Best Educational Board Games

A board game is a great gift for a family to enjoy some family game nights. An educational board game is even better. Well done educational board games disquise learning inside of fun. When you give a family an educational board game you're offering them some family fun at home during the cold, dark winter as well as a great way to review skills and concepts over the long summer break from school.

Games that build math skills

Math-A-Kazam: Ages 6 and up (New)

This game is simple to use, quick to play and very educational. Instead of a board, there's actually a tray, tons of number tokens and a magic wand. The numbers can be used to work on addition, subtraction, multiplication and division.

Math-A-Kazam is a new game created by Mindware, (www.mindware.com) one of my favorite educational toy companies. Math-A-Kazam is $19.95 and it makes a great gift for ages six through ten.

Add A Bug: Ages 4 and up

This educational board games is super colorful and kid-attractive. With rain forest themed dice, 45 plastic bugs, 4 see through storage jar and even a magnifying glass, Add A Bug will build math skills as kids "take 3 bugs" or "lose 2 bugs."

Add A Bug is also from TTGO (www.ttgo.com). It's $24.95 and this teacher gives it an A plus for four, five and six year olds.

Games to practice spelling skills and reading skills

Word Pirates: Ages 6 and up

Word Pirates won a Creative Child Magazine's 2008 Preferred Choice Award and this family can see why. It's fun to create words with letter dice in a race to the treasure. The pirate theme is fun but the real treasure here is that kids are building spelling skills.

I recommend this game for ages six up to about ten years old. My eleven says though that it is still cool enough for her to play to help her younger brother learn to spell. Word Pirates is from Mindware (www.mindware.com) and is available for Christmas 2010 for $24.95.

Zingo: Ages 4 and up

Zingo has really put some zing into traditional bingo. Zingo works on pre-reading, reading and spelling skills with pictures to accompany words and two sided cards for two different skill levels. Two to four players can play Zingo at once and it moves fast enough to keep even preschoolers interested.

Zingo is very educational. You'll see why it has won a Learning Magazine's Teacher Award and Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Seal. This educational game is available from Mindware (www.mindware.com) for Christmas 2010 for $19.95. I really like Zingo as a gift for four and five year olds learning to read.