Different Courts:

Here are some other courts to play on, along with the starting positions for each player. The fox always moves first. (The hare is brown, and the fox is gray.)

Counting Practice:

The very youngest hares will benefit just from counting to 10 as they hop! Forgo the court all together, and just let them try to evade you for 10 hops. (So, in addition to counting practice, this is really just a hopping contest!)

Strategy:

The fun of Fox and Hare is in figuring out how to win. Once you know, the game is much more straightforward. So be sure not to read ahead until you've played several times, maybe on many different courts, and given you and your child a chance to figure the game out on your own.

So, how can the fox always catch the hare? Grab some more sidewalk chalk and color alternating dots a different color.

Now play again on this color-coded court. As you play, ask, "What do you notice about every move?" With the colors on the game, it's easy to notice that, wherever you move (almost), you go from orange to blue or else go from blue to orange. So, generally, you always switch colors. Help your child notice, too, that when the hare is on orange, the fox is generally only able to move to blue, but when the hare is on blue, the fox is generally only able to move to orange. Remember, it's better to ask questions than to give answers. Let your math beast notice these patterns on their own by asking leading questions and being patient.

So, is it always true that you change colors on every move? No! There is one spot on the board (the diagonal in the middle) that allows you to move from blue to blue. For the fox to win, they must make this move to change their color, which will allow them to eventually corner and catch the hare. That's the trick of the game! Remember, don't give it away. Help your child discover by playing.

Can you find the special "trick" moves on the other courts, which connect two dots of the same color? Some courts have more than one. On some courts, the fox can always win by making the right moves. On others, the hare can always win by making the right moves. Experiment, play, and see what you can discover. Have fun!

Drawing the Grid:

Drawing the grids can itself be a good learning opportunity, and a chance to practice spatial reasoning. Ask questions like "How many lines do you think we'll need to draw to split this square into 3 rows?" or "How many little squares will there be when we've drawn all the lines?"