Activity
Guesstimation Game
Few kids would say no to a pocketful of cash (even if it's fake!). Gather a gaggle of friends from the neighborhood and challenge them to a game of Guess-timation.
You'll need to do a little prep work first. Before the game begins, take a trip to your local grocery store and buy fifteen common items: a bag of carrots, a carton of juice, a tube of toothpaste, a can of shaving cream, and similar things kids might have in the house on a regular basis. Be sure to keep the receipt—you'll need the prices!
What You Need:
- 15 common items from the grocery store
- Receipt for the 15 items
- Paper
- Pen
- 15 index cards
- Monopoly money or other pretend bills
What You Do:
- Once you get home, make a list of the items you bought on a sheet of paper (don't include the prices here). Make one sheet per child.
- Fold the index cards in half and write the name of each item and four possible prices on it (with the correct price mixed in, of course).
- Lay the loot on a long table and place each item's sign in front of it.
- Give each child a list of items and have them go through the line, marking down the prices they think are correct.
- Once they have their price guesses marked, give each one twenty dollars in Monopoly money and ask them to "shop" for what they can afford based on the prices they estimated. Whoever comes closest to spending the full $20, without going over, wins.
This game gives kids a chance to work on their estimation skills, as well as simple addition and subtraction.
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See this activity in a set:
3rd Grade Math Games Medley