At 4-years-old, your child’s mind is expanding in so many ways. At this age, they are learning new things everyday, interacting with other kids more, and soaking in everything they see and hear. Because of this, their skill sets are definitely broadening, and perhaps they are starting to outgrow the games and toys they were playing with before. If you have not already introduced your child to board games, this is the perfect age to start.
To help get you started, we have comprised a list of the twenty best board games your 4-year-old can play.
Best Board Games You Played as a Kid
Candy Land: The Kingdom of Sweet Adventures
The first board game on our list of best board games for 4-year-olds is Candy Land: The Kingdom of Sweet Adventures. It is a game both grandparents and parents can enjoy introducing to their little ones since it is a game they likely enjoyed in their childhood. This game is one of the best board games for 4-year-olds because of its vibrant colors, easy to follow instructions and fun game pieces. The objective of the game is to be the first to have your gingerbread man pawn reach the candy castle. In terms of the game’s instructions, all your child really needs to know is their colors, and they are all set to go.
This game is great for your child to reinforce learning colors. And if they have not played many board games before, this game is perfect for learning to follow directions.
Chutes and Ladders
Next on the list of best board games for 4-year-olds is Chutes and Ladders. This is another classic game that is still popular to play today because it is not only fun but easy for even toddler-aged children to understand. Just spin the spinner and move the pawns up the ladders and down the chutes. The objective of the game is to get to the top of the board game without sliding back down to the start of the game.
This game is great for toddlers who are just learning to count and recognize numbers.
Sequence for Kids
This next game on our list of best board games is not only a classic, but it is a classic game made especially for youngsters. Sequence for Kids is much easier to play than the original version. All you have to do is draw a card from the deck and place your game piece to the corresponding animal on the board. This is a great game to play with your kids, or even for kids to play together since no reading is required. The first player with four game pieces in a row wins the game.
This game is great for teaching children skills such as taking turns, strategy building, and matching like objects.
Hi Ho! Cherry-O
Another classic game from your childhood that your kids are sure to love playing is Hi Ho! Cherry-O. This game is on the list of best board games for its fun and vibrant colors, simple instructions, and easy set-up. To play the game, simply spin the spinner to see if you should take any fruit from the board or put any back from your basket. Players take turns filling their baskets with different colored fruit. The first to fill their basket wins the game.
If your child is still new to counting, this game is a great way to introduce basic math skills. Not only can your child learn to count with this game, but it is also great for teaching them how to add and subtract too. Your child will not even realize they are learning basic math.
Best Board Games Featuring Your Child’s Favorite Characters
Daniel Tiger’s Welcome to Main Street
If you are not introducing your kids to board games you played as a child, another easy way to introduce them to board games is to play games featuring their favorite characters. The next board game on our list of best board games for 4-year-olds is a game called Daniel Tiger’s Welcome to Main Street, featuring the PBS kids character Daniel Tiger.
In this game, your child is playing through the Neighborhood of make-believe where they are encouraged to engage in interactive play and build social skills all while working on their counting.
Paw Patrol Pop Up Game
The Paw Patrol Pop Up Game is next on our list of best board games for 4-year-olds. This game is basically a take on the classic pop-up game Trouble featuring some of your child’s favorite characters from the Nickelodeon TV show “Paw Patrol”. Each player is given four game pieces. To win, you must be the first to have all four pieces go around the board to reach their home. Since the game does not involve many pieces, it is easy for a toddler to grasp the simple objective.
This game is great for teaching your child how to count.
Disney Classic Characters Matching Game
The next game on the list of best board games for 4-year-olds is Wonder Forge Disney Classic Characters Matching Game for Boys & Girls. Your child will love this game because it features all of their favorite Disney characters. The objective is simply to find all the matching pairs. The player with the most pairs wins the game. What is even better about this game is that your child can enjoy this game with other kids, parents, or even solo.
This game is perfect for helping your child practice their memory, focus, and matching skills.
Super WHY ABC Game
Last on the list of games featuring your child’s favorite characters is the Super WHY ABC Game. Based on the popular PBS show “Super WHY”, this game is on the list of best board games because your child will love playing a game with the entire Super WHY team. Just as the show teaches basic reading skills, the board game serves the same purpose. With this game, your child can practice key reading skills by taking on the powers of each character. Your child will need the help of an adult or older child to read the instructions on each card. The game ends when all players reach the finish line.
This game can help your child with basic reading skills such as letter recognition, rhyming, and basic sentence structure.
Best Board Games for Skill Building
Fishing Game Toy Set
A list of best board games would be incomplete without the next game on the list. The Fishing Game Toy Set is another classic game any child is sure to love, especially kids who love fish. In this classic game, the objective is to catch as many fish as possible from the rotating fish pond. Your child will love this game because it is completely interactive. The player with the most fish wins the game. Not only does the board game rotate, but the fish open and close their mouths as well so it truly is like fishing.
Your child can learn some basic fishing skills while improving their hand-eye coordination and reflexes.
The Sneaky, Snacky Squirrel
This game is on the list of best board games for 4-year-olds because it really is a game any 4-year-old can enjoy. With its fun and bright colors and its interactive play, it is sure to please any child. Plus it is very simple to play since your child does not need to know how to read or identify numbers to play. The objective of the Sneaky, Snacky Squirrel is for each player to be the first to fill their log with five acorns. Just spin the spinner, match the color with an acorn, and use your squirrel squeezer to pick up the acorns to place in your log.
