Favorite board games to play with kids

There are two kinds of people in the world...

I’d like to propose to you one of those quintessential defining divides, like morning v. evening people or pessimists v. optimists: are you a board game person?

I fall squarely into the board game camp, and it has both shaped my character and been a siren song leading me to some of my most precious friendships over the years. To me, board game people are good people: they like having fun, they’re smart, they’re patient, they’re cooperative, they know how to win and lose, and they like spending time with people. Those are totally unbiased opinions, of course :)

Unsurprisingly, I believe board games can be a great tool for building a healthy and vibrant family culture — they certainly were in both my family and John’s family! And now, with an 8-, 5-, and 2-year-old, it feels like we’re just arriving at what I hope will be a long (lifelong?) stretch of family game nights to come.

Here’s what we’re loving playing as a family right now, and a few games I hope to introduce in the years ahead…

Games the whole family can play together right now:

• Ocean BINGO | It’s the rare game that an 8-, 5-, and 2-year-old can all enjoy (let alone their parents!), but this is it! Annie can independently match up the pictures, Shep and June love calling out the animals (great reading practice, too!), and John and I love the beautiful illustrations. If aquatic life isn’t your thing, they also have cat, tree, and bird versions (among many others).

• Lava Lizards | This is kind of a silly little matching game (certainly not one I’d place in my personal hall of fame), but our kids enjoy it and it’s another one Annie can play with just a bit of assistance. There are five different gameplay options in one small deck, which makes it convenient for on-the-go. As featured in my day-in-the-life newsletter!

Games the 5- and 8-year-old can play:

• Candy Land | I’m grimacing as I put this on the list — can you tell? While June and Shep both love it, it’s, erm, not my favorite, so I usually have them play it together :)

• Mancala | This one, however, I loved in childhood, and still love today. There’s strategy but also a decent amount of luck, and games can take ten minutes or less.

• Mexican Train and Chicken Foot | There’s something so tactile about dominoes — the colors, the neatness of the dots, the smoothness of the tile! — that appeals to kids, I think. Both of these ways to play are winners and can accommodate a big group, too.

• Spot It | This palm-size game is perfect for on-the-go and a round can be played in just a few minutes. Find matching symbols across cards in five different variations (easily handicapped to different abilities!).

Games the 8-year-old can play:

• Bananagrams | Race to build crossword grids with letter tiles before your opponents. To be fair, while June can play this, I wouldn’t say she loves playing it — I think she feels the distance between her current skills and mine is a bit too vast. I believe she’ll grow into it! :)

• Catan Junior | Those who love to play the iconic world-building game Settlers of Catan know that it’s notoriously complicated for newbies — which is why I’m impressed with how well they’ve adapted it into a kids’ version! Catan Junior introduces many of the elements of the original — resources, trading, building — for the attention spans and strategic abilities of elementary schoolers. It can get a little formulaic for the grown-ups but remains a good stepping stone to more strategic games.

• Cover Your Assets | Stack your assets and protect them from steals with this competitive card game. June and her cousins love to play this in pairs, and it’s definitely fun for grown-ups, too. Fortunes can swing wildly, which can be both good and hard :)

• No Stress Chess | Learn the rules and movements of chess before moving to more complicated gameplay with this game’s innovative card deck. It’s pretty amazing how quickly kids can pick up the rules and learn the pieces with this method!

• Sushi Go Party | Pick and pass from the sushi “conveyor belt” in this game that’s different every time you play. This is a favorite in our house. I highly recommend the party version over the original!

• Ticket to Ride | Build train tracks to far-flung destinations in this great intro to strategy games. We prefer the European version, but the American version is a little simpler and good for beginners!

Games I look forward to introducing in the future:

• Battleship | The classic game of naval combat — I can remember long hours of playing against my sisters in the summer! I think we might get this for Shep’s birthday in July.

• Dutch Blitz | All the “big kids” (a.k.a. my sisters and in-laws) across both sides of the family are mildly obsessed with this fast-paced card game that brings elements of solitaire into a (very) competitive group setting. My niece (10) has just started to play with us!

• Rummikub | Take turns placing tiles in runs or groups, Rummy style. Apparently this is one of the best-selling games of all time?! I loved it growing up!

• Scattergories | An absolute legend of my childhood that still reigns today. I love it because you get rewarded for creative answers, and John loves it because it can be played while sitting on the sofa, ha!

• Tripoley | Combines Michigan Rummy, Hearts, and Poker in three rounds. This one has a low profile (have you ever heard of it?), but I have fond memories of playing it in big groups with family friends in the summer!

All right — over to you! What games do you and your kids love to play? Include their ages, if you’d like! :)

P.S. This wooden card holder is a game changer for little hands!

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