Check the Fridge, by Melon Rind, is technically an addition game. The goal is to make sets of three vegetable cards that add to 25 while avoiding the three stinky cheese cards. However, kids figure out pretty quickly that any set of three cards of the same vegetable with different numbers will always equal 25!
The fun of the game comes in the bluffing. The game is a cross between Old Maid and Go Fish. On your turn, you ask the other players for a vegetable of your choice. The game includes cauliflower, eggplant, carrots, peas, and radishes. All other players hold out cards face down. If they have any cards of the vegetable you asked for they have to offer all of them. However, if they don’t have that vegetable they can bluff and hold out other cards. (This is how you get rid of stinky cheese.) You choose which player’s cards you want to accept. Whenever you can make a set of three cards that equal 25 you put them in front of you face up.
The game ends when all cards are in sets and only stinky cheese is left. Players score a point for each set and must subtract points for every stinky cheese card they have.
Students love to play Check the Fridge and it is fun for a small group. You need at least three players and four -six is better. While it is not a favorite of mine for math instruction because the math aspect is easily overlooked, it can be used by having each child explain the addition strategy used for each set. For fun and quick family play with a little more educational value than a typical card game it is a good one. It is easy to learn and takes only about 15 minutes to play.
For my complete list of math card and board games click HERE