It’s the last day of February. I’m a homeschool mom. The holidays are over. Cold lingers. Summer is still 4 months away. (Can you hear me sighing from there?)
At my house, this means burn out. And in Iowa, it means we’ve had snow on the ground for nearly 4 months and it’s looking like we’ve got another month or more of it. All of this cabin fever, too-little-sunlight, too-cold-n-wet to play outside also means a harder time falling asleep and a mighty, might case of the winter blahs.
So add it up:
- 1 burned out homeschool mom
- 3 boybarians with total cabin fever
- 4 months of snow
- 1 month more of bad weather
- 6 weeks until Spring Break
It’s time to break up the monotony! I’ve made a list of “Game Schooling” ideas to bring back the fun and get you through the spring fever! I’ve purposefully chosen non-electronic, non-video games here as many families already complain of too much screen time.
Darcy’s Top Five Game-Schooling resources:
Monopoly: this is math and communication. Let your 6-9 year old count money, make change and read the Community Chest cards. Your 10+ year olds can be bankers!
Yahtzee: Hey, it’s math again! Skip count those 3s. Add up the face of the dice. This game is so smart, kids have no idea how many basic math skills they are using!
Sorry: for the k-2 set, this is math. For older kids, it’s a lesson in sportsmanship.
Uno: Even my little one can get into this one. Matching colors and numbers is great for the PreK set. Easy enough for the 4-5 year old to play.
Apples to Apples: The boybarians beg to play this and laugh and laugh while we match unlikely partners of nouns with adjectives. Playful George Washington? Scary pickles? They have no idea it’s also grammar, vocabulary and spelling. As a bonus, you can use the Apple to Apple cards for a game of Pictionary on the white board. Ages: 6/7 and up. (Kids need to be decent readers to fully enjoy this game.)
I’d love to hear how you are incorporating games, activities or anything to break out of the winter blahs and keep your homeschool joyful. Please leave a comment or add your link so we can all gain some Lose Those Winter Blues Ideas.
Darcy is the mom to three boys ages 8, 7, and 5 and blogs over at Life with My 3 Boybarians. She is the owner of a blog design business at www.graphicallydesigning.com. She and Handy Man live in Iowa…nowhere near a Starbucks.
Some fav games at our house:
Rummikub
Moneywise Kids
Art Lotto (kind of like bingo but with art cards)
Teacher supply stores are also a great place for fun educational games. If you don’t like those high prices, I have found some great deals on edu gams at stores like Marshall’s/TJMaxx.
Marsha’s last blog post..6 months and the goodness of pumpkin pie pineapples
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Great article. I love game ideas!
Our top twelve are: (not in Order)
1.Life on the Farm
2.Word Rummy
3.dominoes
4.Zoobaloo
5.Trivial Pursuit ( we have one of the very first sets)
6.Unscrambled States of America
7.Clue
8.Multiplication War
9.Bingo (Handmade and made for any subject)
10.Connect Four
11.In a Pickle
12.Jenga
Can you tell we are addicted to games?
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I have a favorite games post here:
http://smallworldathome.blogspot.com/2007/01/favorite-family-games.html
Sarah at SmallWorld’s last blog post..Some Days Are Weeping Days
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We love games! Another favorite of my boys when they were young and we still play sometimes is “Chutes and Ladders”.
Sometimes, we head outdoors or to the library to do school somewhere else to break up the monotany.
Beth’s last blog post..Because a Little Dirt Doesn’t Hurt
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One of the favorite ‘learning games’ in our male-dominant household was… and still is… RISK! Great for geography, and now that they’re all grown, they still say it gave them a strong visual on world geography!
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As I write, my hubby and 8-year-old son are playing a game of chess. I recently started a Lego/Chess Club that meets twice a month at a local bakery run by a homeschooling family. We also have gym nights at church twice a month, which helps our boys burn off all their energy.
Lisa V.’s last blog post..Wordless Wednesday – Baby Shower
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Apples to Apples is a good grammar game [smile]. Love it when we secretly teach things while having a blast!
~Luke
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We love checkers, online math, typing, and spelling games, and a myriad of card games (go fish, matching, old maid, etc…)
Nikki’s last blog post..Upcoming At-Home Date
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