by Wootang01

Educational Board Games for Kids – 2010 Review

This brief review will cover the Top 5 Board Games in Children’s Education for 2010. Each one has received at least one accolade or award from educational institutions and Board Game Associations.

Education Board Games are a standard feature in our house. We usually manage to turn any board game into a fun lesson for our kids. However, not all board games were created equal. Some are better than others.

Here, in no particular order are our reviews of five very popular educational Kids Board Games for 2010. In No particular Order:

1. The Brainbox Game Series

The Brainbox series of board or and games are of UK origin and have been a runaway success. The basic thrust of the Brainbox range is this: Players have 10 seconds to study information on one side of the card before being asked a question from the back which has been chosen by the roll of the die.

It is a social and memory recall game that is designed to foster interaction and cognitive development. Its is suitable for 8yrs and up. This has been a particularly successful educational board game for both classroom and home.

Brainbox can be used with whole families and the pace is set by the players. Subjects covered include Geography, Australian Facts, Maths, A First Pictures Brainbox for 6yrs and under, and Nature.

We recommend Brainbox as suitable for Home school environments. Brainbox doesn’t bog you down with loads of rules and strategies. It’s straight cognitive development. Brainbox takes very little preparation, the game is quick and the questions offer plenty of variety on a number of educational subjects.

2. Akumulate

Akumulate is an Australian designed educational board game for kids after the manner of Scrabble. It was designed by world renowned Educational Guru, Dr. Wood and the Mind Challenge Centre.

AKumulate helps develop numerical and spatial thinking by intersecting numbers with space. Players must master the space to control the numbers and they must do it by correct (though basic) mathematics.

This educational board game requires some patience to grasp the rules and would be suitable for 10yrs and up. It is not a fast game but a game of methodical thinking and constant add, subtract, multiply and divide.

Conscious of the difficulty of getting kids to enjoy maths, Dr. Wood’s Akumulate is attention grabbing with its strong blue and red colours. The Akumulate pieces are enjoyable to play with and are generally good quality.

The only downside to this game is that it really will only ever do one thing and, if at the end of the day, you don’t enjoy numbers, it is not likely to hold your attention. However, as a teaching tool it does work and if you love numbers, you will flourish in this educational board game.

3. Mount Kilajava

Mount Kilajava is a Fair Trade Coffee Board Game from the people of Monsoon Games in New Zealand. Though the board game itself is new and not well known, the ethos behind it is growing in popularity amongst educators who use board games with Kids. That ethos is about the promotion of Fair Trade and equitable resources.

Mt. Kilajava put the young player in the hot seat as a farmer who must deal with economics, bad weather and intelligent trade in order to prosper. As an Educational Board game for Kids it has limited use in the classroom but that limited use is not to be mistaken for no use.

Despite the fact that it is only a two player game it is very social and a good way of developing bonds between classmates or family members and understanding the nature of primary production.

Mt Kilajava makes an important point; that for farmers in the developing world growing coffee is a very precarious occupation, and slumps in world coffee prices can and do have a catastrophic effect on the lives of millions of growers who are reliant on coffee for their income.

4. Sorts for Kids

Sorts for Kids recently won the Prestigious Children’s Game of the Year. As an Educational Board Game for Kids, Sorts has been very successful in introducing the concept of “putting things in order”.

Sorts for Kids plays on the fascination of organising and categorising any one of a hundred subjects. It makes requests of Kids like,

“Sort these things by their height – from shortest to tallest: school desk, golf buggy, adult lion, shopping trolley.”

The beauty is the simplicity of the game play and the fact that the game can cater for a larger number of players. The Educational value of this Kids Board game is its development and discrimination of objects in the world around them.

Sorts helps develop discernment and levels of categorisation that will be developed throughout their education and is also a lot of fun. One really fun part of Sorts for Kids is the “Line Up”. When players pick a line-up card they must line themselves up according to all manner of interesting criteria.

5. Peoples of the Planet

Peoples of the Planet is a culture and History based Educational Board Game for Kids and comes from France. It has won two prestigious awards: The Corporate Anti-Racism Award; and the Dr Toy, Most Socially Responsible Game Award.

As a great world explorer, the players travel back in time visiting the most interesting peoples and places in History. The goal of Peoples of the Planet is to collect Exploration Cards from each of the nine time periods of History to make up their Great Book of Ages.

