Valentine’s Day always gets students excited, so I like to use that excitement to make the math skills we’re already practicing a little more fun. These hands-on Valentine math centers use Valentine Candy Conversation Hearts or other Valentine manipulatives to practice counting, addition, patterns, and making 10. They can be easily added to your math rotations, small groups, morning work, extra practice bins, or used during your Valentine’s Day celebration.
I also like pairing hands-on learning with digital practice. After students have had the opportunity to build and solve problems with real manipulatives, the self-checking digital activities give them another engaging way to practice the same skill independently.
Plus, you can download two of the Valentine math games in this post for FREE!
“Sum” Candy Hearts
Materials Needed:
Candy hearts
Baggies (I used the smaller snack size)
Sorting mat page
“Sum” Candy Hearts page
To prepare this center, I separated a bag of candy hearts according to color. Then placed up to ten hearts of two colors in each baggie to represent addition problems (we were practicing addition to 10). For example, 5 yellow and 5 orange in a baggie, 4 purple and 3 green in another baggie, etc. If you are practicing addition to 20, you can place up to 20 hearts in each baggie.
I placed the baggies, sorting mats, and “Sum” Candy Hearts sheets at a center.
Students empty the hearts from a baggie, separate them according to color on the sorting mat, and write the addition equation on their sheet. Then they place the hearts back in the baggie, pick another baggie, and repeat the process.
Follow Up with Digital Addition Practice
After students have practiced sorting, counting, and adding real candy hearts, they can practice the same skill independently with Boom Cards.
In the interactive Boom Cards, students sort candy hearts by color, count each group, and complete the addition equation. The cards are self-checking, so students receive immediate feedback while they work.
Click here if you would like to play a sample to see the Valentine addition to 10 center in action.
See the Valentine Addition to 10 Print + Digital Activities
Candy Hearts Bump
Materials Needed:
11 candy hearts for each player (Valentine erasers, or other Valentine markers that can be stacked can also be used)
Dice
Candy Hearts Bump gameboard (free download below)
How to play:
This game is played in pairs.
Players take turns rolling 2 dice, adding the numbers, and placing their marker on the correct heart.
If an opponent’s marker is already on the heart, the player can “bump” them off and put their marker on it. If their own marker is already on the bone, they can lock that number by stacking another one of their markers on the first one (players can stack as many of their own markers on a number as needed; for example, if they get a 4 and already have 2 markers on it they can add a third or fourth or fifth, etc.). When a heart is locked, it can not be bumped off; therefore, if your opponent already has your answer blocked with 2 or more markers, you lose your turn.
The game is over when one player has played all of their markers and wins the game.
Candy Hearts Cover Up
Materials Needed:
Candy hearts or other markers
Dice
Candy Hearts Cover UP sheet (free download below)
How to play:
This game can be played in pairs or small groups.
Players take turns rolling a die, counting the dots, and placing the correct number of candy hearts on their page. If you would like to practice addition, use 2 dice and have students add the numbers together and cover the total.
To win, a player has to fill their ten frames, BUT they have to have the exact amount at the end to win the game (great practice with more or less!).
Free Valentine Math Games
Want to try these games with your students?
Download the Candy Hearts Bump and Candy Hearts Cover Up game boards for free. They’re easy, hands-on ways to practice addition, counting, number sense, and more during your Valentine math centers.
Download the free Valentine math games here.
Candy Heart Patterns
Materials Needed:
Candy hearts or paper heart cut-outs
Pattern strips
Students practice patterns by using the candy hearts (or you can also make paper heart cut-outs) to extend the pattern on the strip.
We used them to practice AB, ABB, and AAB patterns.
Making 10 with Candy Hearts
Materials Needed:
Candy hearts
Dice
Making Ten with Candy Hearts page
I usually do this math activity in small groups, but it can also be set up as a center. Give each student a pile of candy hearts, a die, and a recording sheet.
Students roll the die and place that many hearts on the ten-frame. They must figure out how many more are needed to make 10 and write the addition equation on their page.
When finished, they clear the ten-frame and begin again. They repeat the process until their page is filled (I had students that really enjoyed this activity, so they continued onto the back of the page as well).
Follow Up with Digital Making 10 Practice
Once students understand how to use the ten frame and manipulatives to determine how many more are needed to make 10, the interactive Boom Cards give them additional independent practice.
Students drag and drop love bugs to complete the ten frame and type the missing addend. The Boom Cards are self-checking, so students know right away whether they are correct.
I like that they are self-checking and collect the data for me so I can see which students may be struggling and which have mastered the standard.
Students like that they are interactive.
Click here if you would like to play a sample to see the Valentine making 10 center in action.
See the Valentine Making 10 Print + Digital Activities
Looking for the free games? Download Candy Hearts Bump & Cover Up games here.
More Valentine Math Ideas
If you’re looking for more Valentine math practice, I also have a blog post with differentiated Valentine color-by-code activities for kindergarten and first grade. They cover numbers, addition, subtraction, making 10, and number bonds, so you can easily choose the skill level that works best for each student.
They’re especially nice for morning work, math centers, early finishers, small groups, or Valentine’s Day party activities when you want something fun that still gives students meaningful math practice.
See the Valentine’s Day Color by Code Math Activities blog post
