Educational board games are a perennial favorite for adults as well as school-aged children and teens. We have all played them as children, but...

Are board games appropriate for pre-school children too?

I would say Yes - if they have been created with the developmental stages of little ones under the age of 5 kept in mind.

It can be a very good educational exercise to do with your little one and a fun family time spent with your little one.

As simple as the process is, of finding board games to play with your preschooler, selecting the best board games to play is a complex one.

While you can see plenty of these online and instore getting the best one and one that is a good value for money is slightly difficult.

Where Did the Games Originate?

While the cardboard and plastic pieces that we use in most board games today are a relatively new innovation, the games themselves are not.

There is evidence of a game much like Mancala being played as early as 5,800 BC and Backgammon as early as 3,000 BC.

However, it wasn’t until the 1900’s that a middle class population began to have some leisure time and began to develop some fairly inexpensive replicas of their more expensively made predecessors. Of course, following hard on the heels of simple games becoming quite common in homes all over the world, the Internet picked up the idea of playing some of these same games online.

And now, we find games in every store, for every age group, in arcades, on computers, and on electronic devices built especially so that we can play games any time we wish.

Benefits Of Educational Board Games

Here are some things to look for when selecting such educational board games -

• The game is cooperative instead of competitive.

What board game can a 3 year old play?

Whether educational or just plain old fun, playing board games are a great way to spend a rainy day or quiet evening at home with your little one.

Select a game that does not take a long time to play, set up, or understand and you will have a great time with your little one.

Here is a list of top 10 best board games for preschool kids-

• Chutes and Ladders
• Hi Ho! Cherry-O
• Candyland
• Cranium Cariboo
• ........
• Here is the complete list of fun family board games
Board games emphasizing competition, especially those in which there are winners and losers, provoke conflict and stress. While we adults and older children have the resources to deal with such stress, young children do not.

I feel, letting my child "win" a competitive board game meant for older children does not solve this problem.

• Let's kids exercise their imagination

Preschool children are learning to cooperate and share with others, so non-competitive games involving teamwork are a good choice.

• Sharing and taking turns

For children, one of the best benefits of learning to play a board game is that they learn to take turns and to share. Simple board games usually have 2 – 4 players giving each player the opportunity take a turn quickly. This teaches even the youngest child to learn to wait.

• Pictures and color games

Most preschoolers have not yet learned to read. Therefore, you will not want to purchase games that require the players to read something in order to play. Since most of them can identify numbers up to 20, so games requiring the players to know how to count to 20 is a very good choice.

• The game teaches premath concepts.

Board games for children that uses dice to move game pieces can be excellent for teaching kids some premath skills.

A child can learn to count by rolling the die and moving his or her piece around the board according to the numbers that appear on the die's face.

Other childrens board games may have them count, sort and match game pieces, and identify numbers and shapes.

• The game helps small motor development

Preschool aged children are developing their small motor skills. Look for games that give them the chance to manipulate small parts that help them exercise their small muscle control.

Don't forget to check this list of the best educational board games for kids

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Top of Educational Board Games For Kids

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