I have fond memories of our dog Phoebe taking agility classes. That’s part of why I had to mention this new app I found out about. It doesn’t hurt that Wesley thinks the app is awesome too. He loves math and is a perfect fit for it age wise.
American Kennel Club’s Public Education team has released their first app, titled AKC Math Agility. Geared toward children ages five to ten, the app combines the sport of agility with basic math equations to assist children in solidifying their math skills while having fun with dogs. With this new offering, AKC Public Education provides children, parents and teachers a mobile learning game that simultaneously educates about purebred dog breeds and the sport of purebred dogs.
About the App
AKC Math Agility features fifteen playable dog breeds, as well as 60 different breed cards to unlock. To advance in the game, players solve quick math facts, with the option of focusing on addition, subtraction, multiplication, or division. Players take twelve tours across the game’s map to compete in different agility trials across the United States, eventually ending up at the National Championship in Perry, Georgia. Tours are available in three skill levels, appealing to students of various ages and academic levels.
Find out more about the game developers and the game play details at AKC.org.
Educators in Mind
Math fact fluency is the foundation students need in order to tackle more complex concepts like fractions, percentages, ratios, decimal operations and beyond. Research shows a connection between fluency with math facts and success in higher levels of math. The faster they accurately answer a math fact, the quicker their dog goes through the agility course. Each level from Novice to Champion increases the number and difficulty of facts to solve. Students can unlock more dog breeds as they gain points and improve their scores, keeping them interested and motivated.
You can find lesson plans and classroom use examples at AKC.org.
Have you see any of the AKC dog shows on TV or in person? Have you showed any dogs yourself? What did you think of this app? Let me know in the comments.
