Audiology therapist: 11 skills that a child develops by playing board games

Author: Santa Salaca

I recently listened to a Brain Games live talk (still available here ) about playing board games with kids and was inspired to write about it.

The festivities are over and the gifts have been received. It is wonderful when gifts bring not only short-term excitement, but are able to bring joy in the long term as well. Besides, isn't it great when the joy comes with the gift of time spent together, the ability to develop new skills, and something that just another toy car might not be able to provide?

Board games are definitely one such gift in my opinion. In addition, it is wrong to think that board games are only for adults. Nowadays, even the smallest ones can find them (only a little more parental patience is needed). Even a three-year-old can become a great playmate if you give him the chance!

Using board games in working with children

As a certified audiologist / myofunctional therapist, I practice working with children at an early age. On a daily basis, I work with children who have cognitive, swallowing, breathing, language, speech development and other difficulties. Every child is unique and everyone needs to find the right approach! It's a huge challenge! Like learning complex things in a fun and as simple as possible way. Play is a fantastic tool to incorporate into therapy , and as long as we can use play to achieve the goal of therapy - to give the child positive emotions, to interact together and spend time with a smile - we have achieved more than we could wish for!

Board games are also widely used in classes and have many benefits. I have collected some of them to encourage you to dare to change the usual evening cartoon for a shared board game during the holidays, and perhaps it will become a new tradition for your family togetherness.

With the help of board games, it is possible to develop cooperation skills, work with speech and language skills, and also promote the development of fine motor skills . Board games are a wonderful tool for developing logical thinking and analytical skills . And the important thing is that we can use one game for different purposes!

1. Ability to follow rules/instructions

"Now you", "wait", "throw the dice", "put the block" etc. c. the instructions to follow during the game are sometimes a huge challenge. Learning this requires countless other skills - the child needs to learn the ability to cooperate, focus, hear and understand instructions, as well as the ability to stay focused, and this is far from easy.

2. Vocabulary

The game world is gorgeous and extremely rich. In it, you can find games not only for different ages, but also for interests and needs. Board games can be used to learn colors, numbers, shapes, name different objects and living creatures, learn actions, adjectives and other word classes ("take only the yellow ones", "put it on the card or under the card", "put it on the big circle" etc.). You can find something relevant in each of them.

3. Cooperation skills

Both when learning to play in a team to complete a task together, supporting each other, and on the contrary - when playing against each other, we make eye contact with a partner, learn to patiently wait for our turn , let the next player wait for his turn as well , passing on game objects or, if necessary, some specific instruction.

4. Understanding sequence and creating a narrative

Most games involve performing several actions in sequence (following certain instructions). First, the child performs these sequential actions that lead to a certain result . Second, we have the opportunity to ask him to comment on it and later retell it ("first", "then", "after", "later", "at the end", etc.).

5. Development of structures involved in articulation

First of all, for most board games, we can figure out the rules that are "missing" in order to achieve the necessary goal. If there are animals in the game, why not show a certain movement or make a certain sound every time you draw a card of that animal? This can make the game even more fun (obviously, this is a must-do for everyone in the game)! In this way, the child is given the opportunity to complete tiring tasks in a completely different atmosphere .

Secondly, using games based on words, it is possible to learn the use of certain sounds, to form words correctly, as well as to form phrases and sentences .

6. Motivation

This one works wonderfully even for very little non-talkers. Even if the game is quite simple and consists of only a few elements, but they are quite interesting (especially if they are colorful and sound), we have the opportunity to adapt the game so that the elements are only touchable when a certain gesture is shown or verbalized a certain sound (depending on the child's ability). For older children, we can involve the creation of sentences and narratives, mathematical skills, etc. in a similar way. c.

7. Self-regulation

First of all, at a certain age, self-regulation will mainly be a story about the ability to fulfill the " once me - once you" rule. This is a very complicated rule. Especially if the game involves colorful dice, interesting pictures, if it seems fun and funny.

Second, there are other rules to follow in the game. This is a moment that could result in a battle to test the boundaries. Especially if the game is intended for, for example, a three-year-old. Chances are he will have his own version of the correct rules.

Third, if it is a game for an older child, it is more likely to involve someone winning or losing. And the winner will not always be the child.

8. Anticipation

If I do this, will this happen? But if not?

This is a skill that board games can help to develop. During the game, you often have to make strategic decisions : "what will happen if I roll the dice and roll the number 'three'?" or "what will happen if I move this dice three spaces forward?".

Sound complicated? It is not at all! This also applies to games intended for very young children. Also in situations where there are two pictures that must be placed on top of two others according to a certain principle, they perform a similar action: "If I put this picture on top of that, then I will have to put this other one on top of the other, because there is no other option."

9. Drawing conclusions

The next point follows from the previous point. I made a decision - what can I conclude from it?

"If I had rolled the dice with the number 'three', then I wouldn't be at the moment..." or "If I had moved on a different path, then at the moment... ." And in the case of smaller children, it can also be quite simple: " I put the piglet on the cow, so there was no room for the calf, but there was nothing to put on the pig."

10. Ability to listen

Sometimes games require not only subject activity and the need to speak, but also the need to listen, hear, analyze what is heard . This skill can definitely be practiced through play, making it a fun activity.

11. Ability to adapt

First, the game often shows that there are different ways to achieve a goal .

Second, if your plan doesn't quite work out as hoped, there's always the option of finding other ways to continue the game. Sometimes, when the rules of the game change but the items used don't, we may have to adapt a lot .

If you are looking for interesting and high-quality children's board games, take a look in this section !

Share your experience with children and playing board games in the comments!