SMMARTideas

SMMART MATH:

SUCKING SPOOKS

You'll need:
Straws
Bat cut outs
Pumpkin cut outs
Two bowls
(*Optional: Karo syrup and red food coloring)

PREP:
-First you'll need to cut out a few small bat and pumpkin shapes from colored paper.  Make sure the shapes are small enough that you can pick them up with the end of  a straw as you suck through the other end.  Write a number on each cut out.  For smaller children, you'll want to use simple numbers and for older children, you can use more complex numbers.

-Now drip a drop or two of red food coloring into a small amount of Karo Syrup and stir until the color is ubiquitous.  Drizzle a little of the "bloody" syrup onto the rim and sides of your bowls.

GAME:
-Give each player a straw and lay a bowl in front of him.
-On the count of "Crows feet, Broomsticks and Warlocks...GO!", each player will suck on their straw and try to pick up the bat and pumpkin cut outs with the other end of their straw.  They'll drop the cut out into the bowl.
-Players continue to pick up all the cut outs until they are gone.  Then, each player dumps out his own bowl of cut outs and looks at the numbers on them.
-As quickly as they can, players will add up all of the numbers on the bats and subtract away the numbers on the pumpkin cut outs.  When a player has figured out the final answer, they yell the number out loud.  After a quick check to make sure their math is correct, that player is the winner. 

Of course, this could be a lot of fun for older children if it was MULTIPLY the numbers on the bats and DIVIDE the numbers on the pumpkins.  Younger children can sequence the numbers in 1,2,3 order or sort similar numbers into groups. This game adapted from (http://familyfun.go.com/halloween/halloween-games/)