Description
How it works
Both bears begin on 10. Players roll a die labelled −0, −0, −1, −1, −2, −2 and move that many spaces back down the number line. The first bear to reach 0 wins. Running the race backwards gives subtraction the same physical, repetitive practice that addition usually gets, and it makes taking away visible as movement rather than an abstraction.
What you’ll need
- The printable Racing Bears game board
- Two plastic bears or counters, one per player
- A blank die labelled −0, −0, −1, −1, −2, −2
Skills practiced
The −0, −1 and −2 facts, counting back, and reading a number line in both directions.
Grade level
Kindergarten through 2nd grade. Pairs naturally with Game 2 — play them back to back so children feel addition and subtraction as the same line travelled two ways.
Instant PDF download. Game instructions and printable boards adapted from the ideas in Math Fact Fluency by Jennifer Bay-Williams and Gina Kling (ASCD / NCTM, 2019).