It’s age range is generally 10yrs and above and it can accommodate up to five players. This is a particularly useful educational Board Game for Kids in small group settings such as Home school or library groups.

These Picks for 2010 are only a very small handful of the good quality Educational Board Games fro Kids that are now available. Not all are suitable for every environment.

Whenever you are selecting Educational Board Games you need to consider, not only the age and ability of the Children you are trying to educate but also your goal.

Enjoy Your teaching and Your Learning with Board Games!

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More Board Games For Children Articles

by Wootang01

It is Fun and Easy Way to Learn With Educational Board Game!

Getting children to learn has long been a dilemma faced by today’s teachers and parents. How do you make something like the industrial revolution interesting to an eight year old? It’s hard, but have always been intrepid folks out there who try their hardest to make the act of learning fun and entertaining for children. Educational board games are one of the most effective ways of doing so, and there have been a lot of really good additions to the market over the years – board games, memory games, and puzzle games that challenge a child’s brain and give them a fun reason to learn.

These board games come in all shapes and sizes. For those looking to get a game for their child that will trigger some intellectual stimulation, it’s only a matter of choosing a topic or field to work with. School age board games are not only tailored for the skill level of your child, but the interests they might have.

For as young as children aged 1 and up, there are games that challenge them to recognize and remember different shapes, colors, and objects. By enhancing their cognitive ability through a fun memory game, you are giving them a head start on learning when they get older.

For the older children out there, the options immediately diversify. There are exciting puzzle games like Dinosaurs and Things that won’t even seem like learning to a child intrigued by the giant lizards of eons past. History has a habit of being dry and boring when taught from a text book, but a board game in which the information might sneak up on a child and be exciting is the perfect way to make them want to learn.

For the math crowd, there are many options. Fraction, multiplication, and division playing card decks are available as well as various memory games. The educational board games on the market are so varied that no matter how your child learns, whether it is visually, audibly, or hands on, there’s a game out there to help them.

Sitting down and playing a board game with your children is one of those activities that families have been doing for years, often on a set night, in a big group. It’s a great way to spend some time with your loved ones after a long, stressful week and unwind. At the same time, you can help your children develop stronger logic and problem solving skills and have fun while doing it.

There are school age board games for children of all ages, in topics ranging from history and math to geography and literature. Whether they know it or not, an educational board game is the best way for you to sneak up on your child with a good dose of mind expanding fun.

by infomatique

Board games as a great activity games for your children

If we think about having some quality family fun, board game can be a solution to engage whole family playing together in the same table. While in these tough economic recession, less family can really afford to go out with some recreation. Beside the benefits of learning through this activity games are enormous.

Children’s board games invite much in the way of social interaction. They are being together and interacting with one another. Board game can teach your kids a variety of social skill such as sharing, being gracious, diplomacy, and consequences of their action. But they also help with skills such as paying attention, be patience, following rules, and taking turns.

Many board games for children are also teaching basic skill like reading counting, using their memory and recognizing colors. For younger children you can find less challenging versions such Clue Junior, Scrabble Junior and Monopoly Junior. Parents can team up with younger children who are a little young for certain games.

As children age, they may want more challenging activity games to play. Games like Sorry, Monopoly, and Clue are excellent for continuing to focus on counting, luck and strategy. Battleship games geared toward children are also a popular choice. This is a strategy game that teaches a child memory, patience, coordinates and helps them with conditioning motivation.

There are many different types and styles of board game.  The most popular for older children and even adult recently are Eurogames.  These are a broad class of games that generally have simple rules, short medium playing times, high level of player interaction, and attractive physical components.  Their themes are not abstract. For example Carcassonne build a medieval landscape complete with walled-cities and monasteries, roads and fields in the area around the French city and Puerto Rico build a colony in the New World.

Most board games involve both luck and strategy. Luck is introduced to a game by using dice, generally six sided or cards. These can determine how many steps a player move their token, as in Monopoly, or which resources a player gains, such in Settlers of Catan.  Some activity games, such us chess relying only on the strategy, Sorry tend to be very luck based and virtually no decisions to be made. Eurogames are notable for often having rather less of a luck factor than many American board games.

I feel strongly that board games can really give people (especially children) a chance to understand and better their lives. The combination of luck and strategy make games more fun and interesting for them.

