A board game is a little different from an ordinary toy. It generally requires two or more individuals to play, when many toys work well with just one. It usually has a set of rules to follow, unlike more creative toys that invite a greater imagination. It occurs over a set period of time (that is, until a player wins), rather than an indefinite period of time. It’s more like a puzzle or a sport than a box of blocks or a container of Legos.
But, we like games. And we’ve had some time to think about how kids learn to play board games.
Take Candy Land. No reading is required. You need to be able to count to two. You need to know your colors. That’s about it.
But, it has a number of notable traits. Imagine playing a game, any game, ever, for the very first time. You probably don’t even remember what that was like when you were a child. But recognize all the things you have to know when playing a game as simple as this one: Turn order (each person takes a card, going around in a circle clockwise, one at a time); turn operation (drawing a card, following instructions, moving a piece); movement (as in, “forward,” away from the start and toward the finish); goals (reaching the end before anyone else); and, of course, coping with winning or losing.
You learn that certain events are better than others (e.g., cards that have two squares let you move farther than cards that have one square). You learn that events can happen depending on where you land (e.g., shortcuts). You learn that there are cards that are highly variable and whisk you forward or backward a great many spaces.
Of course, there is literally no skill or strategy involved. The game is entirely based on chance. So the game is very good at one thing (i.e., teaching basic elements of game play or operating within a set of rules), but very bad at another (i.e., teaching critical thinking or strategy). Strategy takes many forms, often involving a high level of interaction. Strategy may require that you evaluate between choices and make a decision to improve your opportunity to win the game. Strategy may require that you persuade another player to behave in a particular way. Strategy may require that you react to how other players make decisions on their turns.
And that’s not just important when it comes to what children learn. It can be quite important for us parents playing games, too. A pure chance-based game becomes boring quickly.
So, what games have elements of strategy that young children learn, that interest parents, and that remain competitive for children despite an age or skill difference?
I hope to blog about a few of our gaming experiences as we’ve tried a handful of games beyond Candy Land, and point to ones that are good for young children and parents alike.
My brothers and I loved playing Stratego growing up. It was simple enough for us to understand when we were fairly young, but it had virtually endless variations. I think it teaches how to balance risk and reward, a skill useful both for life and for more complex games. It wasn’t a game where the older opponent always won. Obviously it’s not appropriate for young children, and some people might object to the military basis, but it provided hours of entertainment for us.
I enjoyed reading this, Emily. We love Candy Land! We also like to play UNO, or a similar game of Crazy 8’s (Lore has one version that has bug pictures on the cards). When we play UNO, we can customize the deck of cards to what will work for the kids. You can play by color or number and you can use only the number cards that the kids recognize. We also try to work in just a few of the “special” cards like “Skip”, “Reverse”, and the regular “Wilds”. They learn what the S and R stand for and with the Wild cards, they have to look at their hand and decide on the best color choice for them. We usually leave the “Draw” cards out, as their hands tend to get too big to hold. Dominoes is another fun one. Just my thoughts.
I also liked Stratego- fun game!
I love your meta-narrative of why play games with children, Derek! We own Candyland, which I have thought of as a right of passage more than a way to teach a skill set. The latter reason is so much more inspiring for me, especially because the game is pretty boring for an adult. The only other games we play with Evangeline are memory and Animal Upon Animal by Haba. I am interested in seeing what other games you recommend for pre-k.