Tsuro Makes a Great Family Game

Every holiday season, I pick out two or three family board games. The clear favorite this year is Tsuro. I would have never found Tsuro on my own. While beautiful, it is not flashy and doesn't scream out how great it is. I would not have even noticed it on the shelf. I only bought it because the guy at the game store said it was a good game. When I checked it out on Amazon, the nearly 5 star reviews confirmed his recommendation.

Tsuro can be played by two to eight people. We played with three. The game is simple to learn: Put down one of your three cards, follow the path, and don't fall off the edge of the board. But the strategy is not so simple and I am still a long ways from figuring it out. Here is what I like about this game:

• It is one of those rare and wonderful games that works for the whole family. An eight year old and an adult can play and both have fun.
• It is elegant in its simplicity, but it is not simple. Because each of the path cards are different, and because each card can be placed in four different ways (four sides), each game will be unique.
• It is easy to set up and put away. A game takes less than 20 minutes, so it is great if you don't have all evening.
• I also like that it has a definite eastern theme. The makers of this game could have westernized it - putting the board and the pieces in bright colors and giving it an exciting name. Probably it would have sold better. But I am so glad they did not. The authentic design of this game makes it a joy to play. Before the rules there is this paragraph:

"Since time began, the Dragon and the Phoenix have guarded over and guided the intertwining paths of life, maintaining the careful balance between the twin forces of choice and destiny. These tow powerful beings share the noble task of overseeing the many roads that lead to divine wisdom. Through its masterful blend of strategy and chance, Tsuro represents the classic quest for enlightenment."

So, if you are looking for a terrific game to play with your family and friends, Tsuro could be it.

If you are looking for more game recommendations here are three other posts I have written:
Bananagrams
Three Great Games
Apples to Apples

Apples to Apples: The Best Family Game Ever

If you don't already own Apples to Apples, please consider putting it on your family's holiday gift list. Here is why, along with some tips for different ways to play if you are already familiar with the game:

Everyone Plays at Once Even when it is not your turn, you are still actively participating. No one gets bored waiting for their turn.

Tip: Sometimes players (usually one repeatedly) take a long time to play their card, holding up the whole round. One way to solve this, especially if you are playing with a big group, is to make a rule that says that the last card played does not count for that round.

You can Play with Big and Small Groups I have played this game with up to 15 people and it still works. However, if that feels like too much, you can easily just split into two groups since there is no central board needed.

Tip: If you only have three or four people and want to play, there are two good ways to proceed:

• Deal 8 cards instead of 5 and allow each player to contribute two cards to each round (and draw 2 cards for the next round)


• Create an imaginary player. Here is how: put a stack of cards off to the side. For each round, draw a card from that stack (without looking) and mix it in with the other players' cards. If that card is chosen by the judge, then the imaginary player wins the round. For added fun, name your imaginary player, or place a teddy bear or doll in the imaginary player's seat.

Even Young Children Can Play There is a Junior Version with easier, and more appropriate words. Even non readers can play by partnering up with a reader. The classic Edition will work for most kids over 12, though there will still be some historical references they won't get. There is also a Jewish Edition, Bible Edition and a Disney Edition.

Tip: You could allow children to put back cards with references to people or historical events that they do not know, but you could also grab that teachable moment by having the child show the card first so that an adult or older child can explain the reference.

It Requires Players to Think Critically and Creatively To play successfully, players must consider how the player acting as the judge for a given round will view the cards they put down. Players often use prior knowledge about a person's likes, dislikes, history etc. when evaluating their choices. Since players can "lobby" for their cards, they need to think about what the best strategy would be for convincing the judge to choose their card (should they choose to lobby at all - sometimes silence is golden).

Tip: Playing Sour Apples (when players put down the opposite card to go with the judge's card) is a fun variation that adds an extra level of thinking.

It is Fun! This is one of those rare games that is equally fun for both children and adults. My daughter, who is nearly 14 and too cool for almost everything, still loves to play this game with her friends!

Tip: Just for fun, at the end of the game have each person say, "I am..." and then list the green cards that they have won.

