Gifts Under $10 that aren't Junk for Kids: Games

My number one rule when deciding whether to purchase a toy for my kids is to ask, "Do I really want this in my house?"  If I think the answer is yes I then break it down into more questions.

• Can this toy be used in more than one way for different types of play?
• Will it make my kids think?
• Do we have the storage room for this toy?
• Does it contain pieces or need batteries?
• Is it made to last and stand the test of time?
• Will it make me become crazy mom when the kids leave it out on the floor?

Here are some of my favorite under $10 board games from Amazon (affiliate links) that make the cut.  All ship for free with prime or $35 purchase. If you don't have prime, now is the time to try it out.  You can get a free 30 day trial that will take you right up to the week before Christmas which I hope you have all of your shopping done by then.  Just create a reminder on your phone to cancel if you don't want to pay the $99 annual fee.  We've had prime for 6 years and love it!

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 Connect 4 Game :  My older kids played this for hours when they were in 2-5th grades.  Ciarra was declared the Connect 4 Champion in her 4th grade class.  Last month at the Octoberfest the entire family chose sides and played each other on a huge life-size Connect 4 wooden game structure.

Guess Who Game:  I recently began playing this with Camryn, age 6 at our library.  The kids' section has a great selection of board games for free play.  She is just beginning to understand how to phrase her questions to narrow down the choices.  Fortunately for me she always picks a girl with blonde hair.  Ha!  My older kids played this when they were younger too.  They even used a timer to see who could guess the other player's person the fastest.  Caleb managed to get it down to about 3 specific questions before he could pinpoint who we had chosen!  There's even a cool Super Hero version!

Toysmith Pick-Up Sticks, 41 Piece:  Still the same, still as awesome as you remember it!

Mastermind:  The teacher in me wants to scream "Please buy this for your child.  It will make them think!"  Patterns, puzzles, and math all in one neat little game.  This was my choice for free play in the gifted room way back then!

 

Spot It  We recently bought this original version of Spot It during the summer.  Can I tell you that everyone in this house loves to play!  It was our game of choice for summer electricity outages and we always kept playing when the lights came back on.  For a game to hold the attention of 5 teenagers and a 6 year old at the same time is amazing to me!  There are several versions including an animal version that I think my kids would like.