I currently watch a little seven year old girl around the corner a few days a week after school. It’s a nice way to earn a little money and get out of the house, and it’s nice to work with a child that isn’t the same age as my own. As an only child like me, I can relate a lot to this little girl — she is growing up in the same town I did, as well as being raised culturally similarly to my own upbringing. She likes having someone to play games with, and many of her games are geared toward thinking and puzzles, which are the same type of toys I had growing up (Chinese Checkers anyone?). I started to take note of some of her games for when Drake gets a little older, and thought I would share the list for those with older children.
Colorku– Like the popular Sudoku for adults, Colorku applies the same principles but instead of numbers you fill in each space with a colored ball. I think for kids the appeal is more fun since the board becomes an array of different colors vs just numbers on a paper. It’s a nice sturdy wooden board and there are 104 different puzzles ranging in difficulty. We play one puzzle a day usually when I’m there and it’s nice to work together to reason out the puzzle. I actually really enjoy this one and almost want it for myself.
Blokus– Blokus is a strategy game that has brightly colored tiles to attract young kids. The goal of the game is to place all your pieces on the board, but the trick is they have to touch one corner of a similar colored piece but cannot lie against them. It requires some strategy knowing where to place your pieces so you don’t trap yourself in your own area, as well as spatial thinking as the board gets filled up and spaces become tougher to come by. I admit this game challenges me as an adult and I don’t always win.
Othello– This is a personal favorite of my own from my childhood. I remember playing Othello at school on rainy days during recess. The idea is to cover the board with your colored pieces, either white or black, by flanking the other person’s pieces and flipping them around to your color over and over until there are no more spaces and pieces to place. The corners are the key to this game and it’s fun racing to the sides to try to be the one to make the entire row your solid color.
Trivial Pursuit– Trivial Pursuit is a childhood staple of Mr. Chocolate’s family. Even now as adults he and his siblings and parents will sometimes gather around the table to play. The extensive knowledge needed for the game (with topics ranging to geography to the latest pop idol) helps to create well roundedness as well as helps encourage team play when one member is well versed in a specific category. I am looking forward to family games when Drake and Juliet are older.
Chess– The ultimate strategy game; this is one that challenges me (a non-chess player) even when playing a seven year old. Since the little girl I watch has been taking chess lessons she has wanted to play this more often, and I admit I sometimes need her coaching now that she is more skilled than I am. Mr. Chocolate is a versed chess player and I do hope when Drake and Juliet get older they will also have this eager willingness to learn to play that I did not when I was younger and my father tried to teach me.
Minecraft– Mr. Chocolate and I actually both play this game together. There are so many different ways to play Minecraft, but the basics of the game I think are wonderful for children. You can truly build anything you want, kind of like Legos for the computer, and you really are limited by your own imagination. It teaches planning, preparation, as well as patience as you work toward your creation. I was surprised there is a lot of math that can be involved in the game, as Mr. Chocolate has shown through the years when he has replicated buildings down to scale, used coordinates to map and find things, as well as worked out the amount of blocks needed before his builds. I do hope in time Drake and Juliet will join us in playing and maybe we can create something amazing together as a family.
What are some of your favorite childhood strategy games?
blogger / pomegranate / 3491 posts
I love these kinds of strategy games for me that coloroku sounds awesome!
kiwi / 511 posts
Connect Four which I want to try to introduce to my little one soon. I think since you are only trying to connect four it is a bit easier for kids because they are not doing a big sequence.
Battleship too, but that is still some time off for our kids, my DH would love it right now though.
nectarine / 2771 posts
I love some of these games!
Minecraft is an interesting addition…I’ve never played, but many of the children and young adolescents I work with have nightmares about some of the villains in the game (Herobrine? Enderman?). It’s actually a topic that comes up quite often, which I find intriguing now after reading your description of the game.
blogger / pomegranate / 3201 posts
I loved battleship and connect four when I was young. I hope my husband will teach Liam to play chess because I’ve never learned how to play!
blogger / kiwi / 675 posts
great list, I hope to have a family game night as soon as my girls are old enough!
blogger / eggplant / 11551 posts
We love strategy games, and can’t wait for game nights when the kids are older! Blokus is our favorite.
blogger / pear / 1563 posts
Thanks for these tips! Mr. P and I LOVE adult strategy games, so we’ll have to start Little P on some good ones when he gets old enough.
blogger / watermelon / 14218 posts
Blokus is one of my favorite games of all time!!
blogger / wonderful cherry / 21616 posts
My favorite strategy game is Settlers of Catan!
blogger / nectarine / 2010 posts
I don’t remember playing many board games. Does not get lost in the woods count? I played that a lot
blogger / pomelo / 5361 posts
Thanks for sharing! I’m not a huge game person, so I can’t say I have a favorite one from childhood. The one strategy game that I’m almost always up for now, though, is Settlers of Catan, like @Mrs. Pen: mentioned. It’s so much fun!
blogger / clementine / 998 posts
You should check out the game Tsar – it’s a good two player strategy game
guest
Yes! Finally something about strategy games.