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I don’t know about you, but I start my Christmas shopping in August. With five kids, it’s essential to begin early and to make sure all my gift plans are in place. My kids love games, so I have been researching the best games for kids.

While I know some of the games they would enjoy, there are so many games out there that I have never heard of. I like to buy games for kids that help develop their skills, and all of the games in this post are ones that do just that.

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Best Games for Kids

1. Race to the Treasure

I love this game because instead of playing against one another, the kids work together to beat an ogre to a treasure. While playing Race to the Treasure, kids will learn strategy, math concepts, making decisions as a team, and cooperation.

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2. 5 Second Rule Jr.

This is a family-friendly version of the 5 Second Rule adult game. When playing 5 Second Rule Jr., kids will read a card and give an answer within 5 seconds. Since it involves quick thinking, funny answers are bound to happen.

With good laughs and light-hearted fun, this game is perfect for family bonding time. If the child can’t quite read yet, playing on teams is fun, too.

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3. Pie Face Showdown

Pie Face is such a fun game, even if it is a little messy. The original game involved players passing the whipped cream covered hand around the table and turning the crank, hoping to not get hit in the face with whipped cream.

Pie Face Showdown is an upgraded version of the original. This one requires two players to both have their faces in front of a whipped cream covered hand. The players have to push their buttons faster to make the whipped cream hit their opponent.

4. Guess Who?

Guess Who is a classic, and it’s one of my favorites. Each player has a card with a person on it, and their opponent has to figure out which character the other one has. The first to figure out their opponent’s character wins the game.

The way you eliminate characters is by asking descriptive questions. These questions can be “Is your person wearing a hat?”, “Does your person have a mustache?”, or anything else that can help eliminate characters and lead you to your opponent’s character.

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5. Buggaloop

This game features a Hexbug that crawls underneath the “backyard” (the game board). It can climb vertically, horizontally, turn corners, and go through loops and tubes. You have to try and get your game piece all the way across the board before the Hexbug appears and takes you out.

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6. Uno

This simple classic card game is perfect for kids because it teaches so many things at once. Color and number matching, taking turns, and paying attention are all skills they can develop while playing.

I play this game often with my 3 and 4-year-old, as well. The only change I make is that we can see each other’s cards so that I can help as needed.

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7. Rush Hour Jr.

To play this game, kids will shift vehicles out of the way to clear a path to the exit. There are 40 levels, allowing for endless fun and brain stimulation. Rush Hour Jr. can help improve logical and spatial reasoning, planning skills, and problem-solving.

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8. Operation

Another classic, the game of Operation has stood the test of time. Kids love this game, no matter which era they were born in.

It helps develop fine motor skills as kids use tweezers to remove ailments from the patient’s body. If the child misses and hits the side of the opening, the game buzzes, and the patient’s nose lights up. The player who can remove the most ailments wins.

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9. Ravensburger Labyrinth

I am so excited to get this game for my son for Christmas. The game changes each time you play it because the tiles move. This ensure that the child won’t get bored with it, since it’s pretty much a different game each time.

They will move their piece around the board, working their way to a treasure. On each turn, the child will also have the chance to change the path of the maze. It’s the perfect game to teach strategy.

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10. No Stress Chess

This game offers a chance to teach kids how to play chess with little frustration on their part. It comes with a deck of cards that teach the rules of the game and strategies that should be used.

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11. Skillmatics Educational Game: Brain Games

This is a game that is fun for the whole family, as the age range is from 6-99 years. It teaches thinking and reasoning, plus logic and problem-solving skills. As the game is played, the boards can be wiped off and done again.

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12. SpringFlower Sight Word Game

My son isn’t a huge fan of working on his sight words the traditional way. I’m always looking for new activities to help him learn them. When I found this game, I was so excited. I only wish I had come across it sooner!

The kids will use the fly swatters to smack the appropriate sight word when it is called out. It’ll help them recognize the word more quickly, and it’ll be fun, helping to commit it to memory.

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Final Thoughts on 12 of The Best Games for Kids

With as much as my kids love games, I always want to choose the ones that they will love. The best games for kids are the ones that offer a learning opportunity or help develop skills.

What are some of the games your kids love? Do you have any games for kids that you want to buy as a Christmas gift this year? Leave me a comment and let me know! I’d love to hear about it.

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Posts Related to the Best Games for Kids

So this Valentine’s Day Matching Game idea first came to me when my son and I were working on his sight words. I remember playing sight words games with our now 12-year-old back when he was in Kindergarten, and the games just seemed to help him get it.

Somehow, it hadn’t crossed my mind to play games to learn sight words with my current kindergartner until now. The best part of this matching game printable that I created, however, is that I can use it for more than just a sight words matching game.

I plan to use it for matching uppercase and lowercase letters, matching numbers, and a few other learning games. The multiple game options also mean it will work for different age groups, depending on which game you decide to play with it.

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Free Printable – Valentine’s Day Sight Word Practice Matching Game

Free Printable – Valentine’s Day Matching Game

How I Used Them

So I printed two copies for each kid. On one copy, I wrote the sight words, numbers, or letters (depending on which kid’s I was doing). The second copy was used for cutting.

Before I had the kids cut out the hearts on the second copy, I wrote the matches. Once they cut the hearts out, they were already ready to match them up.

You don’t have to do the second copy this way, however. Instead, you could cut hearts onto pink or red construction paper and then write the matching word, letter, or number onto the heart. I just wanted the kids to cut their own hearts, to be honest. Lazy mom moment.

Another Way to Play – Learn Sight Words Using Technology

I taught my son how to type his sight words into dictionary.com and listen to the word. If you don’t know how to do this, it’s simple! Type the word into the search box and then when the definition comes up, click on the megaphone icon and it’ll say the word out loud.

This allows your child to play the game on their own and still hear the words spoken aloud. It helps with letter recognition, spelling, and reading.

Don’t leave them to do it on their own every time, though. Kids still learn best through personal connection.

Final Thoughts on Valentine’s Day Matching Game

This game was so much fun and my kids learned so much while playing it! Would you use the sight word version of this Valentine’s Day matching game or would you use it for something different like learning letters or numbers? Tell me about it in the comments!