Board Games for Kids: Preschool

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Confession: I am a bit of a game fanatic. Before kids, my husband and I often played games together, from countless hands of Gin to Khet (chess with lasers! look it up). We still do kid-free game nights with friends, and kid friendly game nights with family.

Once I started introducing games to my kids, I realized what a wonderful way they are for kids to learn. Kids develop so many skills when playing games, from math skills to problem solving to planning strategies to emotional regulation (dealing with losing). My game loving child has a real skill for math and logic, and I don’t think it’s a coincidence that they’ve been playing a variety of games since they were a toddler. My other kid will play games solo, making up their own rules and ways to playing, which I’d argue is valuable in developing creativity. Our family game nights with the four of us are one of my favorite things to do, and usually result in lots of laughing and inside jokes.

I tried to sort the games into two basic age categories: preschool and elementary. Check out Board Games for Elementary aged kids and up here. Take my suggestions with a grain of salt; age recommendations are tricky for games because kids are so different. I personally think it’s a good idea to try games even if they seem too advanced. Kids will surprise you, and there are usually ways to make games easier (or harder).

Also, while I was putting together this list I found about a million more games I want to try! So by no means is this a definitive list.

Preschool and Younger

Some of these are classics that we still play. Many of these will still be enjoyed by older kids.