Game Boy!

The writer of a blog titled "I Can Teach My Child," on April 4, 2012, explored several good reasons for playing board games with preschoolers. At the top of that list is the direct human interaction that electronic gaming negates as well as the undivided attention the two of you commit to a shared project. In addition, board games teach kids "how to take turns and be graceful losers." Finally, they offer a fun context for teaching strategy and age-appropriate cognitive skills.

I noticed these things myself a couple weeks ago, when Beenie pulled my Hi Ho Cherry-O game off the shelf and asked to play it rather than Temple Run or some of the other iPad games he likes. That was the first of several days filled with counting and fruit-picking and groaning when the spinner landed on the bird, the dog, or, worst of all, the upset fruit basket. In fact, he loved the game so much that he asked me to give him his own Hi Ho Cherry-O for his birthday.

When I showed him some You Tube videos of kids playing other vintage children's games, he was enthralled with another Hasbro product--Hungry, Hungry Hippos--and asked for that one as well. So last Monday, on Beenie's birthday, we spent a delightful afternoon whooping and hollering and watching Bottomless Potamus, Veggie Potamus, and their hippo friends make a quick lunch out of a batch of marbles.

As Beenie's birthday celebration reached into this past weekend to include a small party of friends and cousins, the focus on games continued. Another addition to his toy shelf, contributed by his aunt and uncle, was "Cavity Sam" and the popular game Operation. Here, in extracting the likes of Sam's Adam's Apple, Funny Bone, and Charley Horse, was the chance for not only whole new rounds of laughter but a honing of the hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills begun with Hi Ho Cherry-O.

I look forward to more game-playing with this cute, smart kid as spring unfolds and his preschool season gives way to kindergarten. Like most kids, he prefers to win, but I will try to discourage those sneaky little attempts to fudge ("Did that spinner really land on the line, Beenie?") and offer sympathy when he lands on that upset fruit basket. When he beats me fair and square (which is actually quite often), I always try to say, "I know I didn't win this time, but I still had fun playing."

Happy fifth birthday to you, my little game boy. I hope our games together help prepare you for school and for life. You can't win every time, but that doesn't mean you can't have a whole heck of a lot of fun in the process.