David loves math, but often doing worksheet after worksheet to reinforce mathematical learning is too dull for either of us to pursue. So, when I bought MindWare’s Addition Adventures, I thought it might be a nice change.

What I didn’t expect was how much fun he would find it.

On top of each page of the book there’s a treasure map of sorts, with a star indicating the starting point. Your child answers about 20 mathematical questions, and the answers to each of those questions (plus the N-E-S-W direction beside the equation) indicates how many squares and in what direction you should move away from the last point, till you reach your final destination.

The pages start off at a grade 1 level, with addition problems that only go up to ten, and don’t advance too quickly. By the end of the book the numbers go up to 20, but slowly enough that it seems like a natural and easy progression.

We always start out by guessing where the path will lead us, and if one of us guessed right, that person ‘wins’, which turns the page into a treasure map AND a game.

Highly recommended. And I’ve already ordered Subtraction Secrets in the same series so that we can keep going once we’re finished the addition book.

Geometric design puzzles have ancient origins. The Chinese tangram, Archimedes’ puzzle and a host of others are recorded in ancient books.

And although they are old, time has not removed the shroud that makes three, four, five or more simple geometric pieces from being puzzles. They are as fascinating (and occasionally frustrating) today as they were to the ancients.

David and I have been making a few of our favorites to send to cousins and uncles for Easter (in lieu of cheesy cards).

Here is the first pattern for a simple square puzzle:

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All of the words described by the clues contain the same number of letters. When written one below the other, the first letters will spell the name of a great poet.

Clues:

1. Belonging to me
2. A river in Austria
3. Ground covered with carefully kept grass
4. To carry
5. Aroma
6. Not any

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