The Best Educational Board Games for Kids
Looking for a learning game that's actually fun? This is a list of our favorites from the Bananagrams office.
“Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.” Benjamin Franklin.
It’s easy to learn when we’re relaxed, involved and having fun. That’s why educational board games are such a great way to develop kids’ literacy and math skills. While there’s an incredible range of educational apps out there, board games are often more collaborative, bring together family and friends, and also benefit from fewer distractions.
Here are a few of our favourite board games for learning.
For Spelling and Literacy
My First Bananagrams is a multi-award-winning word-game for kids. It features lowercase letters that help children grow a love for word games and wordplay, and aligns perfectly with reading curriculums. It’s also packed with mini-games which focus on developing different skills that are essential for reading, spelling and writing. It’s travel-size too!
Good for making words and reading fun.
Ages 4+.
Word-a-Melon is a word game with a twist – you can’t make any words until you remember where the right letter tiles are! It’s a one-on-one game, perfect for siblings or playing against adults. The combination of a memory and spelling challenge make it extra tense and competitive, and the super colorful pouch make it a firm favorite in our household.
Good for memory and word play.
Ages 6+.
For Learning Math, Numeracy and Coding
Mobi – the numerical tile game in a whale pouch
Mobi is a tile game that helps kids feel a little more confident with numbers and arithmetic. It plays similarly way to Bananagrams, with each player starting with several tiles and racing to make connecting sums out of the numbers and arithmetic operators (‘+’, ‘x’ etc).
Math can feel like a bit of a chore to kids, but the cute whale pouch and fast playing helps keep little ones engaged.
Good for cultivating a love of numbers
Ages 6+
Go – the ancient Chinese board game
Talk to any professor of mathematics and they’ll say that math is really about logic, not numbers. Go is over 3,000 years old and has a reputation as being the most strategic, logical game ever made - which is why it’s a favorite among mathematicians. It’s an educational game that’s very easy to learn to play, but very hard to master! It’ll teach your kids how to think and reason through complex situations.
Good for building higher level logic skills
Ages 8+
Gravity Maze – the marble run logic game
If Go looks a little plain for your kids then Gravity Maze is a great alternative. It’s full of bright colors, moving parts and marbles. The challenge is to get the marble to the right square by constructing cubes which all take the marble in a different direction. It’s an excellent educational game that develops the skillsets needed to be a master computer programmer!
Good for kids that like to build things
Ages 8+
Code Master - programming and coding learning game
With a Minecraft style design and an Indiana Jones inspired back story, Code Master is an educational game in disguise. Players must hunt for power crystals in a mysterious word, using coding and logic to move their way around. Each level has one unique solution and requires more than a little brain power to get there. Even the adults will be scratching their heads at some of the more advanced levels!
Good for stretching top performers
Ages 8+
For History and General Knowledge
Brainbox for kids – World History (and others)
Usually memorizing facts and then being tested on them is the exact opposite of fun, but Brainbox have made it entertaining. Each player gets a card with fascinating world history facts on to memorize in ten seconds. They then get points for every fact they can remember!
Good for learning more about the world
Ages 8-12
We’ve all played Top Trumps at some point in our lives, but had you played the educational versions? From space, to presidents and wildlife – Top Trumps can be a light, educational game for taking in facts without realising it.
Good for soaking up facts
Ages 6+