Fun to play on the board or on the computer, Connect 4 has become a staple of the family game room and this is the definitive book on the subject. It tells all about how Connect 4 came to be, offers game-enhancing strategies from a puzzle expert and provides actual examples so solvers can test themselves.
This approach to teaching basic math facts, grounded in years of research, will transform students' learning of basic facts and help them become more confident, adept, and successful at math. Mastering the basic facts for addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division is an essential goal for all students. Most educators also agree that success at higher levels of math hinges on this fundamental skill. But what's the best way to get there? Are flash cards, drills, and timed tests the answer? If so, then why do students go into the upper elementary grades (and beyond) still counting on their fingers or experiencing math anxiety? What does research say about teaching basic math facts so they will stick? In Math Fact Fluency, experts Jennifer Bay-Williams and Gina Kling provide the answers to these questions—and so much more. This book offers everything a teacher needs to teach, assess, and communicate with parents about basic math fact instruction, including The five fundamentals of fact fluency, which provide a research-based framework for effective instruction in the basic facts. Strategies students can use to find facts that are not yet committed to memory. More than 40 easy-to-make, easy-to-use games that provide engaging fact practice. More than 20 assessment tools that provide useful data on fact fluency and mastery. Suggestions and strategies for collaborating with families to help their children master the basic math facts. Math Fact Fluency is an indispensable guide for any educator who needs to teach basic math facts.
Winning at competitive games requires a results-oriented mindset that many players are simply not willing to adopt. This book walks players through the entire process: how to choose a game and learn basic proficiency, how to break through the mental barriers that hold most players back, and how to handle the issues that top players face. It also includes a complete analysis of Sun Tzu's book The Art of War and its applications to games of today. These foundational concepts apply to virtually all competitive games, and even have some application to "real life." Trade paperback. 142 pages.
Ken Binmore's previous game theory textbook, Fun and Games (D.C. Heath, 1991), carved out a significant niche in the advanced undergraduate market; it was intellectually serious and more up-to-date than its competitors, but also accessibly written. Its central thesis was that game theory allows us to understand many kinds of interactions between people, a point that Binmore amply demonstrated through a rich range of examples and applications. This replacement for the now out-of-date 1991 textbook retains the entertaining examples, but changes the organization to match how game theory courses are actually taught, making Playing for Real a more versatile text that almost all possible course designs will find easier to use, with less jumping about than before. In addition, the problem sections, already used as a reference by many teachers, have become even more clever and varied, without becoming too technical. Playing for Real will sell into advanced undergraduate courses in game theory, primarily those in economics, but also courses in the social sciences, and serve as a reference for economists.
Board games have been played throughout the world for thousands of years. Many times, in many different cultures, people have amused themselves by devising mock races, battles and hunts, played in miniature on a small surface. The rules and the level of sophistication has changed through the ages, but the general idea has remained the same. Some of the oldest games, like backgammon, chess and draughts, are still popular today. This book looks at twelve different games taken from various periods of history. Most will not be recognised by the general public, but deserve to be better known. They are pachisi, halma, agon, tâb, fanorona, nine men's morris, wari, konane, xiang qi, tablut, asalto and renju. Each game has a whole chapter to itself, which includes a history, the rules, and a section on strategy and tactics. It is the author's intention that the reader will gain appreciation and enthusiasm for these wonderful old games, and be entertained by them for years to come.
For fans of Elephant & Piggie and Frog & Toad comes an easy-to-read series about another unlikely pair: Croc and Ally. These two best friends don't always see things the same way, but there's one thing they do agree on--their friendship comes first! Croc is grumpy. Ally is happy. Croc sees a problem. Ally finds a solution. In Fun, Fun, Fun, the best friends overcome their differences as they go for a swim, shop for hats, and deal with a big bug. With three short stories, easy-to-read vocabulary, and adorable illustrations, this book is perfect for progressing readers.
Yes, you can create your own apps for Android devices—and it’s easy to do. This extraordinary book introduces you to App Inventor 2, a powerful visual tool that lets anyone build apps. Learn App Inventor basics hands-on with step-by-step instructions for building more than a dozen fun projects, including a text answering machine app, a quiz app, and an app for finding your parked car! The second half of the book features an Inventor’s Manual to help you understand the fundamentals of app building and computer science. App Inventor 2 makes an excellent textbook for beginners and experienced developers alike. Use programming blocks to build apps—like working on a puzzle Create custom multi-media quizzes and study guides Design games and other apps with 2D graphics and animation Make a custom tour of your city, school, or workplace Control a LEGO® MINDSTORMS® NXT robot with your phone Build location-aware apps by working with your phone’s sensors Explore apps that incorporate information from the Web
Mancala has been played for thousands of years. The Complete Mancala Games Book contains descriptions and clearly written rules for both the most popular two-row Mancala games and the rarer three- and four-row versions.
We live in a highly connected world with multiple self-interested agents interacting and myriad opportunities for conflict and cooperation. The goal of game theory is to understand these opportunities. This book presents a rigorous introduction to the mathematics of game theory without losing sight of the joy of the subject. This is done by focusing on theoretical highlights (e.g., at least six Nobel Prize winning results are developed from scratch) and by presenting exciting connections of game theory to other fields such as computer science (algorithmic game theory), economics (auctions and matching markets), social choice (voting theory), biology (signaling and evolutionary stability), and learning theory. Both classical topics, such as zero-sum games, and modern topics, such as sponsored search auctions, are covered. Along the way, beautiful mathematical tools used in game theory are introduced, including convexity, fixed-point theorems, and probabilistic arguments. The book is appropriate for a first course in game theory at either the undergraduate or graduate level, whether in mathematics, economics, computer science, or statistics. The importance of game-theoretic thinking transcends the academic setting—for every action we take, we must consider not only its direct effects, but also how it influences the incentives of others.