When it comes to family game night, which do you prefer as a parent, video games or board games? We put this question to the crowd of experienced parents gathered at Freddie’s Place in Austin, Texas. Some prefer video game consoles like Wii, Xbox, or Playstation to interact with the kids. Others use a board game for family fun. Let us know what you think: do you prefer to come together over game pieces or pixels? DadLabs Ep. 330 The Lounge. Brought to you by Fundex Games.
Video Rating: 4 / 5

by Wootang01

Fun Board Games!

In praise of good clean family fun

Ah, the joy of a family night of fun board games played at the dining table!  From Chutes and Ladders to Monopoly, through Tripoly and Clue, to Stratego, Risk, and Battleship, board games are just plain fun.

When we were youngsters, our movies were books and our game consoles were stored in boxes on the closet shelves.  I recently rediscovered this joy with my seven-year-old granddaughter.  We made a decision to watch tv less and spend more time doing things that encouraged conversation and personal interaction.  It was a great decision.  We spent the summer working puzzles, reading books together, and playing games at the dining room table.  I now know which girls in her class giggle too much, which boys will chase you on the playground, and how much homework “they” expect her to get done.  I also had the pleasure of watching my really smart, very funny granddaughter become a card shark.

All of this together time took me back to my childhood.  We never really had to decide to watch less television.  We only got three channels and my father’s interests ran the gamut from the news to football.  Chet Huntley, David Brinkley, and Joe Namath pretty well dominated the airwaves at our house.  The Philco belonged to Daddy.  So we played outside in the sunshine and played inside when the rains came or nightfall drove us indoors.  I can still sense the feeling of sitting around the kitchen table on a cold night with my brothers and sister and sometimes my parents, the smell of goodies cooking, the laughter swelling with the ups and downs of game play.  I remember so clearly knowing the warmth and comfort of my place in the family.  And all of this is connected in my mind with the delightful fun of board games.

Board Games for Adults can be fun!

Board Games for ADULTS???  Okay, “for Adults” doesn’t have to mean “for Adults,” if you know what I mean.

Seriously, most of us just want to have some good conversation, good company, and good clean fun when we socialize.  What better way to enjoy the company of friends than with a peaceable evening spent playing a fun board game or two.  Put on a pot of coffee, heat up some banana bread or a coffee cake, and pull out a crowd-pleasing board game.

Pictionary is a terrific game.  I have a friend who guesses the picture from a straight line.  Honest.  I have trouble identifying a photograph, so they wait until I’m out of the room to choose teams.  I’m much better at Scattergories.  And Trivial Pursuit.  I am a font of useless knowledge.

How about you?  Are you a brain?  Maybe Cranium or Scrabble are to your liking. If your ability lies in strategy you may prefer Chess or Mastermind.  Backgammon and Yahtzee both utilize a combination of strategy and fortune. There’s always Clue if you’re a sneaky son-of-a-gun or if you harbor suspicions and conspiracy theories.  Old reliable Monopoly lets you practice getting wiped out financially.  And for all of you would-be Kings of the World, it’s hard to beat Risk for world domination.

There are lots more.  Pick a favorite board game or two and call the crew.  The adult crew.  Adults – grown-ups – having fun just playing some board games.  Hanging out. You know you want to.  It’s been too long since the last get-together.

Teens want to have a little board game fun, too.

Fun board games for teens just sounds like you’re trying too hard.  Really.  But you’re not.  Young people are just people.  They have friends.  They like to do things with the people they like.  They get tired of trying to say the right thing, wear the right clothes, hang with the right crowd.  Heck, they get tired of just trying to figure out what all of that is.  They need some easy-going time with no big consequences – just a chance to slow down a bit now and then.  Offer them a board game party.

Risk, Yahtzee, Pictionary, Scattergories, Trivial Pursuit – all of these lend themselves to team play.  Trivial Pursuit comes in a number of variations, so if they’re big Lord of the Rings fans, go with that one.

They will, however, play with a different intensity than their parents.  “Soorrryyy” could take on a whole new meaning at your house.  Player pieces may well be slapped around the board with more energy than one might expect.  The Game of Life could be assigned choices not listed in the rules.  Scene It will cause them to monopolize the television while Monopoly will give them time to take over the refrigerator.  Who cares?  They’re home, at your house, laughing like crazy and having more fun than they ever thought.  No keggers, no missing parents, no car trouble – just friends and food and fun.  Even teens have fun with board games.

