Turning Family Game Night into a Math filled Learning Experience!
Family Game Night can be much more beneficial to your family then you realize and could turn out being one of the best additions to your family schedule! Everyone knows that spending time together as a family and playing a few games is great for family bonding but not many people realize how educational your favorite board/card game can be as well. So many of today's most popular games, secretly have the ability to help kids with skills such as math, spelling, reading comprehension, colors, patterns, storytelling and so much more!! There's no since in spending hundreds of dollars on high-tech learning devices when you already have the learning materials your child needs to practice to enhance their brains. Games like Uno and Connect Four can almost always be found in the family game closet and are great choices to help practice numbers, colors as well as patterns!
My fiance and I try and fit in a Family Game Night every now and then with the kids and now that the girls are back in school, games packed with "brain juice" get grabbed first! Nothing's better than a good dose of educational fun!
Speaking of educational fun - I've listed a few of our favorite games below that help kids exercise their brain using math skills and enjoying every bit of it!
Other games that can be used for math practice but are not found in the list below are Yahtzee, Set, Monopoly and Battleship.
Family Game Night games that can be used for enhancing other important skills can be found in future lists that I'm currently putting together and plan on sharing with you all very soon! Check back often for new lists and game additions.
1. The Original Uno Card Game
Uno was one of my favorite games as a kid and still makes the top of my list today! It's a game that the whole family can enjoy without boredom. Played with 2-10 players - For ages 7 and up - Children get the chance to practice their strategizing and planning plus a bit of addition as well. The younger players can partner up with parents or older siblings while practicing to recognize their numbers as well as colors.
Find Origial Uno Card Game for just $5.94 at Diapers.com and Save 20%!
2. Mancala
Mancala is an addition filled game where you count out your marbles into game slots while trying to clear your side of the board of any marbles. Players also practice their problem solving while planning their next moves.
You can purchase Mancala for less than $10 at Fullfillment By Amazon
3. Candy Land
Candy Land is already an outstanding game to help with learning colors and is often played by more girls than boys - Not any more! - You can now easily transform this all time favorite board game into a Math game as well! All you have to do is make up a few math sequences to attach over-top of Candy Land's colored square playing cards. Have each player choose a card and either identify the number, say the number word or find the sum of a simple "add or subtract" math problem to move forward.
Removing the "bridges" help slow down the winning process and stretch out the learning! You can continue to use the color blocks on the cards to distinguish where to move next on the board or use the number answer found on your newly enhanced playing cards! The choice is yours!!!
(Other skills can also be added, using same idea)
Snag the Hasbro - Candy Land game for the low price of just $10.49 (plus $4.67 shipping) at Fullfillment By Amazon
4. Connect Four
Connect 4 is childhood classic that's pretty much an advanced/oversized version of Tic-Tac-Toe. Kids will have a blast playing together in this 2 player game where pattern recognition is a key point as well as planning your next move and geometric thinking. Children love playing this game together and get a kick of beating their parents as well! (Great choice for occupying the kids before supper, bedtime and such. You can also find travel versions but make sure to keep up with small parts due to them being easily lost.)
Find the Hasbro - Connect Four for just $9.70 at Fullfillment By Amazon
6. Chutes & Ladders
Chutes & Ladders helps teach your child how to count while adventuring through the many slides and ladders in this math filled family favorite!
Find Chutes & Ladders for just $8.49 at yoyo.com
8. Playing Cards
The all american game is "Go Fish" can help kids with recognizing their numbers and a bit of their colors as well.
Poker is also a good teacher for math but should be kept for older kids and must first be taught that gambling is not something to be think lightly of.
Get Aviator Playing Cards for just $1.59 from the WEBstaurant Store
9. Hisss Card Game
Hisss is a super simple card game for ages 3 and up, where players build snakes using cards that have pictures of a heads, middles, and tails. Once you complete your snake, you add up everyone's scores to see who won! Kids will be practicing basic counting skills, color and pattern recognition logic. (For 2-5 players)
The Hisss Card Game is available at Fullfillment By Amazon for $9.95
10. Sumoku
Sumoku is a math-centric game for 1-8 players (ages 9 and up) and is somewhat of a number version of Scrabble as well as a little bit like Dominoes. Play by adding to the existing layout of tiles - based on a specific mathematical goal. Along with practicing basic computational skills - players are also planning and matching. There is no speed element so young kids can take as long as they need to check their math before placing the tiles on the board.
Save 24% off of Sumoku on Amazon.com
11. Rummikub
Rummikub is a color and number matching game for 2-4 players. Each player receives 14 tiles that can be sorted by groups or runs: Set of 3 or more tiles of the same number but different color - OR - Set of at least 3 tiles with consecutive numbers but are the same color.
You can find Rummikub at Target.com for just $10.59!
What's your favorite game to play?
Could it be considered educational
or
Can you easily transform the game into a fun learning experience?
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