Did you know that watching football with your child can be an opportunity to practice math, geography, and writing skills? Watching sports on TV was a tradition in both my and my husband’s childhood that we continue with our own children. We take the opportunity to use sports as a way to engage our children in practicing some basic skills and as a way for them to learn new skills. Here are some examples:

Practice math skills: As you see the score changing, use it as a way to compare the teams’ scores and discuss which is higher, calculate the difference between the scores, and even practice multiplication and division.

Here is a short video about using sports to help your child’s math skills.

Learn geography: As different teams are competing, compare where each team is located on a map. Discuss if the teams are north, south, east, or west of each other as well as from where you live. Practice matching cities to states and ask your child to tell you or to write the abbreviation for each state.

• Here is a sample map to reference.
• Here is a free sample lesson about the National Football League from Evan-Moor’s Daily Geography Practice, grade 5.

Practice technology literacy skills: Ask your child to research the following information about a team’s state: the state flag, the state bird, the state flower, and a famous person from that state.

You can keep this information in your children’s own sports journal, where they can look back on the season to see all that they’ve learned. A small bound notebook is perfect for this.

For football-themed educational activities for the classroom or home, see:

What am I? A Football: a “clues to comprehension” activity ($1.99, TeachersPayTeachers)

Football player drawing and writing activity  ($1.99, TeachersPayTeachers)

For more basic skills practice at home, check out Evan-Moor’s Skill Sharpeners for grades PreK–6:

Skill Sharpeners: Math

Skill Sharpeners: Reading

Skill Sharpeners: Spell & Write

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Contributing Writer

Trisha Thomas is the mother of two and serves on the board of directors at a co-op preschool. She has also been a marketer of educational materials for grades PreK–8 for more than 15 years.