WO1999038584A1 - Mathematical boardgame - Google Patents

Abstract

This is a mathematical boardgame, the board consists of one hundred and forty four spaces which are numbered. Players move horizontally from left to right, right to left and so on through to the nominated Finish Award. Players move by use of a spinner which then indicates one of four mathematical formats one plays. This could be Subtraction, Multiplication, Addition or Division, also the player to commence the game is indicated by the spinner. Players move by means of answering a mathematical sum, which is given a value by an Answer Value Chart, which converts the sum of the problem to a given value. The player moves that number of spaces and receives from the Bank that amount of money. Because of the special Answer Value Charts, players from six years old to adults can be on equal levels. The board, spinner, cards, name of the game, money, symbols, all these inter-connect. The winner is the player with the highest amount of money at the end of the game.

Description

Mathematical Boardgame

The following is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me:

This is a mathematical boardgame and the object of the game is to finish the game with the highest amount of money, to attempt to work out every answer, even if it means working them out on a scrap pad, on ones' fingers, or mentally and to be the first player to receive the designated monetary award for the chosen finish point.

The Winner is the player with the highest amount of money at the end of the game.

To set up the game, lay the board out flat for play, shuffle all cards and place them in their correct places, put money in the correct money bays, shake up the questions in the respective calico bags, that is, Sub-Junior questions in Sub-Junior bags, Junior questions in Junior bags and Senior questions in Senior bags and make sure the remaining three empty question bags are handy. Set out the three, Answer Value Charts, put out the Spinner and each player places their Award Boards in front of them. Players then choose their Playing piece and then every player starts with two hundred dollars distributed in the following notes: five - one dollar note, three - five dollar notes, one - ten dollar note, one - twenty dollar note, one - fifty dollar note and one - one hundred dollar note. Players may allocate a Banker or use the spinner to allocate a Banker, that is the Banker will be the player the point of the arrow indicates. That player then spins again and this spin will nominate the Game of Play, that is whether the game will be one of Subtraction, Multiplication, Addition or Division. Play may commence once players nominate a Finish Point, that is any Award Space from the Second through to the Twelfth Award, depending on the length of time they wish to play.

The Rules of Play are as follows:- The allocated Banker or the Banker indicated by the Spinner, has spun the arrow by flicking 2 it with their finger, the arrow spins in the middle of a circular board, the board is divided into sixteen equal segments, these are marked as four lots of four, $.M.A.D. this indicates the Game of Play as the $. symbol means play will be Subtraction, M. means Multiplication, A. Addition and D. stands for Division. In the case of Sub-Juniors, they only ever play Addition or Subtraction, so their Game of Play is also indicated by the arrow but they follow the Blue Addition or Blue Subtraction symbols which are marked half-way down each of the sixteen segments. Now, by this spin, Game of Play has been indicated by the Arrow-head and this spin also indicates the player who is to commence play, that will be the player indicated by the point of the arrow. Every player must be sure of the division they are playing in by this point.

Divisions are recommended, but of course this may vary due to individual capabilities, keeping in mind the whole idea of the game is to enjoy play and not be struggling mentally with figures beyond ones' capabilities so in reality the division one is in does not have to be set by the recommended divisions that follow. Your knowledge of your own capabilities should be your guide here. Adults who are playing with their younger children may be their best guides as to which division they should be playing in. Note, a five year old may be quite capable of playing in the Sub-Junior division with its' Dot System. Sub-Junior:- Six to eight year olds, scholastically, grade one to grade three. Junior:- Eight to eleven year olds, scholastically, grade three to grade six. Senior:- Eleven year olds to adults, scholastically, grade six through to and including adults. Each division has a slight overlap allowing for differing capabilities. The player to commence play has been indicated by the Arrow-head so that the player now takes one question card out of the appropriate question bag and answers the earlier indicated Game of Play question. Once the player has worked out the answer, which is checked by the player on their left, from the Answer 3 Booklet, the player then looks up that answer on the appropriate Answer Value Chart. The player then collects that amount of money and then moves that number of spaces, the first space on the board being Number One, also marked Start. After the first player has finished all indicated play, the player to the left takes a question out of the appropriate question bag and so on.

