Guest Blog – King of Math reviewed by Josh

Today I welcome a review from my very first guest blogger.  Josh is an 18 y.0. student from Melbourne who is studying for a Bachelor of Applied Science (Mathematics).  His own blog, Mathematical Mischief (http://mathematicalmischief.wordpress.com/) is aimed at helping everyone to get a better understanding of Mathematics and is a great resource for students.  Do go and visit his blog.

And now, over to you, Josh.

King of Math

Well, erm… Hi. I’m Josh. 🙂

Now, if you’re wondering where I’m from, what I do – let’s just say you can find it all at Mathematical Mischief. Today, though, I’m not here to spiel about my blog, or what I do.

I’m here to talk about a game called ‘King of Math‘, made by the awesome dudes over at Oddrobo Games (they’re Swedish).
The first three level packs are available in game when you download the app (which is free), but to play the remaining levels, you need to buy the in game pack (which is $0.99, well worth the investment).

Click the logo to go to iTunes!

So you’re bored, slightly competitive, and really like math. You’re not quite sure what you could do, though. Here’s your answer, if you’re up for the challenge.

Save the Solar System (and practice your Math skills at the same time)

 Arithmetic Invaders is a collection of arcade-style apps that can help children practice various Mathematics strategies.  These drill and practice games have a kind of retro-Space Invaders feel.  As I’ve mentioned before, this kind of activity is not going to help a child learn their facts, but they can definitely help the child to learn to recall their facts quickly, which is an important skill when progressing to higher Mathematics.

Unlike other similarly themed apps (e.g. MathBlaster HyperBlast), one does not need a lot of gaming skill to play Arithmetic Invaders.  The controls are very simple so the child can concentrate more on the real task:  defending the Solar System.  Sorry. I mean practising their Mathematics skills.  Children need to calculate the sums shown on the alien spacecraft and then shooting the one that matches the number on their laser gun.  They move the gun by tapping the right or left buttons.  As they progress through the levels, children collect space pilot insignia as a reward. You can set the length of the game to 2, 3 or 5 minutes. Content covered at each level is clearly stated, although you can’t pick levels at random but must unlock each in sequence.  Unlocked levels can be revisited.

MathBlaster Hyperblast

MathBlaster Hyperblast is a drill and practice app and covers addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. It is an arcade-style game where you tilt the device to progress through a spacey-looking tunnel, shooting various targets to earn points and avoiding obstacles.  You can select from three levels of difficulty for the arcade part of the game.  The Math drill and practice part occurs every so often when your path through the tunnel is blocked up by a  multi-armed robot.   The robot asks a series of Math questions and the answer is selected by tapping on one of the numbers in his hands. You can customise the App in terms of Math ability, however the highest level of Mathematics required would still be in the junior primary level, for example addition questions only go up to 24.  You can also select from three levels of difficulty for the arcade part of the game.

Math (Grade K)

This is a very basic drill and practice where a question pops up and you answer it.  Correct answers and incorrect answers get the same feedback, kids don’t get a chance to try again, and there are no visual prompts to help them get the right answer.  The only real plus is that you can set the initial level.  Based on the free part of the App (addition), I think the developers are kidding themselves that anyone would pay to unlock the subtraction and comparison sections (99 cents each).

Times Table Cloud Click Game

Times Table Cloud Click Game looks exactly as its name suggests.  It is a drill and practice game for multiplication tables. Tables can be selected from 2 to 12, or mixed questions for an extra challenge. The 12 questions for each table are asked in random order, and progress through the table is timed.  Select the answers by tapping on the cloud with the correct answer.  The grey clouds are placed in random order and  become white once their answer has been correctly selected.  Correct responses move you on to the next question, and incorrect answers result in lightning and thunder and another chance to answer.  Upon completion of the table, children receive a prize monster, which is a cute graphic.

Evaluating Apps: Maths Drill and Practice

Also known as drill and skill, drill and practice games don’t usually help children learn their basic facts, but they can help speed up recall and so can serve a purpose in reinforcing what the child already knows.  The main aim is to help children recall basic facts quickly and accurately.  They are good Homework Apps and can act as a reward.

There are hundreds (at least!) of this type of App, in the next few posts I’ll highlight some good and not-so-good ones.  Seeing as I can’t possibly cover all of them, here are the kinds of things I look at when evaluating drill and practice apps.