G is for Games

 Do your kids love games? I know mine do! We have a closet shelf full of games plus a small cupboard shelf stuffed with them. Games can be used to teach many things both academic and social. My friend Tara is a "playologist" for Simply Fun games. I've had a lot of fun looking through a lot of their games!

My kids love playing just about any kind of game and so do I. I also love that they can be used to teach and reinforce many things. Some you may be learning in your school lessons and others are just perks of playing the games. Here's the benefits of using games in your homeschool. Get creative with it and pull out the games whenever you get a few minutes. Have fun playing and your kids probably won't even realize that they are learning!




1. Educational
Some games are obvious like Trivial Pursuit or Scrabble&Uno nbsp;because you are practicing skills like spelling or fact knowledge. We have been enjoying a geography game this year with our trip around the world. We've also learned Parcheesi which is from India and Chinese Checkers from China. SKIP BO and Uno  are family favorites but also teach color and number skills.

 2. Reinforce skills
Once you've taught things like addition or subtraction games like Monopoly or others that require a banker are a great way to reinforce skills! From Simply Fun your kids can practice their fractions and other math skills with things like Vnculum or Cow Cents 

3. Teach Strategy and Critical Thinking
One of my all time favorite games is Clue! I loved the mystery and trying to figure it out. Problem solving sklls are great to teach to your kids at any age. You can use games like Guess Who  or Chess on the Loose to teach strategy as well. My son loves Battleship! With Battleship kids can learn about coordinates and practice strategy when placing ships.

4. Social Skills
For Christmas we bought a game for everyone to enjoy and work together on called Hoot Owl Hoot. I love that it's a cooperative game so instead of working against each other and trying to win the game they are all working toward the same goal! In just about every game though kids have to wait for their turn and learn to be a good sport if they don't win. Cooperation, waiting your turn, patience and good sportsmanship are all important life skills that can be taught through games.

5. Get moving!
Games that aren't board games can be great to get the wiggles out and get kids moving. Mother May I, hopscoth and Hullabaloo are all great ways to get them off the couch and moving and having fun!

What games does your family enjoy for learning? 

Note: This post includes affiliate lnks. These do not change the cost for you in anyway only blesses my family with a small portion.