How to finish the Game, End of Play:- The first player to land on the earlier nominated Finish Point, and this may take a player past the required number of spaces, that does not matter, that player is regarded as the first to reach the Finish Point and is the only player entitled to the appropriate Award Money for the number of that Award Space, plus the Bonus for finishing first, which is Fifty Dollars for the First Award through to the Sixth Award, and One Hundred Dollars for the Seventh through to the Twelfth Award. The player from that point on, while waiting for all the other players to reach the Finish Point, every time it is their turn, they may take a question card out of their bag and answer the question and receive the amount of money indicated by the Answer Value Chart, the player does not move any spaces though, this is to continue until all players have reached the Finish Point. Each player does this until the last player reaches the Finish Point. Now every player can tally up all their money, and the player with the highest amount is the Winner of the Game. In the case of a tie, the player with the most awards on their Award Board is declared the Winner.

Board, Booklets, Charts, Pieces, Marked Spaces, Awards, Cards:-

The Board:- Is shown in Fig. I . A player moves horizontally left to right, right to left, left to right, and so on along a flat board, which has twelve squares to each twelve rows, 144 squares in all. Each square numbered I through to 144. Some squares indicate certain moves and directions as contained in the Rules of the Game Booklet.

Rules of the Game Booklet:- This contains all the rules that govern the playing of the game, including all that is needed 4 to be known about all the different components of the game as well as a Miscellaneous

Section.

The Answer Key Booklet:- This is given to the player on the left of the person who is indicated to move first. The Answer Key Booklet then gets passed around to the player on the left of the person whose turn it is. It is the responsibility of this person to check the answer given. The Booklet contains every answer that is on every question card and is placed under the number which is found at the bottom of every question card. This is known as the Question Card Number. It is of course set out in three sections:- Sub-Junior, Junior and Senior. Of course if it is agreeable to all players that the eldest and most capable player be the judge of all answers that are given, that will suffice, otherwise, if in doubt use the Answer Key.

Answer Value Charts:- As shown in Fig. 2. There are three Answer Value Charts. A Sub-Junior Chart, Junior and Senior Answer Value Charts. Once a player has worked out their given sum, the number of the answer is looked up on their appropriate Answer Value Chart, and that corresponding number is the amount of money received from the Bank and is also the number of spaces moved.

The Spinner:- As seen in Rg. 3. This is made of strong cardboard and is circular with a Diameter of twenty-four centimetres. A movable arrow, eight centimetres long, is attached to the centre of the circle. It is one centimetre wide and the arrow-head is at it's widest part, two-and-a-half centimetres wide and tapers to form a point. It is a red arrow with a blue question mark on the arrow-head. The circle is white with black divisions to form sixteen equal segments, these are marked as four lots of four, $.M.A.D. This indicates the Game of Play as the $ dollar symbol means play will be Subtraction, M. means Multiplication, A., Addition and the D. stands for Division. In the case of Sub-Juniors, they only ever play Addition or Subtraction, so their Game of Play is also indicated by the arrow but they follow the blue addition or blue subtraction symbols which are marked half-way down each of the sixteen segments. 5 The Question Bags:- As seen in Fig. 4. These are drawstring bags made of a strong calico.

They are fourteen centimetres deep and twelve centimetres wide when made. The drawstring may be at the top of the bag or four centimetres from the top of the bags. The

Question Section is printed on each bag, that is Sub-Junior, Junior and Senior and a blue question mark is printed on each bag.

The Award Ribbons:- As seen in actual size in Fig. 5. These are made of strong cardboard. There are eight of each twelve awards, number one through to number twelve. In all, there are a total of ninety-six Award Ribbons. Each of the twelve awards are a different colour.

