I’m delighted to be able to share with you a potential new resource for use either in your classroom or by your parents at home. I’m not sure if you have seen the board game PLYT but it was specifically designed to allow all ages (4+) and abilities to play together, for all players to be challenged and yet everyone to have the same chance of winning. It has been proven to improve maths (both in a family environment and most recently in a classroom) and boost children’s confidence as they gain a much deeper understanding of numbers – and children love playing it.
PLYT is about being your best not the best at maths, so it gives less able mathematicians confidence and helps create a “can do” attitude. It’s perfect for use across the entire school Yr1-6, for mixed ability classes and also for families to improve parental engagement. A few PLYT highlights below:
- PLYT improved the maths of a Yr5 class in Warrington by an average 19%, playing just 1 hour per week (on a Friday afternoon!) for 5 weeks. Importantly 100% of the children said that they felt more confident with numbers from playing PLYT – see details here
- PLYT has been proven to improve maths in a family environment : independent researchers – Ask your staff – proved that playing at least once a week for just 6 weeks improved the maths of 7-13 year olds by 30% and adults by 22%. Read more here
- PLYT has been endorsed by National Numeracy (and is recommended as one of the best games on their family maths toolkit) and also by leading maths consultants
- PLYT is easy to play and yet is incredibly flexible – it can cover much of the KS1/2 curriculum and increases confidence with numbers
- PLYT is already used in many schools and they’ve had great feedback from teachers
- Most importantly children love playing PLYT and don’t realise they are doing maths – it’s maths by stealth!
The standard price for a single copy of the game is £24.67 delivered – purchased via the website or Amazon but they also offer discounts for schools:-
- 25% discount on a case of 6 games – ie 6 games for £109.95 (incl VAT & delivery). This equates to £18.33 (or £15.27 +VAT) per game
- Teacher PLYT training course (to ensure that all teachers know how to use the game for their individual class and get the most from the resource). Courses start at £200 +VAT and include a case of 6 games
- Once a case is purchased, they provide a unique 10% school discount off a single game for any of your parents – playing at home can really reinforce the learning at school and parents often don’t know how to help their children with maths at home. Playing a fun family game is a great way to help them especially one where their whole family can play together.
There is more information for schools on their website here but the Chief Plyter is Lisa McCartney and she’d be happy to help with any questions you may have about the game. Please don’t hesitate to contact her via email lisa.mccartney@plyt.co.uk or on 07956 352926 for more information. It really does work – I have a copy that I play with my own children – even though they are 6 school years apart.
Kind regards,
Lisa Bradshaw
Director of the St Helens TSA and National Maths Hub NW3
07446463250