You may see farm games for kids, such as FarmVille, popping up all over your Facebook page. With good reason, says Dr. Stevanne Auerbach, a toy author, speaker and blogger who goes by the name Dr. Toy. “The value of teaching children where their food is grown and raised is as important now as ever before,” she says. “Learning about the farm and the many services it provides builds awareness of the entire food process.”
More than just matching up animals, farm games can also teach colors, shapes, sounds and more. If you’re looking for farm games, you’ll find a veritable farmers’ market out there, with many online farm games for kids, farm simulation games and board games to harvest from.
One site offering free farm games is My American Farm. “All games on My American Farm are aligned to national learning standards for children through sixth grade,” says Angela Mayfield, the education director of the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture. “Children explore games that help them to develop key math, science, English language arts, social science and career-awareness skills in the context of food, fiber and natural resources.”
Look at the age ranges, encourages Mayfield, but she notes that the interest level might be broader than what’s listed. For example, she points out, “Equipment Engineer is listed for fifth and sixth grade because of the reading level, but if a parent or teacher helps read, younger students love this game.” For prekindergarten learners, Mayfield recommends Load the Lunchbox. “Children get to harvest a variety of food items and then drag the final product into their lunchbox to build a nutritious meal,” she explains.
Here are eight other choices to round out this list of educational farming games:
- Farmerama
Players cultivate their own farms and learn valuable measuring and baking skills. They plant seeds and sell wares at a digital farmers’ market. Dozens of events and story lines simulate a real farm.
- Life on the Farm
In the style of the classic game Life, players of this board game live as farmers until the most successful farmer wins. The preschool version teaches colors, while the version for older players teaches money skills.
- The Farming Game Kids
In this board game, players build math and money skills as they live the life of a farmer. Three different levels of play make this a great option for kids of all ages.
- Farm-opoly
This property trading game teaches money skills in the style of Monopoly. Players interact with real farming issues as they try to survive as a farmer by buying more land and barns.
- Farming Simulator ’15
In this video game, the player is a young farmer who works an 18-hour day. Players upgrade their farm and gear as the game goes on.
- Funky Barn
Playable on the Wii U, this is an introductory video game for young and aspiring farmers. Funky Barn teaches time management skills as kids raise farm animals — of the usual and unusual variety. Users are successful when their animals are happy and cared for regularly.
- Green Farm
This online farm game for kids allows players to use renewable energy sources to create a farm. It encourages environmentally friendly farming, including using solar panels and windmills, as well as organic crops.
- Bohnanza
In this farming card game, players plant beans in multiple fields and try to sell them for a profit. The goal is to earn as much gold as possible planting, harvesting and selling the beans without being forced to over-harvest.
“There is a farmer who works hard every day and is responsible for the food we enjoy, the clothes we wear and the shelter we need,” says Mayfield. “It is important that children grow up with an awareness of the importance of farming to our country and our daily lives.” Food production includes science, mechanics, engineering, public relations and other careers that will continue to be important in the future and are important for kids to learn about.
Want more online game ideas? Try these 12 Fun Kids’ Websites for Play and Learning.
Lisa Iannucci is a freelance writer who has written for many parenting publications. Find out more about her articles and books at lisawriter.com.
