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Learning Resources Sum Swamp: What to Know
Set expectations honestly, because this is the pick most likely to disappoint if you buy it for the wrong reason. Every turn you roll two number dice and an operation die, perform the addition or subtraction, and move that many spaces. There is no strategy, no hidden information and no meaningful decision, the dice decide everything. What it is, genuinely, is a reason for a six-year-old to do thirty arithmetic problems in twenty minutes and enjoy it, which a worksheet cannot do. Judged as a maths tool it is very good. Judged as a game it is thin.
Learning Resources publishes it for 2 to 4 players with components listed as a 17 by 12 inch board, 4 swamp creature pieces, 2 number dice and 1 operation die. The age is stated inconsistently across its own and retail listings, appearing as both ages 5 and up and ages 5 to 7, which is a reasonable reflection of reality: a five-year-old needs the operation die explained, and most children will have moved past single-digit addition by eight.
Sourcing and listing caveats. Learning Resources' site refused our requests, so the component figures are publisher copy as carried by retailers rather than read off the manufacturer's page. And there is more than one Amazon listing for this game, we verified this ASIN's title directly, but a separate listing carries the LER5052 item code in its title, so if you are matching a school or therapist's recommendation to a specific item number, check the listing rather than assuming.
Key Listed Features
Published by Learning Resources for 2 to 4 players, drilling single-digit addition and subtraction
Contents listed as a 17 by 12 inch game board, 4 swamp creature pieces, 2 number dice and 1 operation die
Every turn requires an actual calculation before moving, roll two numbers plus an operation and solve it
Age stated inconsistently across listings as both ages 5 and up and ages 5 to 7
