Are you looking for board games that younger players can enjoy as much as the whole family? How many of these board games for 6 year olds have you heard of in our list of favourite games?
In our list of board games for 6 year olds, you will discover so many fun board games for 6 year olds that aren’t the obvious choices like Uno or Snakes and Ladders.
Family board games are a great way to spend quality time together and include the entire family. Whether you have older kids, younger kids, or a mix of both, family game night is a great way to broaden your children’s skillset. Introducing board games to your 6 year old will be a great benefit to their problem-solving skills, fine motor skills, social skills, and critical thinking.
When it comes to board games for young children, you want them to have fun and be engaged, but not to overwhelm or dishearten them with too many rules and strategic thinking beyond their years. All younger players are different, so I have grouped the board games for 6 year olds into starter games with simple rules and gameplay, and a latter section of board games for 6 year olds that are a little more strategic and challenging.
Introductory board games for 6 year olds
Card games for 6 year olds
Dobble
Dobble is a visual card game where the aim is to match pictures between two cards, think an advanced ‘matching cards’ game – the fastest person to spot a match wins.
There are numerous different ways to play Dobble, which keeps the gameplay fresh. Dobble is a compact card game that is great for traveling.
There are various branded versions of Dobble, so if your 6 year old is particularly into animals, Marvel, or Harry Potter, there’ll be a themed Dobble version out there for you.
Dobble is a great introductory board game for 6 year olds because it is all picture based – no text!
Uproar
Along the same lines as Dobble, but with words and noises.
Take any two cards, find the only matching pair of words, and first to make the sound wins the cards. Whoever has the most cards at the end of the game is the winner.
Uproar’s tagline is “If you can read, you can play”, so this is definitely a game that 6 year olds and adults alike can get involved with.
Happy Salmon
Happy Salmon is a fast-paced card game that can get loud and very silly. The aim of Happy Salmon is to get rid of your stack of cards by finding a match with another player’s card. The first person to get rid of all of their cards wins.
Happy Salmon is a great board game for 6 year olds because it has a huge fun factor.
Avocado Smash
Another fun fast-paced board game perfect for 6 year olds is Avocado Smash. It’s a frenzied twist on the card game ‘Snap’. It involves counting avocadoes and being the fastest player to spot a match.
Sleeping Queens
This card game is recommended for 8+, but there is a lot of luck involved, which levels the playing field so 6 year old’s can totally get involved in this board game.
The object of the game is to wake all of the Sleeping Queens using the cards in your hand which all have various different powers.
Sleeping Queens has magical elements to delight children in the form of Knights, Dragons, Sleeping Potions, Wands and Jesters- fantasy fans will enjoy this board game.
Dexterity board games for 6 year olds
Go Cuckoo
Go Cuckoo is a game that will test your hand-eye coordination. The aim of the game is to remove a nest of coloured sticks without the eggs falling off. There is a jenga and buckeroo element to Go Cuckoo and it is enjoyed by children and adults alike.
Go Cuckoo is recommended from 4 years and up, so it’s one of the most suitable games for younger children in our list of board games for 6 year olds.
Rhino Hero
Rhino Hero is a fun game for ages 5 and up. This great game involves building a wobbly tower of cards and helping Rhino Hero to scale the tower before it topples over.
Coconuts
Coconuts is always a popular game with the younger members of our family and their friends. Coconuts involves shooting very bouncy rubber coconuts into cups with your monkey slingshot. Yes, there are echoes of beer pong to this fun family game.
Cooperative games for 6 year olds
Ghost Fightin’ Treasure Hunters
It’s people VS ghosts in this great cooperative game of teamwork. Win or lose, all players have to work together to collect treasure jewels before the room becomes haunted.
Ghost Fightin’ Treasure Hunters is one of the best games for 6 year olds who don’t like coming last, as every player is on the same team working together.
More board games for 6 year olds
Dragomino
Win this domino tile game by hatching the most baby dragon eggs. Match terrain types next to one another to earn a dragon egg for each match.
Dragomino is the junior version of Kingdomino, specifically designed for younger players age 5 and up. Dragomino is a very quick game, ideal for young children with short attention spans.
Stomp the Plank
Pirate fans look no further, Stomp the Plank is the game for you!
The game board is set out like a pirate ship, complete with planks that you must avoid tipping with your elephant game piece and treasure chests. To win, you have to be the last elephant standing after all the others have toppled into the sea.
Stomp the Plank takes around 10 minutes to play and is suitable from 5 years +.
More challenging board games for 6 year olds
In this section, I’ve included board game suggestions that are usually recommended for 8 years and over due to a greater need for strategical thinking.
But they are also board games that can easily be played by a younger child who is up for a challenge and enjoys the gameplay as much as the winning (the odds of victory will be lower for a 6 year old when playing with older children and adults).
We’ve played many of these board games with our 6 year old, and his older siblings.
No Thanks
Do you want to take the card or say “No Thanks”? Each turn, players have two options: play one of their chips to avoid picking up the current face-up card or pick up the face-up card (along with any chips already played on that card)
There is a bit of strategy to this game, and guessing what moves other players might make, hence putting No Thanks in the more challenging board games for 6 year olds category.
Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza
Don’t forget these 5 words in the right order in this high-octane card-based party game: Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza.
Due to the fast-paced tongue-twister nature of this game, with a few more things to remember than other silly card games of its ilk such as Happy Salmon and Avocado Smash, I have placed it into the more complicated board games for 6 year olds section.
Carcassonne
Carcasonne is a firm family favourite in our house. Whilst a 6 year old is unlikely to win against older players, we definitely find that a younger child can play along quite easily with this tile-placing game and find a lot of enjoyment in the gameplay.
Carcassone is a longer game, often taking over 45 minutes to complete, so a decent attention span is required.
With so many board games for 6 year olds to choose from, you are sure to find the perfect game for the entire family in this list of the best board games for 6 year olds and beyond.
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