The Teacher is Talking: Family Game Night

By Leslie Lindsay

Every so often, we call a “family game night” at our house. Old-fashioned, classic fun is what it is, but there is an element of education, too. In fact, our first grade teacher does similar things in her classroom.

Here’s the deal:

Everything you do with your children can be educational. Nope, it doesn’t have to be a flashcard or say, “education” on the packaging.
When learning is fun and experiential, it actually “sinks in” more than traditional sit-and-learn-methods.
Family games introduce concepts that can be used in everyday experiences–things that your children will use to build good foundations. For example, a game of dominoes teaches matching, number recognition (“oh 5 looks like four with a single [dot] in the middle!” or “6 is really two rows of three”), strategy, turn-taking, etc.
Turn-taking, good-sportsmanship, and even pre-reading skills can all be acquired through games you participate in with kids.
Some of our personal favorites are:
Zingo! Try also Zingo Numbers!
Sequence for Kids
Scrabble Scoop
Toot and Otto