Games About Division

There are two forms of division:

Sharing (partitive) – How many in each group?
Grouping (quotitive) – How many groups are there?

Young students often struggle to differentiate between these two forms of division which commonly causes confusion, making it harder to link division with multiplication.

The following division fun activities and games were designed to engage students in learning about the two forms of division and gain a deep understanding in the link between division and multiplication. The best part is that these are no-prep division activities.

We as teachers have very little time on our hands as it is. Thus, we could all use a resource that only involves us having to hit the print button and TA DA you will have yourself numerous division activities for the classroom that can be used as rotational independent activities or as a part of a guided lesson.

The following are some of the interactive division activities that this bundle includes;

Division With and Without Remainders

This is a fun hands on activity that involves students cutting out and gluing items so that they are shared equally. This activity reinforces to students that division is about making equal groups and when items can’t be shared equally, there are leftovers/remainders.

Division Bingo

Bingo is such a fun and engaging game for students of all ages! I have been using bingo in my classroom across lots of different strands and it has always been a hit! In division bingo, students roll a die and move around the board answering the division problems as they go. Once they find the answer to the division problem they put a counter over that number in the middle of the board. The first player to get four counters in a row calls BINGO!

Bingo - 3 in a Row

This game is very similar to the known game TIC TAC TOE. There are 3 game boards to play. Students choose a game to play first. Each player takes turns picking a box and solving the division problem inside the box. If both players agree that they have the correct answer, that player writes in the answer and puts a counter over the square. The first player to cover 3 squares in a row first wins. The game boards in this game include dividing numbers by 2,3,5 and 10.

Roll and Race

In this game, students take turns rolling a die and choosing the first available division fact in the row that matches the die. The first player to reach the last division fact in any row wins. This game is a fun way to build division automaticity skills.

Division Board

Division boards are a fantastic resource to use in a guided group. It is important for students to visualise how we can divide numbers. By using the strategies, repeated subtractions, equal grouping and arrays, students are able to visually see and understand how to divide numbers. I have found that after learning to use all three of these strategies, students will then choose which is the most efficient strategy for them to use when solving their own division problem. Once students have become familiar with the strategies, these division boards can be used independently. I have also used them as an assessment to inform me of which strategies I need to do more explicit teaching on.

Fact Families

This activity helps students to understand the link between multiplication and division. In this activity, there are three jigsaw pieces that fit together. It is a visual way to represent that the two bottom pieces multiplied together will equal the top long piece and the top long piece divided by one of the bottom jigsaw pieces will equal the other bottom jigsaw piece. This is also known as number bonds. It helps students create a mental picture of the relationship between a number and the parts that make it.

Roll a Rule

This activity involves dividing numbers but also recognising the number patterns. This activity can be easily differentiated to suit individual learners in your classroom. For students that are working on dividing by a certain number, give that number to them as their rule, for example, their rule is dividing by 2. If some students need to be extended, get them to roll a 10 sided die and whatever number it lands on is their rule. You can also change the number that the students’ number pattern starts at. Some students might start at a 2-digit number others might start at a 3-digit number.