Category: Games for Thinking and Learning

Fun Educational Gift Ideas 0

Fun, Educational Gifts & Activities

With birthdays coming up, I am often on the look-out for educational activities that might be appealing to my kids. I also grab things from time-to-time that will add some sparkle to our units.  This post has a number of educational things I’ve added to our homeschool collection… puzzles, games, geography activities, science tools and more! 🙂 Critical Thinking Challenge! My kids really love this activity called Kanoodle (affiliate link)...

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Critical Thinking Activities – Analogies, Logic & More

With our yearly testing behind us, we are going to spend some time on another side of math — analogies, logical reasoning, and math puzzles. These help kids develop logical thinking, analytical abilities, and mathematical reasoning. I thought I’d share some of the resources we use in our homeschool. My kids were SO, SO excited to get back to these activities!!  With life as busy as it has been, I can’t...

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15 Family Favorite Board and Card Games

We play a lot of games and with the holidays coming up, I thought I would highlight some of our favorites.  DD absolutely *loves* board games so we have a huge selection of card games and board games in our cabinets! I’m going to start with a couple of games that we use regularly in our homeschool, then will highlight some of the games we love pulling out for family...

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10 Creative Thinking Questions for Kids – Free Printable

I have something a little different to share with you today! This past week, we’ve been doing some major re-organization of the homeschool room. I came across an old printout with some creative thinking questions I once compiled.  I thought it would be fun to start off the day with something a little different for the kids… some off-the-wall creative thinking questions. I really hope the kids have fun with...

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Strategy Game: Quoridor (ages 6+)

I don’t know about you, but there are times when the kids complain about being bored and not having anything to do.  We’ve been trying to bring out some board games that don’t get much use during the school year. A couple weeks ago, I wrote about a game called Quarto. Another quick strategy game we’ve been playing this summer is called Quoridor. (affiliate link) The goal of this game is...

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Ideas for Keeping the Family Close-Knit and Strong

In family life, love is the oil that eases friction, the cement that binds closer together, and the music that brings harmony. — Eva Burrows Does your family hold a regular family meeting?  We started holding one a couple of years ago and started some traditions that are still family favorites… “candle night,” the “smiley under the plate” and getting downright silly with the kids in “knock your socks off.”...

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Quarto Strategy Game

This summer, we’re trying to bring out some of the board games that are often ignored during the school year. Board games and strategy games can foster the ability to think, focus, and problem solve. Games require players to plan ahead and can help develop more sophisticated thinking skills. Games are beneficial because they foster social interaction and social skills. Everyone practices taking turns and following the rules.  Games also help...

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Family Games Night (A Review of Several Games)

It has been WAAaay too long since we had a family games night. For a while we did really well holding a family meeting once a month or so (see this post-Holding a Family Meeting) and this post (Our Monthly Family Meeting).  Last weekend, though, everyone was home (no sleep-overs, no sporting events!) and so we gathered together to play a bunch of games! Fun! This was the first time we...

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Wonderful Geography Games for Kids

We have been playing a couple of wonderful geography games in our homeschool. We have the Africa version, but you can also buy these same games in a version of Europe, Asia, or the Americas. The first is a card game called WorldWise Geography (Africa) I got for just a couple of dollars (it’s a different version that the one I linked to. It looks like the game has been...

Math Dice Game: Mmm Brains 0

Math Dice Game: Mmm Brains

With Halloween right around the corner it seems only fitting that I bring up this game, Mmm Brains. It sounds gruesome, but it’s really just a dice game which requires addition and multiplication.  It brings the kids running, so you can’t beat that, right?! This game has five dice with the numbers 1-5 and a brain on each side.  Then there are lots of counters (red brains=5 and white brains=1)....

Cooperative Games: The Secret Door 0

Cooperative Games: The Secret Door

We have several cooperative games that we play pretty regularly.  I love that there is no winner or loser!  A few weeks ago we borrowed another cooperative game from a friend called, The Secret Door. It was a huge hit with all of my kids! In this game there are clock cards and object cards. Set Up: Before the game starts you place three object cards behind the wooden door....

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Games for Thinking and Learning: Blink

This is a series about the logic and critical thinking games we play in our homeschool.  We have a table in our homeschool room and I rotate in new games a couple of times a week. These are all games we’ve acquired for schooling and/or for fun (I haven’t received them to review). Today I’m going to highlight a card game called Blink that is a great game for preschoolers on...

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Games for Thinking and Learning: Lab Mice

This is a series about the logic and critical thinking games we play in our homeschool.  We have a table in our homeschool room and I rotate in new games a couple of times a week. These are all games we’ve acquired for schooling (I haven’t received them to review).  Back in September I explained… Why games? They’re fun. They can be challenging and helps kids (and adults!) apply creative...

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Games for Thinking and Learning: Set

This is a series about some of games we include in our homeschool. Set is a fast paced card game that requires the players to think quickly and logically.  Set is a fairly easy game to learn to play and can be played by one or more players. To play, we laid out twelve cards.  Each card contains one of three symbols (squiggles, diamonds, ovals) in varying numbers (up to three),...