Your favorite snacks are on the table. You hear the pitter-patter of your children’s feet as they race each other to the dining table. They start to squabble playfully about who gets to go first, and there's a sense of comfort that fills the room. Little voices cheer with excitement as you present a selection of games, and the rest of your week melts away until there’s only the joy of quality time with family.
This is what family board game night is all about, you think. Being together, connecting, and having fun.
Here’s an idea — what if we add learning into the mix? There isn’t much that could make these family game nights better than they already are, but having a wide selection of educational dice games for kids to choose from will kick it up another level!
As a parent, you know children need variety and consistent cognitive stimulation or their attention spans will wander off. But no need to worry about that! All you need is a few easy dice games to keep your little ones entertained and mentally engaged. That’s why we’re sharing our favorite picks for dice games your whole crew can play together. Use this guide to ensure the family fun factor remains at an all-time high!
What Can Kids Learn From Dice Games?
Dice games can be a barrel of laughs for the whole family, but they aren’t just for amusement. They’re also a fantastic resource for learning!
Each game presents boundless teaching moments. From adding up a player’s score to considering probability to determine the next move — learning through dice games is a timeless way to think critically while having a good time.
Here are some of the top educational benefits children gain from playing games with dice:
Critical Thinking Skills
Children need critical thinking skills to navigate challenges and better understand the world around them. Since most dice games require strategy, like thinking ahead, planning moves, and anticipating outcomes, your child sharpens these skills each time they play!
Numeracy Skills
Numeracy skills are what allow us to understand and work with numbers in everyday life. Whether it’s adjusting measurements in a recipe, determining how many minutes are left until bedtime, or placing items in the correct numerical sequence, we rely on numeracy skills to complete tasks daily. Dice games for kids provide a chance for little ones to put their numeracy skills to the test in engaging and interactive ways.
Evaluation Skills
It’s important for children to learn how to weigh options and analyze different perspectives. This skill helps empower them to make confident, informed decisions. Fortunately, dice games present many tricky situations that can help sharpen these valuable evaluation skills in a way that will be enjoyable for them.
Your child may have to decide whether they want to try rolling the dice again for a higher score or take the chance of being sent home! They may take the risk, or they may weigh the potential scenarios and decide they’d rather stay put where they’re safe. Games like this provide endless opportunities to weigh tough decisions, without the weight of real-life consequences.
10 Best Dice Games for Kids
Determining which games to play with dice can be a challenge, as there are so many wonderful options to choose from! So, we removed the guesswork. Here’s our favorite list of exciting dice games the whole family will love!
1. Animal Snacks
This dice game is great for ages three and up, combining the mathematical skills of counting with the satisfaction of matching identical items! The goal is to be the first player to feed all your snacks to the animals. But here’s the catch — you can only feed the animals right in front of you when the purple snack symbol is rolled.
Your little ones will use strategic thinking to match the different animals with the die they rolled, and counting skills as they feed their animal snacks. Get ready to feed, play, and learn!
2. My Mine
If you’re looking for thrilling dice games for kids aged six and up that involve risk and reward, you’ll love My Mine. To win, players must collect the most gold nuggets by rolling three or more of the same number, and/or multiple gold nugget symbols. But be careful! If you roll and you’re unable to set aside any more dice, you lose all the dice you previously set aside and you don’t earn any gold. Who will strike gold and walk away with the most treasure? It’s anybody’s guess!
Playing My Mine will help your child sharpen their prediction and probability skills as they try to determine the likelihood of rolling the numbers or symbols they need. Plus, they’ll leverage strategy when counting their gold nuggets and evaluating their different scoring options!
3. Clover Leap
In need of dice games for kindergarten-aged children? Clover Leap is a wonderful choice for ages five and up! This game is all about friendly competition as you race to collect the most points and form sentences. Each clover tile reveals a word when turned over. Players roll the dice to move their sheep around the board, collecting clover tiles and attempting to form complete (and silly!) sentences using four words. All clover tiles are worth one point and each completed sentence earns an additional point. The player with the most points at the end of the game wins.
Clover Leap is a great dice game for young kids because it helps with reading comprehension and foundational literacy skills in an amusing and lighthearted way!
4. Hook 'em
Play it once and you’ll be hooked! This is one of our favorite dice games for family fun and is a terrific option for ages six and up. The goal is simple: collect the most fish by rolling the dice and placing the corresponding number of fish into the boat. But beware! If you roll four fishing nets, you lose all your fish and it’s the next player’s turn. There are also ways to double your catch and even steal fish from another player’s boat!
