10 Spinner Games for ELA and Math

**This post about Math and ELA spinner games contains affiliate links.**

If your students are anything like mine, they love to play a game during their learning centers. I’ve been using some spinners to play games in my classroom and my students can’t get enough of the games! I was able to score a few spinners at the Dollar Tree that work great for my classroom. If you’re looking for spinners, these ones will be great for playing any of the games I’m sharing.

Here are 4 ELA games and 6 math spinner games that take little to no prep. My favorite part about these games is that all you need is a spinner and you have 10 activities that you’re able to pull out any time! I’ve even included some freebies in this post so you can play these games in your classroom!

1. Sight Word Board Game

What You’ll Need to Play:

Spinner
Printable Game Board
Place Markers (I use counting bears)

This is a simple board game I came up with that I can use with any word list. I type in the target words and print out the game board. Students use the spinner to determine how many spaces they will move. Students will read the word they land on. If they read correctly, they get a point, if they pass on reading the word, they do not get a point. The player with the most points at the end wins the game!

2. Create a Rhyming Word List

What You’ll Need to Play:

Spinner
Game Cards
Recording Sheet

This is a simple game to play with a small group of students. Students will take a card from the pile and spin the spinner to determine how many rhyming words they need to develop. During this game I act as the recorder and record the rhyming words students come up with. I tend to play this as a group activity so they students can work together to find rhyming words.

3. Read and Cover Word Families

What You’ll Need to Play:

Spinner
Recording Sheet
Place Markers (I use counting bears)

We’re focusing on word families in my reading groups lately, so this is a fun game to play. I print out the recording sheet and provide each student with place markers. They spin the spinner and using the key on the recording sheet, they find all of the words that fit in the word family that was spun.

4. Making Words

What You’ll Need to Play:

Spinner
Recording Sheet

This is a fun game that brings out a lot of sight words in my groups. Students spin the spinner. Whichever number it lands on is the target number for letters in the word. For example, if the number is 4, students think of 4 letter words to add to our list. During this game I work as recorder and students work together. One way to challenge students is to see if they can think of more words in the next round of the game.

5. Spin and Count

What You’ll Need to Play:

Spinner
Counting Manipulatives

This is another simple game that my students love. We spin the spinner and they count out the number of objects they landed on. This is a great game to target 1:1 correspondence and beginning counting skills in the classroom.

6. Spin to Add/Subtract

What You’ll Need to Play:

Spinner
Recording Sheet

This game has been a hit with students learning addition and subtraction skills. They spin the spinner to fill in the numbers on their recording sheet then complete the addition or subtraction problem. The unpredictability of the spinner makes this game tons of fun!

7. Spin and Write

What You’ll Need to Play:

Spinner
Recording Sheet
Pencil (or dry erase marker)

If you have students learning to write numbers, this is a great game to practice that skill. I simply print out a recording sheet and grab a spinner and we’re set to go! Students will spin the spinner, then write the number on their recording sheet. For students who still need support and guidance in writing numbers, I also have a number tracing recording sheet.

8. How Many to Make 10

What You’ll Need to Play:

Spinner
Recording Sheet
OPTIONAL: Manipulatives

A lot of my students need help with building automaticity in learning the addends that make 10. This is a fun game that we play to practice that skill. Students spin the spinner and record the number on the recording sheet. Then then complete the addition problem to make 10. Some of my students are still using manipulatives with this skill, so there’s another version with a 10 frame included.

9. Spin and Represent

What You’ll Need to Play:

Spinner
Recording Sheet
OPTIONAL: Base 10 Stamps

Want a fun base 10 game? Student will spin the spinner to fill in the number on their recording sheet. Then they will draw the base 10 cubes needed to represent the number. Want to make it extra fun? Students can use base 10 stamps to build the number!

10. Spin and Compare

What You’ll Need to Play:

Spinner
Recording Sheet or Number Cards and Signs

Comparing numbers can be fun, too! I usually like to play this game with 2 players. Each player spins to build a number. Then the students will place their numbers on the table. Students will then find the sign that compares the numbers. You can have them work together or award points to whoever was the fastest.

If you’re just playing with one student, then the recording sheet is the way to go. Students will spin to build their own numbers and record their comparisons on the sheet.

I’m going to let you in on one of my favorite secrets. Any time I call something a “game”, my students are instantly engaged. I’m all about simplicity these days and having 10 games at my fingertips with just one spinner is a great way to simplify things!