Toys & Games Archives - Meagan Gets Real

Balance Beans Game Review

There may be affiliate links in this post. Please read my disclosure policy for more information.

I was not compensated for this review. All opinions are 100% my own. I did receive the Balance Beans game to facilitate my review but this did not influence my opinions or my review.

We are huge fans of game play in this house. My children learn better by getting hands on with a concept than any other way. When Think Fun reached out to me to let me know about their new game, Balance Beans, I was more than excited to give it a try. I have worked with Think Fun in the past and have always enjoyed the games they put out so I was sure this would be a hit. Let me tell you a bit about the game and why it should be on your Christmas or homeschool wish list this year.

Balance Beans Game Review

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Math Dice Chase Game Review

Mar 3 by Meagan Leave a Comment

There may be affiliate links in this post. Please read my disclosure policy for more information.

I was not compensated for this review. All opinions are 100% my own. I did receive Math Dice Chase to facilitate my review.

Teaching Math facts can get frustrating if you have a child with dyslexia. Rote memorization can be more of a struggle. While R has been able to master her multiplication facts using Times Tales she needed something more to help her answer her facts more quickly. When my friends at Think Fun asked me to review Math Dice Chase I knew this was just what we needed. Math Dice Chase gives a fun hands on component to learning Math facts.

What did I receive?
Math Dice Chase from Think Fun Games

How do you play Math Dice Chase?

In each Math Dice Chase game you will find 4 dice. There are two blue dice and two purple dice. This game is very similar to hot potato. The goal is to get your dice out of your hands before the other set of dice comes around.
The person left holding both pairs of dice is out.
The only way to pass the dice is to solve the Math fact.
You can use either multiplication or addition for your dice depending on the learner you have.

What did the kids think?
My two loathe Math. However, when you add a component of competition everything changes. The goal was to beat the other player and they were able to do that without a second thought. It was helpful that C could work on addition facts while R could work on multiplication.
We did make sure to review facts before playing for the first time in order to have a good time playing this game.
The kids have added this game to their game cabinet and have been able to pull it out often.

What did I think?
Math Dice Chase is a great game for working on Math Facts. It is a very simple design that could easily work well with a homeschool household, a small co-op, or a large group. You will need to purchase more than one game for a larger group though.
I really liked that the game could be customized to fit different ages instead of targeting just multiplication facts.
The dice are high quality and the bag to store them in is a nice option. These would be very simple to take with you and they are durable enough that they will last for multiple children.

Where can I buy Math Dice Chase?
Math Dice Chase is currently available on Amazon.

Find Think Fun on social media:

Facebook

Twitter

YouTube

What do you do to teach Math facts to your children? Leave me a comment.

Looking for more from Think Fun?
Check out some of the other games I have reviewed.
Code Master Game Review

Compose Yourself Game Review

Dec 2 by Meagan 1 Comment

There may be affiliate links in this post. Please read my disclosure policy for more information.

I was not compensated for this review. I did receive a game to facilitate my review. However, all opinions are 100 Percent my own and are not influenced by the game I received.

Teaching children to love music is not difficult at all. There are so many different types of music that children can learn to appreciate. When I was putting together this week of game reviews I wanted to make sure to feature a game that focused on music. I am so happy to share my Compose Yourself game review. This really is a fun way to get kids excited about music.

What did I receive?
I recently received the game Compose Yourself.

How does Compose Yourself work?

When you open the box you will see the items pictured above. The goal of this game is to build your own composition. Each card has a different arrangement of notes with a code.

Once your child has built their composition you will take the cards to the computer. Using the codes you will input the entire composition. Then your child has the option to keep it as is or to change it up. Each card can be flipped or rotated to give your child a new sound. They can also be moved to a different position in the composition. There are two different styles of music you can use which gives a great diversity to the game. Your child can choose a Marimba, Orchestra, or both.
After they have built their composition the way that they like it they can either download an mp3, print the sheet music, or save it to come back to in the future. If you have a musician in the house this would be a great way to give them ownership over what they are playing.

What did the kids think?

The kids really seemed to have a great time playing this game. They spent quite some time debating which way their composition should sound. I think they spent a good hour trying to plan out their music. Below are the songs that each child put together. To me they sound like they belong in a video game. It was really a great experience to watch the look at where the notes were placed and how that affected the sound of the composition.