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Factors Cover Up

The Ministry is migrating nzmaths content to Tāhurangi.           
Relevant and up-to-date teaching resources are being moved to Tāhūrangi (tahurangi.education.govt.nz). 
When all identified resources have been successfully moved, this website will close. We expect this to be in June 2024. 
e-ako maths, e-ako Pāngarau, and e-ako PLD 360 will continue to be available. 

For more information visit https://tahurangi.education.govt.nz/updates-to-nzmaths

Purpose:

You can help your child to identify factors of numbers.

What you need:

  • Factors Game boards (PDF, 26 KB). You can print these or make your own.
  • Pack of playing cards - take out the aces and picture cards.
  • 8 buttons/counters for each player.

What to do:

2-4 players.
Shuffle the playing cards and place in a pile face down. Give a game board to each player. 
The first player turns over a playing card. If the playing card number is a factor of any numbers on your game board, you can cover those numbers with a counter. Return the playing card to the bottom of the pile. For example: For playing card 8. You can cover 8, 16, 24, 32 etc
The next player has a turn. The winner is the first person to cover all the numbers on their game board.

What to expect your child to do:

  • Identify factors of numbers.
  • Use strategies such as multiplication and division facts, and divisibility rules. 
  • 5 can be a factor of numbers ending in 0 or 5.
  • 2 can be a factor of even numbers
  • 3 is a factor of numbers whose digits add to be a multiple of 3 (e.g. 42: 4 + 2 = 6, 6 is a multiple of 3, therefore so is 42)

Variation:

  • Swap game boards to play again.
  • Play this game using your home languages.
  • Make up more game boards.

He Kupu Māori:

papa tau
number board
tauwehe
factor
porotiti
counter

He Whakawhitinga Kōrero:

  • Riwhiriwhia ngā kāri, ka whakaputu ai ko ngā mata ki raro. (Shuffle the cards and place them in a pile face down.)
  • Tangohia tētahi kāri. Āta tirohia tō papa tau. Mēnā he tauwehe tō kāri o tētahi o ngā tau i tō papa, uhia taua tau ki te porotiti. (Look carefully at your number board. If your card is a factor of a number on your board, cover that number with a counter.)
  • Whakahokia tō kāri ki raro o te putunga kāri. (Return your card to the bottom of the pile.)
  • Kei ahau ināianei. (Its my turn now.)
  • Māu e tīmata. (You can start.)
  • He tauwehe te whā nō te tekau mā rua. (4 is a factor of 12.)
  • Ko te tangata tuatahi ki te uhi i ngā tau katoa i tōna papa, ko ia te toa. (The first person to cover all of the numbers on their board is the winner.)

Download a file of this activity:

PDF (223KB)