It is finally officially spring on the calendar, and at moments it even feels like spring! So it was time to break out our spring board game.
The premise of the game is simple. Kids each have a bear that they are trying to get from start to finish. They collect “spring cards” along the way. On each turn they get one randomly chosen spring card if they land on a regular space. If they land on a “special space,” they follow the directions on the space.
I initially designed this game because we were doing a lot of work with weather and the seasons in kindergarten. With that in mind, there are “special spaces” all over the board that celebrate certain characteristics of the season. They might catch butterflies, have flowers in bloom, get stuck in a rainstorm, or go for a bike ride!
Some special spaces give them bonuses. For example, if they land on the space when the tree is in bloom, they get two tree bud cards!
Other spaces highlight some of the less wonderful features of spring, like the mud. If you land in the mud, you get stuck and miss your next turn.
Because the kids get a card on each turn, they begin to accumulate lots of cards. This is where the other special feature of the game comes into play. The object of the game is to collect the most “spring points,” not necessarily to be the first to the finish. Each game card they collect has “spring points” on the card. These are represented both by the written number, as well as the appropriate number of flowers. Whoever ends the game with the most points, wins.
This means that you can end the game in two ways: time, or finish line. I like this, because if I need to have the kids clean up, they do not get frustrated that no one made it to the end. They just count up the points as they stand and declare a winner.
There is a bonus if you reach the finish line first – you get the “first finisher” card, with extra spring points.
As the kids count up all of their points, they are getting great counting practice with one to one correspondence. They can also practice simple addition, as the numbers are written on the cards as well. And of course, the kids have to compare double digit numbers to see who won!
My kids and I have really enjoyed playing this! I decided to make a printable version that is for sale for $4 in my Teachers Pay Teachers store. You can check it out here if you are interested!
How do you teach your kiddos about the seasons?
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