com. Alternatively, you can create your own mock lemonade stand indoors and make an enjoyable math game for your student. You and/or other students can be customers, with one student operating the stand. Students can learn how to count money, give change, count out a cash drawer at the end of the business day, or compete with each other to make the highest profits over a period of time. Students can also learn about graphs through plotting their sales each day, percentages of sales in relation to other students and how to maintain profit and loss records for their business. Correspond the math skills practiced in the game to the appropriate grade level.
Multiplication.com offers numerous online games, including a Math Models game where students solve problems to dress models. A hands-on alternative to this type of game for older students would be to select clothing out of magazines, books or online and give students play money to buy the clothes. Tell the students that they are shopping during a sale, and must figure percentages in order to determine final costs before being able to buy anything.
PrimaryGames.com provides online math games for younger students that include games focused on addition, multiplication, counting, shapes and coins. Some of the games, such as Dora's Carnival Adventure and Candy Land Dora, are very attractive to younger students because they are associated with popular cartoon characters. As a tutor you can create your own hand-on versions of these games, if desired, by working with your student to develop your own math-related board games, or creating your own indoor carnival that requires your students to use math skills in playing the games.