Seven Board Games Great for Preschoolers.
This has been one of my hardest game lists to write because there are SO MANY great games out there for preschoolers! Preschoolers are developing important skills that provide the foundation for additional skills that they will learn as they get older. Playing board games with your Preschooler can help develop these important skills in a fun and engaging way!
In my post below, I am sharing 7 board games that develop a variety of skills important for preschoolers. These skills include, social-emotional development, pre-reading skills, sequencing, early math skills (including number recognition and counting using 1:1 correspondence), learning colors & shapes, and fine motor skills. In addition, playing board games are great for developing problem solving skills, social skills, and attention span.
If you are looking for additional games that are great for preschool-aged kids, check out these posts:
Five Preschool Games for Learning Colors
Favorite Board Games for 3-year-olds
Favorite Board Games for 4-year-olds
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Digger’s Garden Match by SimplyFun
Digger’s Garden Match by SimplyFun is a game we recently added to our collection and it’s become an immediate favorite! It is perfect for kids ages 4 and up, who are practicing colors, shapes, counting and matching skills! Players take turns laying tiles to match color or shape. After matching a tile, players count how many shapes are on the tiles they matched and move their dog bone along the board to score points. The first player to reach 50 points wins! In addition to matching colors and shapes, this game is great for counting practice using 1:1 correspondence. It’s also a great game for practicing early strategizing skills, as players decide which tile to play in order to maximize how many points they score on a turn!
Be sure to check out my other recommendations for preschool games for color learning here.
Friends and Neighbors: The Helping Game by Peaceable Kingdom
I love the cooperative game Friends and Neighbors: The Helping Game by Peaceable Kingdom for Preschoolers, because it is a fun game that helps kids learn about empathy, kindness, and cooperation! Players select a token from the “Helping Bag” and use it to help a neighbor that is on the game board. For example, you may select a token with a bandage, which you can use to help a neighbor that fell and cut their knee. In terms of gameplay, this game is very difficult to “lose”, but there is a lot of value in playing the game- Friends and Neighbors can be used to encourage a child to be empathic and compassionate. As you play the game with your child, you can discuss what emotion the neighbor is expressing (sadness, anger, fear, frustration, etc). The characters can also be used as a conversation starter, by asking your child if they have ever felt that way and when. As the child selects a token from the “Helping Bag”, you can discuss how you can compassionately use that item to help a neighbor. The game also includes a small book that illustrates the different resolutions included in the game. The book illustrates how the neighbor feels after you act compassionately. For example, on one card a child feels frustrated that they are unable to reach a glass of juice. You provide them with a stool and they feel happy that they can now reach!
Robot Face Race by Educational Insights
Robot Face Race by Educational Insights is a seemingly simple game: all players try to be the first to identify a robot with features that are a certain color. But, there are over 120 robot faces on the gameboard, which makes the game challenging and keeps it fresh each time you play (no memorizing where each face is)! To play, one player shakes the Randomizer, which will decide what color the robot’s eyes, nose, mouth and face are. Then all players search on the gameboard for the robot with that combination of features. The first player to place their token on the correct robot gets to keep that token and the first player to collect 5 tokens wins! Let’s talk about the Randomizer for a minute- I love the unique design of this game component! A player shakes the Randomizer and 5 colored balls fall into holes, but only 4 holes are visible each time it’s shaken (the fifth ball falls into a hole not visible once the Randomizer is set on the table). This leads to more color combinations for the robots’ features. In addition to being a simple (but challenging) game for 4-year-olds, it also develops visual discrimination (as players scan the board looking for the correct robot), which is an important pre-reading skill and one reason I love this game for preschoolers!
Tiny Polka Dot by Math for Love
Tiny Polka Dot by Math for Love is one of those games that everyone should have in their collection! There are multiple ways to play with games for kids ages 3+, 4+, and all the way up to kids 7+! For Preschoolers, this game is great for practicing 1:1 correspondence and learning to associate number symbols with number quantities. The game includes a set of number cards (numbers 0-10) and five different suits of Tiny Polka Dot cards. All of the cards are printed on sturdy cardboard, which is great for Preschoolers!
Memory Match: Shapes Around Us by Skillmatics
Memory matching games are great for Preschoolers and I love Memory Match: Shapes Around Us by Skillmatics because it is a great game to practice naming and identifying shapes, along with building important memory skills! There are two ways to play this game. The first way is to be the first player to find and match all six objects on their board. This game plays like a classic “memory match” game, except that players turn over one tile at a time and try to find an image that matches one on their game board. The second way to play involves rolling a die with a different shape on each side. During their turn, a player rolls the die and turns over a tile. If the player turns over a tile that matches the shape that they rolled, they get to keep the tile. The first player to collect six tiles wins!
Sophie’s Seashell Scramble by Educational Insights
Sophie’s Seashell Scramble by Educational Insights is a pattern matching game that also helps develop important fine motor skills, including building finger & hand strength that is important when a child starts to write! During this game, players take turn spinning a spinner. The spinner lands on a pattern and the player uses tongs (shaped like a sea otter) to collect a seashell with the matching pattern. The first player to collect five seashells with different patterns wins!
Education Insights has a collection of games that are similar. We also love The Sneaky, Snacky Squirrel game for practicing color matching.
Pancake Pile-Up by Educational Insights
Pancake Pile-up by Educational Insights is a great game for Preschoolers to practice sequencing skills. A bonus of this game is that it involve movement, which is always a favorite for kids! During this game, individuals (or teams) race to collect the pancakes in the order shown on an Order Card. Players collect the correct pancake, place it on their spatula, and carefully race back to their plates to assemble the pancake stack. The race continues until one server (or team) finishes their stack of pancakes (in the correct sequence) and tops it with a pat of butter!
For more board game recommendations for Preschoolers, check out these posts:
Five Preschool Games for Learning Colors
Favorite Board Games for 3-year-olds
Favorite Board Games for 4-year-olds
Shop my full list of game suggestions for Preschoolers on Amazon!