This game really reinforces learning their colors, matching, hand-eye coordination, and learning to take turns.
Alphabet Bingo!
To get a jumpstart on reading, this next game is the game you are looking for. Next on the list of best board games is Alphabet Bingo. This game is just like the classic Bingo game, but instead of numbers, each Bingo sheet features different letters and objects associated with the letter. Simply reach into a bag and call out the letter. If you have the letter on your game sheet, place a token on it. The first player to call “BINGO” with four tokens in a row is the winner.
With this game, your child can learn letter recognition, object association, and improve their concentration skills.
The Ladybug Game
Does your kid love bugs but you are hoping to get them started on learning their letters and numbers? If the answer is yes, then you need to get them this next game on our list of best board games. With the Ladybug Game your child will have fun learning while helping the ladybugs find their way home. Simply follow the instructions on each card to move your ladybug through the rose garden past the praying mantis. Each card features bright colors, numbers, and symbols which allows even the youngest players to have fun.
This game was designed by first- graders to help other kids easily learn how to read and recognize letters and numbers.
Best Board Games for Learning How to Cooperate
Noah’s Animal Rescue!
Next on our list of best board games for 4-year-olds is a board game that encourages kids to play together. In Noah’s Animal Rescue, instead of the usual objective of “who reaches the finish line first”, this game encourages kids to communicate and work together. The endgame of this board game is essentially a win-win situation for everyone playing. The objective of this game is to get all the animals on the boat before the Great Flood, and the only way to do this is by working together.
If you are looking for a game that emphasizes cooperation instead of competition, look no further.
Stack Up!
This next game on our list of best board games is actually a great game for all ages. Since the true nature of the game is for everyone to work together, the game is perfect for playing with your kids since the game always ends in a win-win situation. Your child will have fun stacking, spinning, and working together. The objective of Stack Up is to work together to stack blocks and build a tower. And on top of learning to cooperate, this game helps with matching skills and hand-eye coordination.
This game also has three different levels of play instructions so your child can still enjoy it as they get older.
Hoot Owl Hoot
Another game on our list of best board games that help kids play together is Hoot Owl Hoot. The objective of this game is to work together to help all the little owls get home before the sun goes up. To play, pick a color card and fly to that space. If a player draws a sun card, you become one step closer to daylight. Instead of being assigned a pawn like in most games, each player can move any owl on their turn and talk together about how to get the owls home.
By working together, your child will learn different social skills such as learning to cooperate, take turns, and communicate ideas.
Snug As A Bug In A Rug
The next cooperative game on our list of best board games is called Snug As A Bug In A Rug. In this game, players work collectively to get all the bugs under the rug before the stink bugs are released. To get the bugs under the rug, each player takes turns to spin the spinner to decide which bug is next to hide. Like the three games before this, there is no winner in the game. Either everyone wins or everyone loses.
This game is great because it not only enforces cooperative and collective play, but this game also teaches about colors, shapes, numbers, and sizes.
Best Board Games for Building Suspense
Don’t Break the Ice
If your child is a little more versed in board games, this next board game might pique their interest. Don’t Break the Ice is on the list of best board games for 4-year-olds because it helps add suspense to your child’s playtime. This game is easy and interactive for kids starting at the age of three but can easily be played with older kids as well. Even mom and dad can join in the suspense with this one. The objective of this game is to knock out the blocks of ice one-by-one without letting the penguin fall of the board.
This game is great because it really allows your child to use their critical thinking skills.
TOP BRIGHT Colored Stacking Blocks
Similar to the classic stacking board game Jenga, in TOP BRIGHT Colored Stacking Blocks animal pictures help provide the twist to the classic game. Instead of taking turns choosing a block to stack on the top, use the dice or included deck of cards to choose which block will be taken out next.
This game is great for learning how to match, improve critical thinking skills, and improve hand-eye coordination.
Orangutwang
The next suspenseful game on our list of best board games is called Orangutwang. The objective of this game is to hang as many fruit and jungle friends as possible on the Orangutan. But you have to be quick because the Orangutan cannot hold all the fruits and friends forever. To play the game, each player rolls the dice to see what they will be hanging on the Orangutan before he sends everything flying in the air.
This game is not only fun and suspenseful, but it helps your child develop critical thinking skills when deciding the best place to hang an object on the Orangutan without causing everything to fly up.
Shark Bite
What screams suspenseful more than a game featuring a shark? The last game on our list of best board games is called Shark Bite. Kids who love the classic fishing game will love this game with its added suspenseful twist. Instead of catching as many fish as possible, the object of this game is to save as many sea creatures from inside the shark’s mouth. But players beware! You never know when the shark will close its mouth and bite you. To decide which creature you will reel out, roll the dice to determine who will be saved next.
Parents love this game for its easy set-up, but this game is also great because it teaches kids how to take turns, matching skills, hand-eye coordination, and critical thinking skills.
All-in-all board games are a great way for 4-year-olds to develop the skills they are learning each day. They are especially great for encouraging play with other kids and for learning how to follow instructions.
With 20 of the best board games to choose from, you are bound to find a game your preschooler will love. Whether the game is for your child to enjoy with friends and siblings or even with a parent, now is the time to buy a game or two for your next family game night.
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