With little kids, it’s easy to combine education and fun. But once they hit the advanced age of five or so, a lot of kids see the educational component a mile away and rebel. Fortunately, game designers have figured out many clever ways to slip in some (and in many cases, a lot of) serious business learning, without sacrificing the all-important fun factor. Here are some recent games that caught our attention.
Thrill Rides Clock Work (K’NEX)
In addition to being fun to ride on, roller coasters are gigantic examples of physics and engineering in action. There’s gravity, centrifugal force, various types of energy, friction, drag, acceleration, and more. This 300+ piece kit lets you teach (and learn) all those lessons right in your own home. It comes with a battery-powered motor (but batteries aren’t included) and an easy-to follow instruction manual that will lead you through building a coaster of your very own that’s more than two feet tall. Thrill Rides kits are also compatible with each other, so you can build even bigger models. K’NEX pieces are made in the USA in a landfill-free, zero-waste manufacturing facility. For ages 7+. $$34.95. https://www.knex.com
Continue reading
Inspired by Cards Against Humanity, this one is closer to being for the whole family (but with plenty of double-entendre possibilities to titillate more mature players). It’s all about filling in the blanks in questions like, “I dare you to tell your dad about___” or “Grandma believes that ____ is the source of all goodness.” Comes with 455 cards. If that’s not enough, expansion packs are also available. Under $25. 4-10 players, ages 8+. 
Sammy is an adorable peanut butter and jelly sandwich (with some serious electronics inside) who’s designed to teach coding principles to young children. You don’t need any other devices—all the programming is done by laying out a series of code cards with instructions (turn right, turn left, play sounds, turn on your lights, etc.). Those, Sammy, who includes a robotic base, drives over the cards and memorizes the sequences, which he will then repeat on a larger map. Sammy teaches kids basic coding concepts like sequences, loops, algorithms, and conditions. Don’t like peanut and butter? No problem. The robotic base can be use with a number of other characters, including a penguin, mouse, and fire truck. Comes with a thorough, accessible manual with lessons, challenges, stories, and instructions for how to assemble the characters and more. We’re absolutely blown away by what young kids are able to do these days. Ages 4-8. About $115. 
Long before Harry Potter and his friends at Hogwarts took over the world, kids and adults wished they could conjure things out of nowhere and make them vanish again, turn apples into oranges, and make objects float in midair. With this kit, you’ll be able to perform jaw-dropping feats of magic that will captivate and delight your audience (and probably amaze yourself in the process). It comes with props and instructions to do 100 tricks: knots in one rope jump to another, a wand levitates, coins pass through objects and disappear, a small pile of sugar turns into a sugar cube, and a lot more. The kit comes with a nicely illustrated 72-page instruction manual, but there are also 26 online video tutorials so your budding Houdini can see the tricks actually being performed. If you like this Silver Edition, there are several larger sets (150 and 200 tricks). For ages 8 and up. About $21 at many retailers. 
As much as we love traditional block-based building systems, we’re delighted at the ongoing trend toward more open-ended systems with unique pieces and ways of connecting them. Brackitz is one of the best, and they keep getting better. The new Driver Set comes with 43 pieces and directions for building 10 driving machines, including a teeter-totter, a gyro copter, a windmill, and a dragster. But who says you have to follow directions, when you can follow your imagination instead? Brackitz kits are great for individual or collaborative play and for building spatial- and engineering skills. They combine with other Brackitz kits as well as with other systems, such as Keva planks and CitiBlocs. For ages 3+. Under $25 at amazon.com, other retailers, and 
