Whether you are looking for the perfect gift or an activity for the next family gathering, a classic board game is always a good choice! Here are our top board games that are family- and kid-friendly! We’ve sorted them by age appropriateness, in case you’re trying to find a gift.
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Top Board Games (Age 3+)
- Hi-HO Cherry-O — Great for practicing turn-taking, simple 0-5 counting, fine motor skill development, and you can finish in 5-10 minutes (good option for older children to play with younger siblings).
- CandyLand — An old classic, practice with color recognition.
- Memory Match — You will be amazed at how good young children are at this game! It’s a great one for all ages and you can vary the challenge simply by adding or removing the number of pairs you play with. There are so many variations of cards, choose one in a theme your little ones will love.
- Chutes & Ladders — Check out this cute SuperHero Squad version! So fun!
- Sorry! (Star Wars Theme) — A family favorite, good way to introduce using cards and practice with counting up to 12.
Top Board Games (Age 5+)
- Connect Four — Start introducing logic and thinking several steps ahead with this classic game. We’ve found that Dad loves playing this one too!
- Operation — Spice up this old favorite with an adorable Despicable Me variation! Good for perfecting fine motor skills, especially for 5-6-year-olds who are working on writing.
- Guess Who — Another logic game, practice with identifying traits and grouping like things.
Top Board Games (Age 8+)
- Jenga — Make sure you have a sturdy table and out-of-the-way spot for this game. . . otherwise, tumbling toddlers passing by could cause frustration for a more patient, older child.
- Tenzi — This is a great new game we discovered last year! Be sure to buy the dice and the cards, for hours of fun. We got enough dice colors for 12 players – great for big family gatherings, and it’s easy for people to come and go.
- Yahtzee — Good game to introduce children to the concept of “sets” and “runs”, which carry over into many other games. And you will always find an older family member who loves this old classic!
- Chinese Checkers — Easy to play with a variety of ages.
Top Board Games (Ages 10+)
- Pictionary — Love this version, with a set of adult cards and kid cards!
- Clue — This can be more frustrating for younger children, but normally by 10-years-old, kids can understand the logic of eliminating possibilities. There are so many fun themes for this one too, which can make for a great gift option!
- Would You Rather — Guaranteed laughter . . . the options vary from thought-provoking, to intriguing, to just plain gross! You might learn more about your family than you want to! Note: you may want to “edit” the cards for appropriateness before setting your kids loose with this one.
- Whoonu — A great “get-to-know-you” game of choosing favorites! A similar game is Apples-to-Apples (Junior).
Top Board Games (Teen+)
- Wits and Wagers — Trivia that’s all about numbers! A low-risk way to practice with probabilities and estimating.
- Cranium — A great game that stimulates every type of brain. Sing, act, draw, answer trivia, figure out word puzzles . . . this game is fantastic when you have a group of very different types of people.
- Catchphrase — When you need to entertain a group and don’t want to take time to set up a full-on game, it’s great to have this on hand! Pass it around the circle and have fun guessing words and phrases from clues given by the person holding the game! Bonus – bring in the car for road trips.
- Blokus — I love the way this stimulates spatial awareness. Not my strong suit, but my family of engineers loves this game.
- Balderdash — Creativity will abound with this game! Make up definitions for odd words, movie plots, etc. and try to guess what’s true and what’s “balderdash”!
- Boggle — For the wordsmiths and quiet thinkers, this is a simple game that can be as challenging as the people you play with. Looking for something more fast-paced? Try Bananagrams! This one is easy to pack if you’re traveling this holiday season.
Getting you in the mood for the holidays? Check out this Holiday Wish List for Moms!
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Addi Ganley says
I love playing board games and bringing my family all together at the table to play a game is a great way to spend quality time.
I like the list of board games because some are old games that I think I still own.
Thank you for this post.