Quarantine Board Games & Projects for Little Learners

Play is our brain's favorite way of learning. It has a deep impact on our cognitive, social, developmental and academic skills. Play stimulates children's learning abilities by fostering creativity, which builds critical thinking, sparks intellectual curiosity and facilitates learning by doing

It's week number who knows, and I'm tired of my kids watching TV and playing on their iPad.

By this time families have gone through all their classic board games and are itching for something new and exciting to try.

Below are some tried and true gems that are perfect for Pre-K thru third grade and fun for the whole family. Twin-boy tested and this mom-approved for family game nights/days and hands-on fun.

At-Home Board Games for Active Young Kids

Sneaky Snacky Squirrel 

This is a perfect first board game for toddlers and years later it's still one of my boys' favorites. Even our kitty Taffy likes to play by hitting the spinner.

Best of all, the rounds are quick and easy to understand. This game also teaches children to take turns, colors, counting and general game basics. Using the squirrel tong squeezer can help to develop fine motor skills for handwriting too.

 

Ooze Labs: Colorful Crystal Lab 

Let your child explore the natural beauty and wonder of crystals by growing them yourself in many different shapes and colors! 

This kit lets you set up your lab station — complete with beakers, test tubes, centrifuge, display dome, and more — and use safe, non-toxic crystal salts to conduct more than ten experiments in crystal formation. 

You can even make red, pink, blue, purple, and clear crystals using the spinning centrifuge! After you’ve completed the experiments in the kit, continue your crystal growing adventures using the cool lab setup and common materials from around your home. Ages 6+.

My boys are really into rocks and crystals so it was great having them learn the science behind it. They also especially proud to have grown these ones.

Banana Blast 

Players pull bananas from the treetop...until the monkey jumps! Keeps kids engaged because every player gets a chance to catch the monkey A game of mounting excitement, reflexes, and hand-to-eye coordination For 2-5 players, ages 4 and up.

Spot It

Award-winning game of visual perception for the whole family. Between any two cards there is always one and only one matching symbol, so spot it fast and slap the cards to win. 

Frenzied fun for 2 to 8 players. Develops focus, visual perception skills, speech-language skills, and fine motor skills. Includes 55 cards and illustrated rules in a durable travel-size tin that you can easily take with you, when we can all travel again, lol. 

There are many editions of Spot It too from Frozen, MLB, Finding Nemo, etc.

Shady Pets Card Game

If you love pets, you'll love this game! Recently Ranked #1 on Amazon's Hot New Releases! (Apr. 15, 2020) and originally released on Kickstarter raising 34k. The cards also feature real pets with shades on (glasses) and even two celeb Instagram cats too. 

Shady Pets is like Clue and Uno except you have to deal with flying octopuses and naked turtles! You have to steal, take, show, sneak peek, expose, ambush, stop other players, grab and even throw an occasional octopus at an opponent on your way to victory. As players take turns, the game gets more intense because, just like you, everyone is getting closer to solving the mystery pets, yet who is going play the best game, collect the most points and win the game? The perfect gift for adults, teens and kids! Takes 5 minutes to learn, 15-20 minutes to play, is for 2-5 players (ages 7+) and includes 84 cards. 

You can buy an optional Octopus plush to throw too. There is also a NSFW version for adults only. 

Pop The Pig 

Top-selling preschool game with over 200 million views on YouTube Players take turns rolling the die, feeding the pig, and pushing down on his head Each pump makes his belly grow bigger, bigger, and bigger until... POP! Teaches numbers, colors, and counting For 2-6 players, ages 4 and up.

Gator Golf 

Can't go out to putt putt now? No problem, you can bring minigolf home, where a hole-in-one is a lot more fun with Gator Golf!

Take the game safely inside without the miniature golf crowds or expensive fees. Hit the ball into the Gator's mouth to score, and he'll toss your ball back with his tail for more golfing fun. The first time it shot the ball back to us we all squealed with glee. Be the first player to score three points to win Active game helps develop large motor skills and gets kids moving indoors.

For 2-4 players, ages 3 and up. As they get older you can move the gator farther and farther away and even throw in some obstacle along the way.