Top 10 Games for 6 Year Olds

Your child is now 6 years old – welcome to the beginning of the “big kid” years! What makes a 6 year old different from younger kids*?

• They recognize numbers and letters. They are building reading skills.
• They can do more than simple counting: addition, subtraction, or “counting by” (early multiplication).
• They can remember the difference between “left” and “right”.
• Their fine motor skills are improving. They may be able to do something as complex as tying their shoes, or hold a handful of cards.

Six year olds really like to race – whether it’s running, eating, or brushing their teeth. And they place a lot of importance on winning. Games with lots of luck or cooperative games will allow kids to feel the joy of winning even when playing with vastly more skilled players (like Mom and Dad).

This was a harder list to make than our lists for younger children. By six years, most children have very strong opinions on what they do and don’t like. And there are so many good games out there that your six year old can play. We aimed to include many different styles of games that highlight different skillsets: cooperation, communication, memory, racing, stacking, reading, number skills, deduction, clue-giving, and spatial awareness.

Find our recommended games for any age:

1. Sleeping Queens

A classic and recommended by nearly every parent who has tried it with their kids. Play kings to wake up and rescue the queens. But if you don’t like the cards in your hand, you can discard to get new ones. Make “number sentences” (ie. 1+5 = 6 to discard the 1, the 5, and the 6) to discard more cards and get new cards faster!

Not many kids games do “stealing” and “defending” as well as Sleeping Queens.

Not quite convinced? Read this Meeple Mountain review and find Sleeping Queens on Amazon.

2. Space Escape (formerly Mole Rats in Space)

This cooperative game by Matt Leacock (Forbidden Island, Pandemic) feels a bit like the classic children’s game Snakes & Ladders. Kids love the space station theme with its cute mole rat astronauts.

Every player gets to play a card from their hand that determines how the astronauts move – but also what the snakes do! Collect equipment and get all the mole rat astronauts to the escape pod – without being bitten by snakes.

There is an envelope with “advanced” cards that make the game a little more interesting as kids get better at it.

When our kids were six, Space Escape was known as Mole Rats in Space. But they are the same game. You can find it on Amazon.

3. Rhino Hero

With improving dexterity skills, six year olds may be ready for this classic card-stacking game. Place the folded cards carefully and see who can get rid of all their cards without knocking over the tower. As you get used to the stacking element, try the different symbols (add another card, take another turn, move the rhino) to introduce strategic play to the game.

Buy Rhino Hero on Amazon, or try Rhino Hero Super Battle for a tower that builds both up and out.

4. Octo Grabbo

Speaking of dexterity games, Octo Grabbo is one that will help kids learn how to use chopsticks. The game has two modes: a calmer, turn-taking version where one player rolls a die then grabs the matching food item, and a frantic version where players all reach in simultaneously to fill their plate with a specific set of food.

Either way, the chopsticks and tokens are super cute. Every kid loves Octo Grabbo when we’ve played it.

Watch our review of Octo Grabbo, then find it on the Chip Theory Kids website or at your local game store.

5. Bear in Mind

Some six year olds will still love memory games. If they’ve outgrown basic memory games and are ready for something new, try Bear in Mind. This game is all about telling stories, to remember which item tile was placed with each scene on the board.

Bear in Mind works with almost any number of players, and the collaborative story-telling mutes the pain of losing. (It’s also much more engaging for adults than a typical memory game!)

Watch our review of Bear in Mind, then find it on the Chip Theory Kids website or at your local game store.

6. Dragonwood

Dragonwood will reinforce number skills, with a small amount of reading, which may make it a stretch for some six year olds. But if your kid is ready for something more “grown up”, this is a great choice. Players make sets of numbers (all the same color, all the same number, or sequences). The more cards they play, the more dice they can roll to try to “capture” a creature or item.

Some of the items and special cards have text on them; playing with a pre-reading child, you can decide if you would rather ignore the text or read it for them. None of these cards need to be kept secret, so a parent can read them for everyone at the table.

Read our review of Dragonwood or find the game on Amazon.

7. Concept Kids

This stripped-down version of Concept is perfect for children. Kids give clues about an animal – where it lives, what colors it might be, whether it’s fast or slow. A single “guesser” tries to figure out what animal it could be.

Concept Kids has two sets of animal cards (easy and challenging) and two sets of rules that can make the game more strategic as the family gets better at it.

Find Concept Kids on Amazon.

8. Kids Chronicles: Quest for the Moonstones

Kids love solving mysteries. In Quest for the Moonstones, use an phone/tablet app to “look around” and find items and characters in a fairy-tale world and solve mysteries and puzzles. Kids Chronicles adapts the Chronicles of Crime system to make an entirely new game, appropriate for children.

This game requires a lot of reading. But that makes it great for a parent (or even an tech-averse grandparent) to play with a burgeoning reader. They can trade off and take turns, or do all the reading while letting the kid make all the decisions.

Watch our review of Kids Chronicles: Quest for the Moonstones and find the game on Amazon.

9. Kingdomino

Kingdomino is one of many “grown up” games that kids even younger than six can play. Let players build their kingdom and match land types together. If your child has learned “counting by”, they can practice that skill to find out how each area scores.

Read our review of Kingdomino and find the game on Amazon.

10. Onitama

Chess is having a surprising resurgence among kids. But we like Onitama better than chess, especially for beginners. Each player controls five pieces, and all the pieces move in the same (limited) ways. But like chess, there’s a huge amount of strategic depth. Parents may want to take away a few of their pieces for a handicap in early games to equalize the playing field.

Read our review of Onitama and find the game on Amazon.

Looking for more?

We limited this list to ten very different types of games to include a wide breadth of skills and interests. But we have reviewed over 500 games since the beginning of The Family Gamers. Take a look at our other recommendations for every age, or our most highly recommended family games.

* Skills expected from a 6 year old compiled with help from: CDC Developmental Milestones.

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