ABSTRACT VIEW
GAMES IN MATH
P. Vondráková, P. Beremlijski
VSB-Technical University of Ostrava (CZECH REPUBLIC)
The contribution aims to present interactive mathematical games developed with the support of the projects Math Exercises for You 1, 2, and 3. These projects (2016 – 2025), funded by ERASMUS+, have focused on enhancing secondary school students' mathematical skills while improving their English and Spanish proficiency. The primary outcome of these projects is the portal https://math4u.vsb.cz/, which offers a variety of resources for practicing secondary school mathematics. All materials are available in five languages: English, Czech, Polish, Slovak, and Spanish.

Between 2016 and 2019, we developed 150 games in PDF format, designed for use with an interactive whiteboard or a computer with Adobe Reader. These games are categorized into Table-Selection Games and Matching Games.

Starting in 2023, we are developing a new web app, TrainingGames4U, where students will be able to practice secondary school math with 300 HTML games. This app and its games are available on computers, tablets and smartphones. Students can practice using the original Slot Machine, Find All Game or Matching Game.

A Slot Machine Game is a mathematical version of a slot machine with three reels. The object of the game is to match the triples correctly. The Find All Game aims to correctly select all objects with the given property on the page. The game consists of one to three pages. The Matching Game aims to pair given questions with offered answers correctly. The player marks a question and then selects an answer. Some matching games are set up to display the questions or answers in a scrolling block. Others have both questions and answers spread out on the board. When the correct pair is found, it then disappears from the board.

Each game has its own system of counting penalty points in case a player marks the wrong answer option. At the end of each game, the player gets an overview of their score and rating in the form of a funny comment or a picture.

On the created platform, students and teachers can find a large number of attractive, interactive training games to practice basic mathematical skills systematically. The games can be used by students for home practice as well as for collaborative work in the classroom. For students, games are a welcome change from the stereotype of the lesson. They motivate and activate students and remove boredom from the classroom. Games give every student the opportunity to practice systematically in a fun way, to reinforce basic skills, to remove the fear of mathematics and to experience success and joy. In the long term, they stimulate students' interest in learning and school in general and lead to improved student performance.

Finally, the new app and all games are available in five languages. The ability to switch languages while practicing is also a great benefit for learning mathematical terminology.

Keywords: Mathematics, multilingualism, interactive games, PDF.

Event: INTED2025
Session: Emerging Technologies in Education
Session time: Tuesday, 4th of March from 08:30 to 13:45
Session type: POSTER