Playing a game together is always an excellent way to promote family time. Board games remain a favorite pastime for children of all ages. While a trip to the store may leave you confused by the sheer number of board game choices on the market today, some classic board games remain as popular today as they were in the decade that produced them. These standards will not only enable you to spend a rainy afternoon playing with your children, but they will also delight the grandparents when they’re visiting and want to have play time with the kids.
Monopoly
First introduced in 1935 by Parker Brothers, Monopoly has withstood the generations and remains a mainstay of the game cupboard. By rolling the dice and making real estate choices, children can learn the basics of money while amassing their color-coded estates. While the original game may be too complex for younger children, they can still enjoy the challenge by partnering with a parent or older adult to learn the ins and outs of moving around the board. Monopoly has also branched out, and there are multiple versions available, such as Monopoly Junior, as well as versions based on popular movies, cartoons and other themes.
Checkers
Checkers is one of the oldest games known to man. It remains a classic favorite of all ages today. According to Checkers History, ancient versions of checkers game boards have been found in Mesopotamia that date back to 3000 B.C.; it appears to have been played in much the same way as we do today. While checkers is a two-player game, families can either alternate players or form tournaments with two or more boards to make the game enjoyable for the whole family.
Scrabble
Scrabble is an invaluable game to have on hand, as it teaches vocabulary, spelling and math while developing strategy skills. First developed in the early 1930s, Scrabble is now available in a junior version that is geared toward children ages 5 and up, as well as a card-game version for families on the go.
Chutes and Ladders
Derived from a British board game called “Snakes and Ladders” that was popular in the late 1800s, Chutes and Ladders has been manufactured by Milton Bradley since 1943. A simple game for children of all ages, the moves on the board represent good and bad deeds and encourage children to make moral decisions to win the game.
Candy Land
One of the simplest games for children to learn, Candy Land is played by drawing colored cards and moving the game piece to the next corresponding color block. Designed in the early 1940s by a recovering polio victim, Candy Land was first marketed by Milton Bradley in 1949. The bright colors and tantalizing candies make this an enjoyable game for older children to share with younger ones and is especially helpful for teaching board game rules to preschoolers as well as those with learning disabilities.
Photo Credit
- family image by Linda Mattson from Fotolia.com