The Playing Pieces:- Altogether there are eight Playing Pieces, all a different colour, but all the same design, shape and size. They have a circular base with a diameter of two centimetres and they are four centimetres high. These are composed of plastic. They are as seen in Fig. 6.

$. M. A. D. Spaces:- Upon landing on a $.M.A.D. Space, a player picks up a $.M.A.D. card, and follows the instructions thereon. The player then places the card face-upwards on the bottom of the $.M.A.D. stack of cards. As seen in Fig. 7.

Question Spaces:- Are marked with a blue question mark. When a player lands on this space they must spin the Spinner, then take one Question Card from their appropriate question bag and do the sum that is indicated by the arrow-head, that is, if they were to spin and land on a $ symbol, they must do the subtraction sum that is on the Question Card they just drew out of the bag and so on. Sub-Juniors follow the blue indication they spin, which would either be a subtraction or an addition sum. Every player receives ten dollars for answering correctly, but note well they do not move at all. As seen in Fig. 8.

In The Money Spaces:- As seen in Fig. 9. These are indicated by a large black dollar sign. When a player lands on this space, they pick up an In The Money Card marked with a black dollar sign and 6 they follow the instructions, then they place the card face upwards, on the bottom of the correct stack of cards.

In The Red Spaces:- As seen in Fig. 10. These are indicated by a red dollar sign. The same applies as for the In The Money Spaces, they pick up an In The Red Card and follow instructions.

Award Spaces:- As seen in Fig. 1 1. Upon landing on an Award Space, a player takes a question card from the correct bag and once all questions are answered correctly, the player receives the amount of money showing on that Award Space. They do not move. The player also receives their own matching Award to place on the Award Board in front of them. Of course at the nominated Finish Award Space, this only applies to the first player to reach that Award Space.

Miscellaneous:- A variable of the game can by played with a generic die which is six- sided with a number on each side, these numbers being one to six. Once a player has taken a Question Card, worked out the answer, he adds the Answer Value from the chart to the throw of the die. this is the number of spaces they move and the amount of money they receive from the bank. This of course applies to each player.

Another variable of the game is for players who are very competent and they may decide to set a time limit of their choice for answering. They may only allow answers to be worked out mentally, and may not allow a move if the answer was incorrect. As the designer of this game, I don't encourage this form of play if it discourages any players or on the other hand the enjoyment of the game is diminished in any way because of this form of play.

Two or more players may be on the same space at any given time and are not penalised in any way. Each player does what that space indicates as they land there. 7 A player must have finished all indicated moves before the next player can take their turn.

For every space a player moves forward, they receive one dollar.

When a player moves backwards, they do not receive any money but upon their turn, they move forward with normal play, receiving money, picking up cards etc. Note well, but if the player retracing spaces lands on an Award Space, they may substitute their turn to answer the four or two questions, only if they do not already have that Award on their Award Board.

If two players finish in a tie, the winner is the player who has the most Awards on their Award Board.

A player may be nominated to be the banker, or the spinner may be used to see who will have this position. The banker then spins to see what the Game of Play will be and this spin wil also indicate which player is to move first.

The game may be played by any number of players, no less than two no more than eight. Six year olds to adults is the recommended age of players, but if a child, say of five, is capable of playing the Sub-Junior Dot System, that is certainly allowable. If a child can manage a higher level than his recommended age, that also is quite acceptable.

Black is used for Seniors, red for Juniors and blue for Sub-Juniors.

All players are on an equal value system because of the Answer Value Charts, but of course luck of the draw plays a large part in the game.

The board consists of a hundred and forty-four squares numbered I to 144. A player moves from left to right on the first row, right to left on the second row, then left to right on the third row and so on up to the last and twelfth row on which a player moves right to left or playing stops at the nominated Finish Award Space. 8 It is most important to mention that all players may take their time answering, using whatever method they find easiest, that is, working them out mentally, on a scrap pad or by using their fingers. The aim is not to discourage children from playing the game, and to make it as enjoyable as possible. Everyone must be given however long it takes to deduce the correct answer.