It provides a practical lesson in risk and reward as your kiddos tap into decision-making with a playful, low-stakes game.
5. Whirly’s World
In Whirly’s World, every turn offers an educational element and is prime for ages six and up! To play, everyone takes turns rolling the dice, collecting tokens, and drawing action cards to move along the garden path. But watch out! If your snail lands on a garden hose, they’ll slide back to a previous space and have to play catch up.
Whirly’s World is a delight to play and a go-to option for parents who want educational dice games that inspire learning about even and odd numbers. Children must evaluate different options for advancing along the board and use their numeracy skills and addition skills.
6. 15 to Zero
Looking for dice games to strengthen your child’s mathematical skills? Try 15 to Zero! This game is best suited for kids aged seven and up as it involves more strategic gameplay and mathematical skills. To win, players need to get rid of all their cards. To do that, you must match your numbered cards to the numbers from the rolled dice. You can use the face value number of each dice or the total sum of the dice rolled. There’s a catch, though! You can not play the same number as another player. If you do, you may have to take your card back or draw another card from the pile.
15 to Zero is an engaging game that requires you to think fast and examine your cards under pressure!
7. Shore Seekers
Shell-ebrate fun and learning with this turtle-themed dice game for ages seven and up! Players are on a mission to help the turtles lay their eggs. To do this, you’ll need to roll the dice one at a time and move your turtle around the board. But here’s the catch — you must roll a number that is less than or equal to seven, but not more. If you roll a number greater than seven, you’ll have to move your turtle back to the beginning! The person who collects the most egg cards and gets the highest score wins.
Your kids will learn to assess risk, identify the probability of rolling a specific number, and even practice their multiplication skills with this gratifying game!
8: Yunnan Forest
Test math and strategy skills while also learning about exotic animals? Yes, please! Yunnan Forest does just that, making it an ideal dice game for kids ages seven and up. To play, each player rolls the dice and attempts to get a specific series of animals to collect leaf tokens. At the end of the game, the person with the most leaf token points wins. But there’s an exciting twist! Binocular tokens can also be played as an animal in addition to your dice roll. To use a binoculars token you must share a fun fact about the animal pictured on the flip side of the token!
This game provides an entertaining way for kids to strengthen their reading and mathematical thinking skills, making it a perfect option for the whole family!
9. Rolling Bones
A skeleton needs its bones assembled — your assistance is needed! This clever game digs into life science, while also requiring probability skills, making it a satisfying option for kids ages seven and up. To play Rolling Bones, you must rebuild a skeleton as completely as possible and then ship it to the museum for display. How do you rebuild the skeleton? By rolling the dice and matching the correct series of symbols to the skeleton diagram on the clipboard. Then, roll a clipboard symbol to ship the skeleton to the museum. Fail to roll a clipboard symbol and you’ll have to try again — but with fewer dice! Just be careful, because if you run out of dice, you’ll have to start over.
Who knew teaching kids anatomy could be so fun? Children learn about anatomy and life science while also enhancing mathematical and problem-solving skills as they match symbols to diagrams and strategize over rolls.
10. Eagle Chase
Roll the dice, explore the US, and collect cool facts with your kiddos! Eagle Chase is a geography-teaching-gem, making it a perfect dice game choice for kids ages 10 and up. To play, each person rolls the dice and moves along the board, trying to get to the American landmarks on their location cards. They can also try to catch up with the Eagle, earning them extra points. Just be sure to plan your trips well, because certain locations can only be reached by taking a specific route. Plus, other players will have a chance to cancel your actions!
This game will educate your older kids on challenging topics like geography, cultural characteristics, and spatial patterns — it’s guaranteed to be an adventure for the whole family!
Find Great Games for Kids with SimplyFun
Are you ready to spark curiosity and learning through family board game nights? At SimplyFun, we make it easy for you to enjoy interactive and educational experiences with your kids.
From high-quality and educational dice games for preschoolers to more complex games for elementary school kids, and even games your teenagers will enjoy, we’ve designed games that engage young minds at every development phase.
It’s important to us that we offer educational games that are accessible to every child. That’s why we make sure our games can be adapted for all kinds of disabilities and learning challenges. Explore games that encourage thinking skills, Math and STEM games, reading games, social sciences games, and more to find the best fit for your family's fun time.
Using our interactive games, you can ensure your little ones gain the skills they’ll need to succeed throughout their school years and beyond — including effective communication, fine motor skills, spelling, and more. Because learning doesn’t have to just take place in a classroom — it can happen at home too!
So, don’t wait! Shop for educational board games today and discover the joy of learning through play.