Swathi Palanivel
You might wonder if there is any importance of board games for toddlers(Babies of age 1-4). I was having the same doubts and wanted to know more about the role of board games in a toddler’s mental and emotional development. After looking into so many board games for toddlers and the idea behind the games and the methods I got a better insight about the importance of board games for toddlers. Board games are not only fun, but also an effective way to keep your baby off the gadgets’ screens all around! Therefore, I would like to share a few things that would actively engage your little one and let them have fun!
Kids are full of energy and to cope with that you have to find some activities. With a little patience and your guidance, your kid could now concentrate better in everything that they do! Read to know how.
What are board games?
Board games, as the name suggests, have a board accompanied with dice, cards, puzzle pieces etc. Board games for different age groups of children serve different purposes. For instance, board games for kids are generally competitive and fun filled. But in the case of Board games for toddlers, it has to be colorful, attractive and engaging for the toddler to get involved. The importance of board games for toddlers can extend from simple hand-eye coordination to complex memory techniques based on the games you choose!
Importance of board games for toddlers
Regardless of age, board games are always fun. Be it the revolving tiny fish board and the magnetic fishing rod, or the complex jigsaw puzzles, board games can save your leisure any day. But what’s the importance of board games for toddlers? Well, there are so many. Let’s get to know about them in detail.
Color and Shape recognition
Newborn babies can see only high contrast colors such as black and white. As they grow, by around 18 months our babies will be able to differentiate between different colors and shapes. There are Board games that have magnetic pieces in different colors and shapes with which the baby can form faces and shapes on their own. These board games help the babies to recognise different colors and to identify different shapes and use them all to make funny characters.
Unlike the usual objects in our home, these boards are of bright colors and attractive shapes that engage the babies for a long time. With this and other such games you could also train your babies to focus and concentrate on anything for some time.
Shabby and the boring ones lined up, you would find a hard time in choosing the best board games for kids in India. Get some cool board games for your kids to make their leisure time a happier one from this list of 10 best board games for kids in India
Hand-Eye Coordination
Another milestone in young babies’ development is the Hand-eye coordination. By 6-8 months you could see that your baby is actually grabbing things around and keeping it in their mouth. Hand-eye coordination gradually increases through practice. This also helps the kids to crawl, move around and many such activities. The importance of board games for toddlers can be understood here as these board games improve the Hand-eye coordination of the babies by keeping them engaged and persuading them to keep on playing with their attractive shapes and colors!
80% of your child’s brain develops by age three. It’s during these years that your child’s brain begins to develop memory, language, thinking and reasoning skills.
Michigan State Government website
Read more about the memory milestones of toddlers by the State of Michigan here!
Improves Memory
The importance of board games for toddlers not only covers the basic developmental milestones, but also helps in improving the memory of the babies without having to force them. Board games like matching cards help the babies to gradually improve their memory by looking onto similar cards and remembering the position of identical cards.
Babies thus get to look at all the cards on the board and find the position of two cards that look the same! This is a simple and effective board game to improve your little one to remember things, colors and names!
More Vocabularies
Babies around 1-2 years old, in general identify and understand simple words such as Mom, Dad, Dog, Car and other such words. Toddlers learn all of their vocabularies by listening to the repeated words you use to them. They are attentive and eager to learn things and all that you need to do is to teach them using the right means!
There are Board games for toddlers which have attractive pictures with their names beside them. These board games have removable pieces of alphabets that are to be fixed on the board alongside the picture. Board games like these have simple words which can be taught to the babies easily through repetition.
Easy Schooling
Most parents prefer to admit their kids into Preschools to get them used to the school environment. Though preschools help your child to be sociable and to express themselves, it is often difficult for the babies to learn in preschools. Therefore board games such as empty slates and hollow alphabet shapes help your babies to practice writing the alphabets repeatedly.
Board games thus help your little ones to learn the basics of schooling in a fun filled way and to stand out in academics when they join a preschool or schools.
Takeaway
Board games come in different concepts and for different age groups. The importance of board games for toddlers is often undervalued as we do not know much about its possibilities. I was mind blown when I got to know about these facts about the board games for toddlers and hence this article to share the knowledge that I’ve gained in my quest. Do try out different board games for toddlers to bring out the different abilities of your little one!
Additionally, Throwing a birthday party for your beautiful little girl is a little hard but it is worth all the effort. Here is a list of top 5 birthday themes for baby girls!
