Alex Morgan

Cartoon children in a tug of war, with the title Grades 4 and 5

Teaching

Maths Tug of War for Grades 4 and 5: Harder Facts and Strategy

Use tug of war to keep multiplication and division facts sharp while pupils tackle larger calculations.

Cartoon children in a tug of war, with the title Grades 2 and 3

Teaching

Maths Tug of War for Grades 2 and 3: Settings and Lesson Ideas

Practical settings and short routines for addition and subtraction within 20 and early times tables.

Cartoon children in a tug of war, with the title Kindergarten, grade 1

Teaching

Maths Tug of War for Kindergarten and Grade 1: Getting Started

How to adapt tug of war for the youngest learners, including settings, adult support and when to use the no-screen version.

Cartoon children in a tug of war, with the title Tournament brackets

Teaching

Tournament Brackets for Maths Tug of War: Whole-Class Formats

Three tournament formats for a class, including one where no team is knocked out early.

Cartoon children in a tug of war, with the title Class competition

Teaching

How to Run a Maths Tug of War Competition in the Classroom

A clear plan for a whole-class competition: teams, turns, timing, what the rest of the class does, and how to finish.

Cartoon children in a tug of war, with the title Times tables check

Teaching

Multiplication Tables Check: A Tug of War Practice Routine for Year 4

A short weekly routine that uses tug of war to build times-table recall for Year 4 pupils in England, alongside practice that matches the check.

Cartoon children in a tug of war, with the title Calm timed practice

Teaching

Timed Maths Games and Anxiety: How to Keep Practice Safe

Whether timed practice causes anxiety is unresolved. These practical changes lower the pressure for children who find speed hard.

Cartoon children in a tug of war, with the title What research says

Teaching

Does Competitive Maths Help Children Learn? What the Research Says

Research supports brief timed practice once learners are accurate, and it favours cooperation over head-to-head rivalry. Here is what that means for tug of war.

Cartoon children in a tug of war, with the title Dice tug of war

Teaching

Dice Tug of War: A No-Tech Maths Version

No screen? Play maths tug of war with paper, two dice and a counter.

Cartoon children in a tug of war, with the title How to play

Teaching

How to Play Maths Tug of War

The complete rules, controls and settings for maths tug of war, explained in a few minutes.