200 Would You Rather Questions for Kids

Analogy Practice

Three Ways to Entertain Small Children While Waiting

So, you are stuck in a very long line at the supermarket behind that woman who has 65 thousand coupons, most of which are expired, but she is insisting that the checker call the manager, and your four year old is getting whiny and your six your old is getting grumpy and you are really wanting a hot bath, but there you are in the check out line with a cart full of groceries and two tired kids. You could give into their pleas for a candy bar, or you could use this time to get them thinking by trying one of these quick and easy games:

Name 5 Things That... This is a very simple, yet oddly appealing game. It is also a good exercise in fluent thinking. Simply ask your kids to name 5 things that share a given quality. For example:

• Name 5 things that are soft
• Name 5 things that are pointy
• Name 5 things that are blue
• Name 5 things that are made of glass
• Name 5 things that you can read

That's the whole game. We used to play it in the car when my kids were little.
Mental Math Make up a math story with several parts. Tell it slowly so that your child can do the mental math as you tell the story. For example:

Katie had 8 crayons. She left 2 of them out in the sun and they melted. The next day, she gave the black and yellow crayons to her friend, Tim so he could make a bumble bee. Later, her mother gave her a new box of 8 more crayons. How many crayons does Katie have now?

What am I? Give your child 3 or 4 clues to guess what you are. Try to make your clues go from broad to specific. For example:

I am round.
I am flat.
You eat dinner on me.
What am I?

Looking for more ways that you can teach your kids? Check out the Linky Party at Teaching Blog Addicts!

Single-Serving Recipes in Pictures
Would You Rather Questions for Kids

3 Games to Play While Waiting for the Food

You are at a restaurant waiting for the food to come and your kids are...shall we say, a little squirrely. Here are some games to keep their hands and their minds busy!

Memory Quiz

• Make a grouping of 7 or 8 objects from the table: sugar packets, silver wear, salt shaker etc.
• Give the other players 10 or so seconds to look at it.
• Have them cover their eyes while you remove one object.
• Now the players get to guess which object is missing.
• The winner of the first round gets to be the one to choose the item to hide for the next round.

One or Two?

• This is a game for two players.
• Place 7 sugar packets in a row.
• Player one may take away 1 or 2 sugar packets.
• Player two may also take away 1 or 2 packets.
• Continue to take turns in this manner
• The one who is left with the last sugar packet loses.
• The loser gets to go first in the next round.
• Watch your kids figure out the best strategy for winning.

Extended Tic-Tac-Toe

• Draw a large Tic-Tac-Toe board on a napkin or the back of a place mat
• Give each player 3 markers - these could be different color sugar packets, or different flavored jams.
• Begin playing in the usual way. When a player runs out of markers, she must move one of her markers that is on the board to another space in the grid.
• Play until someone wins.

200 Would You Rather Questions for Kids

More Creative and Critical Thinking Activities

Three Great Games

Our family loves to play games with interesting strategies. When my kids were younger, I was always looking for games that we could all enjoy together - even the adults (Because, honestly, how much fun is Battleship?). Here are three of our favorites. They came into our lives when my kids were in elementary school and we are still playing them today! All would make excellent editions to any classroom.

SET
Everyone plays at once during SET. Players must find sets of three cards using the attributes on each card. The game is quite challenging, yet kids as young as six can learn it. My daughter was beating me regularly by the time she was eight. It is great to have the game but you can also play a daily puzzle on the SET website . There is also a great tutorial as well as lots of mathematical background on why SET is great for your brain. SET has won many awards and has been one of our favorites for years.

Hey! That's my Fish!
Just looking at the box, you'd think Hey! That's my Fish! was just some silly kid's game. Lucky for us, the nice man at the game store took the time to show us how to play. It is full of strategies and interesting possibilities. In this game, you control a small colony of penguins trying to round up more fish than your opponents. The tricky part is that as you move your penguins, you make parts of the board disappear, possibly trapping yourself or (hopefully) your opponents. We liked this game so much we glued tiny washers to each piece so that we could use magnets to pick them up so our fingers wouldn't mess up the board - makes the game easier to play and a little more fun too!

Blokus
Personally, I find Blokus to be quite visually appealing. Something about fitting those transparent plastic shapes into just the right spot. The game is great for improving spatial skills, but it is also an excellent strategy game. Playing with four works best on this board (though there are ways to play with less). The rules suggest having each player use two colors when playing with two players, but we found that confusing. Instead, we used a permanent marker to draw a line around a 14x14 square in the center of the board, just the right size for two. Or you could buy the edition just for two players. One thing to be aware of, you can't lose any pieces! So be sure to be careful with this game!