Top 10 favorite board games – by poll of my older adopted kids

1. Life (ugh…not also mom’s favorite, but the kids like it!)




2. Any Cranium games




3. Othello




4. Mastermind




5. Battleship




6. Mancala




7. Blokus




8. Rummikub




9. Uno




10. Sequence




11. Racko




12. Domino games




13. Boggle

I know that I promised “10 favorite board games” and listed 13 instead. My kids aren't overly great at counting, I guess, and I wanted to share with you their ideas.

I ran across a great article, The Benefits of Board Games. Lots of great information there. It wasn't specifically about using board games to bond with adopted children. Yet, the information seemed like they were playing straight in to this very topic.

Playing games with your kids is a perfect way to spend time together. What your child most wants — and needs — is to be with you with no goal in mind beyond the joy of spending time together. He wants you to take pleasure in him, play with him, and listen to him. Nothing bolsters his self-esteem more! So why not pull out an old board game tonight? Playing games is an easy and excellent way to spend unhurried, enjoyable time together. As an added bonus, board games are also rich in learning opportunities.

As I brought up in my previous blog (Board Games and Bonding part one), board games have so many life skills to help teach our children along with the great opportunities for bonding.

Just by virtue of playing them, board games can teach important social skills, such as communicating verbally, sharing, waiting, taking turns, and enjoying interaction with others. Board games can foster the ability to focus, and lengthen your child's attention span by encouraging the completion of an exciting, enjoyable game. Even simple board games offer meta-messages and life skills: Your luck can change in an instant — for the better or for the worse. The message inherent in board games is: Never give up. Just when you feel despondent, things can change. You might ascend up high, if you stay in the game for just a few more moves.

There is more in the article that I think you'd like. You can find it here: The Benefits of Board Games