10 top educational games to get your child for Christmas
16th December 2013
Christmas is a special time of year and for some of us, one of the precious few times that we get to spend proper quality time with our families. What better way to enjoy this time than to have some fun, bond as a family and play some games!
There are certain games that can be educational for your child as well as fun. Even for those families with young babies, there are still certain games you can play with them to enhance their skills and learning.
We’ve came up with the top 10 educational games you could buy your children this Christmas for guaranteed fun with educational benefits too!
School Age
1) Scrabble
Recommended for children aged 10+, Scrabble is the ultimate educational game. It helps children develop their reading and spelling skills and can be played in teams to encourage family bonding, and to help out the younger ones.
2) Rapidough
Ideal for children aged 8+, Rapidough follows a similar theme to Charades. Players have to guess what their teammates are modelling, before the other team guess first and win the dough. This is a great way for children to enhance their creativity, express themselves through alternative communication, plus have some fun with play dough!
3) Monopoly
For ages 5+, Monopoly is an all-time traditional board game that all the family can get involved in. The game is based on property trading and with a little guidance from the adult team members, Monopoly can teach children the value of money and how to handle a limited budget.
4) Articulate
Articulate (recommended for 12+) is a great family favourite word-based game. The aim is to describe as many words as you can to your team in 30 seconds, moving on to the next word only once they have guessed the word correctly.
This board game helps children learn the definitions of words and also draws on their creative side, as they have to think of ways to describe the word without saying it.
Toddlers
5) Leapfrog ABC’s Write on Floor Puzzle
This game is great for children who are of pre-school age as it helps encourage them to read and write by engaging them with a fun colourful puzzle. This involves tracing letters with crayons that can easily be wiped off to start the puzzle afresh. It also helps with their future handwriting skills as they are holding crayons and can be encouraged to do it as neatly as possible, following the lines.
6) Candy Land
A great choice of game for children aged 4+, coloured cards are used to move gingerbread pawns down a twisting path that passes by the Peppermint Forest and the Ice Cream Sea. They also meet fun characters on the way and get to develop their colour matching skills.
7) Peppa Pig Giant Snakes and Ladders
Recommended for toddlers ages 3+, this game of Giant Snakes and Ladders provides your toddler with endless amounts of fun! The game comes with giant foam dice and plastic counters and the helps your child learn count, as they read the number from the dice and count the amount of spaces the have to move on the board.
Babies
For babies, you don’t have to buy educational games for them as they’re too young to understand them, but there are still little games you can play with them that can stimulate their senses, helping encourage a healthy development.
8) Catch Me
Get your baby’s favourite cuddly toy and attach it to a bright coloured ribbon. Gently sway the toy letting it dangle before your baby’s eyes, persuading them to reach out and get it. When they do reach out and grab it, make sure you give them lots praise and cuddles. This little game will help your child practice their hand-eye co-ordination skills for when they start crawling and walking.
9) Copycat
Children rely on the facial expressions of those around them to sharpen and enhance their visual skills, and playing Copycat is a great way to do this. Hold your baby close to your face and slowly poke your tongue in and out while holding their gaze. Continue to do this for a minute or so and they should begin to mimic your action. This holds their attention and also helps them to discover parts of their body.
10) Tickle songs
Once your child is a little older you can start playing more interactive games with them such as Round and Round the Garden and This Little Piggy with their hands or feet. This simple game is great for improving our baby’s memory skills, as the repetitive nature of the rhymes help them remember what is coming and makes them more excited.
So why not try some of these games this year and enjoy the festive season with all round family fun!
To find out more about how you can encourage educational play with your child, please do not hesitate to get in touch our friendly team at Tiny World, your day nursery in the Woodthorpe area.