Preschool board games, card games, and other worthy diversions:Reviews for the science-minded© 2009 Gwen Dewar, Ph.D., all rights reservedPreschool board games may teach kids many lessons, both social and cognitive. But it’s hard to find games that can entertain both children and adults. For instance, most young children love Candy Land. But for adults, the game is a bore.So here are some recommendations: Games for preschoolers (ages 2 to 5) that please kids and adults. My criteria? (1) The game isn’t boring for adults (because it provokes interesting interactions between kids and adults, or because the game is challenging enough to entertain adult players). (2) The game is likely to stimulate critical thinking or mathematical thinking in kids (based on personal experience and/or research) (3) The game doesn’t take a lot of time to learn or play Cooperative board games: Max the Cat and The Secret DoorTwo of my favorite preschool board games are Max, a Cooperative Game of Consultation Decision Making and Natural Selection and The Secret Door, a Cooperative Game of Memory and Mystery .Both are produced by Family Pastimes, an independent company that specializes in cooperative games. For detailed reviews, see this article about cooperative preschool board games. The Great Race...better than Chutes and Ladders?For preschoolers who are learning to count, I recommend The Great Race. This simple mathematical board game was designed and tested by researchers on preschoolers. For more information (including instructions for making your own copy of The Great Race), click here.Submit your own review!
Do you know of a board game for young children that (1) isn't boring for adults, (2) is likely to stimulate critical thinking in children, and (3) doesn't take a long time to learn or play? More preschool game reviewsClick on the links below to read other reviews. The first--a review of Hisss!--was written by me. I hope to post reviews by other authors soon.
eeBoo Picnic Game
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Hisss! A game review
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Praise for Parenting Science
"[A] welcome antidote to the opinion dressed up as science that parents are constantly fed. Tear up your parenting books and get yourselves over there..."
- Charles Fernyhough, Ph.D., developmental psychologist and author of A Thousand Days of Wonder: A Scientist's Chronicle of His Daughter's Developing Mind
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- Julienne Rutherford, Ph.D., University of Illinois biological anthropologist and founder of the Biological Anthropology Developing Investigators Troop (BANDIT)
"I came across a great website run by Gwen Dewar, one I wish it had been available to me when my children were young. I hope everyone interested in math and kids will look at In search of the smart preschool board game and other pages on this site."
- Bill Marsh, Ph.D., in mathematics and author of MathInking, a blog about teaching math
"Gwen Dewar, a Ph.D. in biological anthropology, analyzes the latest research about parenting and kids. Check it out. You might even learn something about evolutionary psychology, or brain chemistry, or stereotyping."
- Polly Palumubo, Ph.D., psychologist and author of the blog, Momma Data: Children’s Healthy in the Media