Thursday, February 19, 2015

Games Without Screens

Sliding back 50 spots in Chutes & Ladders or scoring the fifth and final direct hit to sink your opponent's aircraft carrier in Battleship always created excitement for me as a kid.  Getting lost in the Peppermint Forest, climbing Gumdrop Mountain, or getting stuck in Molasses Swamp in Candy Land were consistently entertaining challenges. The travel versions of Chess and Checkers were staples on family road trips in my household.

Board games, or more accurately - games without screens, have been a source of enjoyment for me throughout my life. Being competitive by nature, I would eagerly seek out family members, friends, and simple acquaintances to play and to win!  Some of my all-time favorite board games are Trouble, Clue - it was Colonel Mustard in the hall with the candlestick!, Connect Four,

Sorry,



and everyone's all-time favorite...Monopoly:


Do you put $500 in the middle to start and win it if you land on Free Parking as well?

In 2015, many children now turn their attentions to Nintendo 3DS, XBox One, WiiU, or Playstation 4.  Rather than physically manipulating pieces on a board, children, more often than not, prefer the virtual movement and the slick graphics that these game systems provide.  Many Evergreen students even have headsets where they can connect to other players around the world as they compete in Super Smash Brothers and other similar games.

I am here to yell STOP, slow down and try out a game without a screen!

This is not a sales pitch by an old fuddy-duddy who grew up forever-and-a-day-ago who never knew anything different.  I grew up playing Atari, Nintendo, and Sega Genesis - NHL 93 and the Detroit Red Wings were the absolute best game and team ever!  Speaking from this experience, games without screens are simply better!

Have you ever tried playing a board game?  Do you have a favorite? Are you particularly good at one and are the reigning, undefeated champion of your household? Street? Neighborhood?  If so, I'd like to hear about it.  I want to know your go to game for fun.  Which games do you enjoy playing with your family?

If you are bored with your current choices or just looking for new ideas, might I suggest two games that are popular in my house these days: Settlers of Catan and my kids' favorite RummiKub:


Please sound off in the comments section with board games that you love!








26 comments:

  1. Thank you for telling us about games you play. My favorite board game to play is SORRY because I am a master at sorry. I play with my cousin and I always win. A new game I would like to play is battleship.

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    1. Okay...Mr. Master of SORRY...I challenge you to a game at the recess of your choosing!

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  2. Yes I have tried playing a board game. The first one I have played is sorry and
    my favorite is Jenga BOOM! I am good at Jenga. I also make board games
    for my brothers to play. Thanks for the blog.

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  3. I liked your blog this week about board games. The game Batlleship is my favorite game. I like beating my dad when we play. I want to try the game Jenga.

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    1. Ethan, do you have a specific strategy to hide your ships on the board?

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  4. Thank you for sharing your blog. My favorite game is Candyland. I play Candyand with my sister Brittany. I sometimes play with my mom too. I like winning the best. I would like to try the game Jenga, that game seems like fun.

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  5. Thank you for your blog this Week . I don't play many board games. I use to play Candyland with my Dad. I liked when I won the best.

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  6. Thank you for telling us about the games you played as a kid. My favorite game is Monopoly. I play it with my sister and my mom. A game I would like to play would be Clue. I too like to win when I play board games.

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    1. Jaylin - do you have any "house" rules for Monopoly that only your family uses? Do you put $500 in the middle to start as well?

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  7. Thank you for telling us about the game you like to play with your family . My favorite game I like to play with my family is Sorry because I am good at it. I always win. I have never played checkers . I would like to try it.

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  8. I love to play board games as well! $500 in the middle is a must when playing Monopoly. My husband and I have a board game night at least once a week. It's a great way to spend quality time together and we do get a little competitive from time to time. Our new favorite board game right now is Backgammon. I am the current reigning champion, I just hope it stays that way!

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  9. I love word games! My favorite is Bananagrams,but Scrabble is a close second!

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  10. Very recently we created game nights at our home on Friday nights. We have been teaching the kids to play chutes and ladders and connect four. I forgot how much I enjoy playing games until I started playing Heads Up with the students at school. We laughed so hard during lunch bunches, I decided to "try this at home." My husband and I frequently banish electronics and hide the ipad, Nintendo ds' and ps4 and make the kids just PLAY! On my recent trip to Texas, I found the game "Lotteria" which is a Mexican Bingo. Instead of letters and numbers they use Mexican words and characters and we use dry beans instead of chips. I am excited to teach my kids this game that is also very much part of their heritage.

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  11. Thank you for your lovely story. I really enjoyed your story. My favorite game is Philadelphia in a box,but i would like to try chess. :)

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  12. Dr.Vivadelli, I really enjoy reading your blog about your favorite board games.One of my favorite board games is clue.Jr.

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  13. WOW, my family & 2 grandsons love to play all board games- especially MONOPOLY. But we only put $200 in the middle. Sometimes we will play for days and at night we will put the game in a safe spot (so the dog won't get it) and continue in the morning. My youngest grandson Alex (age 8) seems to win most of the time.

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  14. I liked your post because it is interesting. I played the games you said, but my favorite one is monopoly.

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  15. Thank you for your lovely story. I really enjoyed your story. My favorite game is Philadelphia in a box,but i would like to try chess. :)

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  16. I really liked your blog and my favorite game is Headbandz. I'm the best player in my house.

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    1. Rahmeer - I've never heard of Headbandz...how do you play?

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  17. I liked your story about you playing board games with your family. I wonder, are you better than your family. One of my favorite game is Candyland and I am the best in the house. Im also good at Connect4. My brother is better than me at Connect4.

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  18. I liked the part when you were talking about your favorites! I like learning things about other people. My favorite board game is Headbands! ( I played it third grade.)I don't play board games because most of them confuse me. Also, they are too hard for me.

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  19. I liked your story about you playing board games with your family. I wonder, are you better than your family. One of my favorite game is Candyland and I am the best in the house. Im also good at Connect4. My brother is better than me at Connect4.

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  20. I like when you said " STOP, slow down and try out a game without a screen!
    I thought that I should stop playing on my tablet and should play checkers. My favorite game is checkers. It is very fun because it challenges my brain and moves us to a next level.

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    1. Julissa please let me know how your next game of checkers goes!

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