Kid-Friendly Game Night! - Danielle Walker

My kids’ winter break from school was exceptionally long this year. We decided to stay home for it, so a kid-friendly game night was one of the creative ways to keep them occupied. Now that my kids are able to count and the younger two are reading, we have so much fun playing games as a family.

I’ve always been a huge game-night fan, but with the age difference of my kids (Asher is seven years older than Kezia), it’s been difficult to play as a family. Either the little ones would wipe the table clean of all of the game pieces, steal pieces and run away, or someone would get frustrated. Some games are so long that  I would have to leave to go put one to bed and so on! We just haven’t been able to sit down and play them until recently.

We have a whole cupboard full of games and cycle through a lot, but I wanted to share some of our current favorite games! Be sure to bookmark this blog post if you ever find yourself at home for an extended period of time with little kids! Most of these games below, Kezia can play on her own, or she plays on a team with one of the parents. It’s been so fun to have new activities to do together.

two young boys and one young girl sit around a table playing multiple board games for a kid-friendly game night

Board Games: 

  1. Beat the Parents – I picked this game up on a whim at Target, and it quickly became a favorite for our kid-friendly game night. Maybe its because they love to wager for extra screen time. However, it gets the whole family playing a game that is both silly and brain-stretching!
  2. Chuckle and Roar Family Charades Game – Ok this game may be one of our current favorites. The cards for the kids have illustrations so they can partake, even if they cannot read. My kids end up in giggle fits after someone acts something out and looks silly. We love it!
  3. Escape Room in a Box – We became big Escape Room in a box fans during 2020 when we spent so much time at home. Problem and puzzle-solving at its finest!
  4. Hasbro Gaming Clue Junior – Asher loves the real Clue, but this one is much more Kezia and Easton’s speed, and teaches them how to use deductive reasoning.
  5. Sorry! Board Game for Kids – Always a classic, and a good way to teach the kids that it’s “anyone’s game” as I always tell them! Beware, your little ones might get flaming mad that someone kicked them back to Start! However, once they realize it’s the nature of the game, they love it and especially enjoy yelling “Sorry!”
  6. Eureka! – This is a game from 1988 that I played growing up all the time. This is the first board game I introduced to my kids when they were able to count their moves. Now we can all play it together and I love it! Easton’s favorite strategy is to chase the other players and steal their gold. Haha. It’s not readily available for purchase anymore, but if you happen to see it at a garage sale or thrift store, snatch it up!
  7. The Game of Life – We recently got this updated version and played for the first time since Ryan and I were kids. We think the new careers (like social media blogger and app developer are pretty fun!)
  8. Carcassonne Board Game – This strategic board game is more Asher’s speed and we love to let him stay up late after the little two have gone to bed to play it. Easton is just starting to get into it and it will be fun to have 4 players!
  9. Ticket to Ride Board Game – This game is another one that so far only Asher can play, but we love to pull it out after the younger two are in bed. It’s full of strategy, and even a small geographical lesson!
  10. Spin Master Hedbanz Picture Guessing Board Game – Another good one for kids who are learning to read, this is a little like the game Taboo, and is super fun!

Image of multiple board games on a wooden table for a kid-friendly game night

Card Games: 

  1. Kings in the Corner – This is Easton’s current favorite for our kid-friendly game night. It’s a multi-player solitaire-style card game using one deck of standard playing cards with between two and four players participating. It’s slower-paced, but strategy and a keen eye comes in to play! How to play.
  2. Speed – I played Speed poolside with my mom all the time growing up. Ryan played with me on our honeymoon and swore he’d never play it again with me. Apparently, I’m intense! Ha. My boys, however, love the challenge of taking me on and the quick-paced nature of the game. How to play.
  3. Dutch Blitz – Similar to Speed but with a group! I’ve also heard this game called Nerts. This one can get wild with a group of friends. It’s not uncommon for my kids to climb on the table to reach a stack they want to play on! See how to play Nerts here with just a regular deck of cards.
  4. Uno Attack! – This puts a super fun spin on the classic Uno game. The cards spit out at you sporadically and it never ceases to bring laughter when we play it.
  5. Kids Against Maturity: Card Game for Kids and Families – a play on Cards Against Humanity for kids. It will have your kids giggling for sure.
  6. https://bicyclecards.com/how-to-play/spoons/#filter – Another one from my childhood! This is one that Kezia can play with us now as her own team. She’s still not quick enough to usually grab a spoon! 

Young boy plays the game charades in a living room for a kid-friendly game night

Digital:

  1. JackBox – This can be downloaded as an app on your streaming device (Roku, Apple TV etc), or on a computer. We particularly love QuipLash – such a great party game and will definitely cause tons of giggles.
  2. Just Dance – I may look like a fool doing it, but Just Dance has been a long-time favorite in this house since Asher was a little guy. Plus it’s great exercise and a fantastic game for a kid-friendly game night! We have the app on our Apple TV.

Family image of children and father laying on a wooden floor enjoying an evening of kid-friendly games

1/21/22

Kid-Friendly Game Night!

COMMENTS

  1. Aimee says:

    We have a big age space too (10 years between our oldest and youngest). Our favorite boardgames for the younger kids are Sequence for kids, and then they graduate to Sequence. Same with Ticket to Ride: My first Journey, and Catan Jr. with the idea that they graduate to the REAL game. 5 second rule jr is fun too! For the older set we love Citadels, Carcassone, Dominion, Ticket to Ride, and Settlers of Catan, along with others. Our favorite card games are: Rat-a-tat-cat, Zeus on the Loose, Sleeping Queens, Spot it! Blink, and Scrimish. For our standard deck of cards we like BS (banana split! Of course), War, and Spoons. Dice games we like LCR (left-center-right), Qwixx, and Tenzi (with foam dice because my ears can’t handle the noise).

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