Math Games ~ Restaurant and Store

I just realized that I haven't written about the fun games we are playing to learn addition and subtraction like I had previously promised! 

*GASP* 

Better late than never, right?

So a few weeks ago, our curriculum gave us the idea to play "restaurant" and "store" to help the children practice addition skills. 

For restaurant, I served lunch as if we were at a restaurant.  (No pics for this one. Sorry!) The lunch menu had a few selections on it priced from 1 to 9 cents. The "customers" had only 10 pennies at a time to "buy" their meal with. {In the future when we are learning bigger number addition facts, they'll have 20 cents to work with.} So they choose 2 items from the menu at a time. The "waiter/waitress" writes the 2 amounts down on a "guest check", adds them and asks for the payment. The "customer" then gives the payment. Of course the food is served and we all eat. Each one of us takes turn being customer and waiter/waitress. The kids liked that. 

For store, I took items out of the pantry and wrote prices 1-9 cents on each item and set the items up on the counter.  {Now I've been saving food boxes and containers as we empty them so we can play with those.} Again, each "customer" has only 10 pennies. The "customers" go "shopping" choosing 2 items to "purchase". They take their items to the "clerk", who writes up a receipt adding the total amount each customer needs to pay. We each take turns being the customer and clerk. 

Adelle and Jonathan both have fun with these activities. I have fun not giving the clerk or waitress enough money and they have to tell me how much more I need to give them.  {How clever of me!}

We alternate playing these games on different days. 

I love it when the children are learning and they don't realize it!