Our Top 10 Family Games

This post contains affiliate links.  I receive a small commission if you purchase from my links.  Every purchase helps keep this blog going. 

A lot of board games have come in and out of our home over the course of the last 30 years.  Some are with us for only a short time.  There are a few, however, that have stood the test of time.  Whether it's our annual New Years Eve game day or just a fun-filled, family night, these are the games we return to time and time again.  Each one of them has an educational element, which makes them great games for any family to add to their collection.  Here are our family's top ten games and what we like about them. 

1.  Scrabble is a wonderful word game that reinforces spelling, vocabulary, math, and strategy.  It is played by four people.

2.  Bananagrams is also a word game a lot like Scrabble, but the game goes much faster. and allows for more players.  This is great for when you want to play a word game but don't have enough time to play a full on Scrabble game.

3.  Yahtzee is one of the first adult games I teach my children to play.  It is a dice game where you are trying to make different combinations which receive certain scores.  It is a game that can grow with the children.  When they are young, parents can add up the scores for the children and as they get older, they can begin adding up their own scores.  There is some strategy that can be learned as well, but there is still an element of luck involved.  Overall, it is a low-stress game and can be played by as many people as you would like to include.  Great for big families.

4.  Bring your Own Book is an absolutely wonderful game.  It is almost impossible to get bored with this game.  Great for parties, homeschoolers, families, friends, dorm parties, etc.  Each player brings their own book or magazine to find answers to different task cards.  Young and old can enjoy this great game.  If you can read, you can play.  Be prepared for lots of laughs.  This game reinforces reading skills, thinking skills and also helps develop a sense of humor.

5.  Codenames is an adicting game.  This game allows players to to try and tie words together and give a one word clue to their teammates that allows them to guess multiple words that have the clue word in common.  It gets tricky though and the team members that know each other best usually do the best.  A great game to help you get to know how the other person thinks.

6.  Apples to Apples is a great party game.  The judge has a green apple card with a clue and players must turn in a red apple card that they think most fits the clue the judge gave.  The judge then picks the best answer.  If you can read, you can play this game.  Young and old alike will have a fun time with this one.

7. Risk is a game that will teach you world geography, where players build up armies in hopes to take over countries and continents and eventually take over the world.  A great game for building up strategy skills and learning to form alliances.

8.  Reverse Charades is exactly what the title suggests.  Instead of having one person act out the clue word for the rest of the teammates to guess, all the teammates except one act it out for the one person left to figure out on their own what the team is doing.  Hillariously fun!

9.  Monopoly helps reinforce money skills, buying, selling, owning property, collecting rent, etc.  An all-time favorite for many in our family.

10.  Scattegories is another word game where a dice with letters of the alphabet on it is rolled.  One letter is given to the group who attempts to fill in a list of items from clue words that begin with that letter.  It is a timed game and you must try to think of words that nobody else will come up with.  A great game that will be well loved.

Whether you are on vacation, have a family game night, a party or just want to add some fun to a school day, I hope you will give one of these games a try.  What are your all-time favorite board games?  Drop me a comment below and let me know.  Maybe I will have to add one to my collection.