And how about the children? Do they have any fun playing board games? Mayybeee.

The foundation of board games:  children’s board games.  I’m talking heart of childhood, elementary school, make a game out of everything age group.  They make their own board games.  They play board games at school when the weather is bad.  They play board games all summer long in the floor, usually in the doorway to the kitchen.  They just play.  So what do they play?

Old stand-bys are still loved.  Checkers and Chess are easily obtained and only take two people.  Monopoly can take an entire afternoon and even then may not end with a clear winner.  There’s a Monopoly Jr. now that is perfect for beginning readers and only takes about thirty minutes to play.

Sorry and Trouble, with it’s great Pop-O-Matic dice tumbler, remain crowd favorites.  The Game of Life has become pretty convoluted, but kids still like to play it.  Mouse Trap is fun to build and has the added value of a half hour of trapping mice once the game is done.  Upper grade levels have a great time with Clue and Colonel Mustard and the Library – with the candlestick.  Then there are cartoon-based games (think Spongebob) and Junior versions of Trivial Pursuit and Cranium.  And Chinese Checkers and Parcheesi and Operation and Tri-Bond and Mancala and Aggravation and Backgammon and Scrabble and – oh, you get the idea.  The list of children’s board games is as long as your imagination.

Don’t leave out preschoolers. Board games are not just fun. They’re useful.

We don’t always think about board games for preschoolers when we think about their play.  Little ones run and jump and fall and get up and do it again.  We sometimes limit their calm time to television – cartoons and children’s movies are quite good when Mom and Dad need some quiet time.  Still, we miss out on some important training for small ones, as well as missing time spent together in an atmosphere of calm.  More and more, children are losing the art of polite conversation and civilized interaction with adults.  One solution?  Bring out the games!

Pre-school board games help children to develop skills they will need in reading.  They learn to match colors, count, recognize letters and their sounds, think sequentially, win graciously and lose gracefully.  These are pretty important concepts.  Candyland and Chutes and Ladders will wear you out, because your youngster will want to play again and again.  There are all kinds of dominos (I know – not strictly a board game) that allow children to match cartoon characters rather than dots.  There are games that let them match picture cards arranged on a grid and games that require fine motor skills.  You’ll find that all of them are great fun for your four-year old.

Take the plunge.  Board games with your preschooler.  How much fun can you cram into one day?

WHOOHOO! Most fun section. Vintage board games.

Yep, fun board games of time gone by, making them vintage.  Nice word for old.  Well, maybe not all that old.  Remember these?

Tripoly. We played this one with the neighbors.  I don’t remember much about it except we used poker chips. There was a big green mat. And it was pokerish. And rummyish, too, I think. That’s it. That’s all I remember. Probably because I had a crush on the neighbor.

Then there was the Game of the States:  VERY educational.

I’m pretty sure this one was a gift from my aunt.  Very sure.  Really.  Aunt Helen. She was always the best at finding “educational” stuff that was pretty fun. Thanks, Aunt Helen. I miss you.

We really did learn all kinds of things about the states.  We learned capitals, state birds, agricultural products, population – none of which I remember now.  Not that much of it would be the same, anyway.

Now let’s talk about the REAL fun we had with board games. How about Tycoon?  You had to be money-grubbing and free of conscience.  My brothers slaughtered me.  What are some others?  Stratego.  Mystery Date!  Now there’s a great game for a sleep-over.  Surfer dude.  Hmmm.  Remember him? Clue, Monopoly, Scrabble, Rook, Payday, Stock Market – all great games.  I wish I still had all of them.  But there was one we played ALL THE TIME:

Square Mile. This was the game with plastic roads and bridges.  There was a railroad and a swamp.  There were these little bitty buildings – houses, a school, a church, factories, apartment buildings, a shopping center.  This was a cool game.  Square Mile was the best for a rainy day.

Board games are amazing fun. I recommend their resurrection even if you just pull out the Monopoly game for an evening. Step away from the x-box, look your children in the eye and say,

“That’s Boardwalk with four houses. You owe me 00.”

If you got some good ideas from this article, click on a link below and get started building your game library or adding to the one you already have. Come on over!