We'll be taking a bit of a different focus today, as not all of the fun games we can play at the library are video games. Instead, today I want to focus on a really fun board game I played recently, one that is a ton of fun and (don't tell anyone!) actually a really great educational tool.

The game comes with a set of nine cubes, each with a different image on each side.  In order to play, players roll a set number of dice, the more dice the more difficult the game will be.  Once the dice have been rolled the player then keeps track of the images that are face up, then must write a story using each of the items that came up.  For example, in the picture above the player that rolled these dice must attempt to write a short story including an eye, a shooting star, a turtle, a bridge, an apple etc.  The number of cubes rolled can vary, changing the difficulty of the game for the age of the participants.  Older players can even participate at the same time as younger ones, the older ones will just have more cubes to work into their story.  Once all of the stories have been written, players will each take a turn at reading their stories aloud to the group.

This game is a lot of fun for kids of all ages, it gets participants working on their writing skills while laughing and having fun writing wacky stories.  A vivid imagination is almost required for this game, something that most kids have no problem bringing to the table. While writing and reading aloud their own stories to the group may be a bit daunting, once the ball gets rolling kids will be clamoring over one another as to who gets to be the next one to share.  With no specific goal or end game there are no winners and losers, which is key for a learning game of this type.  With no specific winners or losers, kids won't be discouraged if something they wrote didn't win. 

This game offers a ton of upside for kids of any age level.  It promotes using your imagination, good writing skills and confidence speaking in front of a group.  With such open ended gameplay, the players have a lot of control over how the game is played and what happens in their stories, an excellent departure for kids used to playing games that direct exactly from one action to the next.  In most situations writing short stories like this would be considered a chore, or even homework for players, but the addition of the cubes and the randomization of play makes all the difference and injects an exciting fun factor.  While we don't currently have a copy of this game at the library, look for it to be arriving soon!