When answering most multiplication and division cards they do have the answers on the card, though it cannot be emphasised enough, that learning by repetition rather than becoming discouraged, is the aim of the game.

A player may only land on an Award Space not including the nominated Finish Point, by correct die throw. A player does not receive Awards nor Award Money because they passed an Award Space during their turn. Note, on the Finish Point, this does not apply to the first person, they receive all Awards due to them and the following players stop there no matter what die number they throw.

As each Question Card is used, it goes into the empty Question Bag, the correlating one, and when the bag is empty, players then use the recently filled one. This is important, it allows for variety in the game and the chance to learn as much as possible.

Components of the Game:- One Playing Board, as in Fig. I . An Answer Value Chart, as in Fig. 2. The Answer Key Booklet, and The Rules of the Game Booklet, A Spinner, as in Fig. 3. The Question Bags, as in Fig. 4. The Award Ribbons, as in Fig. 5. The Playing Pieces, as in Fig. 6. $.M.A.D. Cards as In Fig. 7. The Question Cards, as in Fig. 8. The In The Money Cards, as in Fig. 9. The In The Red Cards, as in Fig. 10. One Generic Die, Award Boards, as in Fig. 1 1. Money:- Sixty- one dollar notes, Sixty- five dollar notes, Sixty- ten dollar notes, Sixty- twenty dollar notes, Thirty- one hundred dollar notes and Thirty- five hundred dollar notes, as in Fig. 12. 9 Footnote:- This boardgame is designed to be educational and aid in gaining mathematical skills, particularly multiplication, through a unique way of moving. It is designed to revise these skills whilst at the same time using many different aspects to keep the player busy, and his mind off the mathematical aspect of the game. The emphasis is on fun and being busy and one must remember that chance plays the largest part in the game. Because most members of the family can join in, that is a big bonus. Whilst one is learning and having fun, mathematical skills are being learnt. Because of the design of the Answer Value Charts all age groups can play together yet still be on an equal level. Another important fact not to be forgotten is that every player is given the chance to achieve the correct answer, enabling the player to feel positive, and gain confidence in their mathematical prowess.

Claims

10 The claims defining the invention are as follows:

1. A mathematical boardgame which is unique in that, for a player to move on this board containing various symbols, one move depends on three to four processes and objects which, when put together, makes for a very different form of play, and to start these in motion a spinner is spun, and from this spin, the player to move first is indicated, also there are four different formats that the game can be played in, therefore the name $.M.A.D., and the spinner indicates which of these four formats will be played, then the player takes a question card from the appropriate question bag, this is a mathematical problem that the player has to work out, the answer to which, in itself, still does not tell the player how many spaces to move on the board but once they have solved the problem, that answer, which is a number, is given a value from special answer value charts, this then enables them to know how many spaces to move, and also how much money they are to collect from the bank each time they have their turn.

2. A mathematical boardgame wherein the board, a device of claim I , consists of one hundred and forty-four squares. The players move from left to right, right to left, left to right and so on, along twelve horizontal rows, with twelve spaces in each row. Most of these spaces contain symbols which affect their play, as they have to pick up various cards that direct them to receive or lose money, move forwards or backwards on the board, or pick up cards that require them to work out mathematical problems. These directions affect their game.

3. A mathematical boardgame wherein the spinner, a device of claim I , enables the game to be played in four different formats. These are subtraction, multiplication, addition and division, therefore the name of the game, $.MAD.

4. A mathematical boardgame wherein the answer value charts, devices of claim I , enable six year olds through to adults to play a mathematical boardgame together, yet still be on equal terms. I I

The claims cont'd:

5. A mathematical boardgame wherein the question cards, the board, the spinner, the answer value charts, the marked spaces, the symbols, the money, the name of the game, all devices of claim I to 4, ail interconnect and compliment one another.

6. A mathematical boardgame substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.