What can replace math worksheets?
Replace a math worksheet with a short game that uses the same facts more times: a card game for together time, or a puzzle app for practice alone, keeping one short sheet if school expects written work. The facts matter; the paper does not.
The demo above is the make-ten rule from Number Beasts, which we make. The real game has three worlds, mirrors, splitters and a solver-checked par on all 45 stages. Below are the screens a child actually sees.
Honest limits
- It practises bonds to 10 (and 15 and 20 in Chaos Laboratory). It is not a full maths programme.
- No written working. If the teacher marks the method, keep a short sheet.
- No progress reports for parents beyond the Bond Map in arcade mode and the stars on each stage.
- iPhone only. No Android version.
Who should pick something else: if your child is fine with worksheets and just needs more of them, a free printable pack is cheaper on attention than any app.
Math games instead of worksheets, compared
| Worksheet | Card or finger game | Number Beasts | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Needs an adult | To mark it | Yes, to play | No, but better together |
| Feedback | Later | From the other player | Instant: bond, feed or bridge |
| Written working | Yes | No | No |
| Cost | Free printables exist | A deck of cards | Free, no purchases |
| Screens | None | None | Yes |
How to swap a worksheet for a game, in 3 steps
- Keep the fact, drop the format. If the sheet is bonds to 10, the game should be bonds to 10.
- Play together once. Say the result before each launch or each card: "that makes 10" or "2 left over".
- Then cap it. One stage, or one Daily Lab, and stop. Short and finished beats long and resented.
One design decision we made: the hero tools (rewind, nudge, reveal) never block progress, but any tool caps a stage at two stars, so help is always there without making three stars meaningless.
Quiz: which worksheet swap fits your child?
More parent questions
Are math games as good as worksheets?
For fact practice like bonds to 10, a game that makes a child use the same facts many times can do the job a worksheet does, and children often do more of it. For writing out methods and showing working, worksheets still have a place.
What can I use instead of addition worksheets?
Cards, dice, fingers or a puzzle. The University of Chicago's Becoming a Math Family site describes Breaking and Making 10, a finger game for ages 4 and up that needs nothing at all.
Is Number Beasts a worksheet replacement?
It replaces bonds-to-10 practice, not a curriculum. It has 45 stages, a Daily Lab, and an arcade mode with a Bond Map that tracks the bonds a child plays. It does not teach place value, subtraction methods or written working.
Does Number Beasts have ads or purchases?
No. The listing says no ads, no accounts, no tracking and no in-app purchases, and it works offline.
My child rushes worksheets and guesses. Will a game help?
A puzzle where every launch has a visible result can slow guessing down: in Number Beasts a wrong number feeds the beast instead of popping it, and the stage tells you. With aim assist off, the child has to predict the sum before launching.
Try the beasts tonight
Free, offline, no ads and nothing to buy. One stage is a few minutes.
Download free on the App Store
Updated November 2026
Related
- Number Beasts: the make-ten number bond puzzleLaunch a number, make 10, carry the rest. A turn-based number bonds puzzle for iPhone with 45 stages. No ads, no purchases, offline.
- What to do when your child still counts on fingersFinger counting is a normal stage. Pick your child's situation for the next step to try, from counting on to make-ten games, with sources.
- Best number bonds app for kids: 4 comparedA parent's guide to four iPhone and iPad number bonds apps: price, ads, sums covered, progress tracking. Three taps match one to your child.
- The make a ten strategy, explained for parentsPuzzled by make-a-ten homework? Tap through 8 + 5 in three moves, then follow a seven-night plan with a free make-ten puzzle game.