By Linsly, Founder, SmartFeed.com
Family game night is Family bonding night
Life is more fun if you play games. ~Roald Dahl
This summer, my kids and I spent our vacation with grandparents, aunts and uncles, and cousins. As we contemplated over ideas on how to bring the different age groups together for some family fun time, I was touched by the power of great apps to bring family members of different generations together and provide a common vocabulary and points of interest. A game night is a family bonding night and time well spent together.
This has some beneficial effects on both children and grown-ups.
1. Many games help kids with improving their academic skills in the areas of reading (spelling, vocabulary) and math (identifying and counting numbers, addition/subtraction).
2. Games also help with developing good motor skills – hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills.
3. Strategy based games can help with learning problem-solving skills and enhancing logic implementation.
4. The interaction with the different age groups and personalities will lead to better teamwork and will account for wonderful memories which leads to a very good state of emotional well-being for the child.
5. As for the adults, spending quality time with their children results in reduced stress levels and a positive state of mind.
This is a perfect win-win situation for the entire family!
SmartFeed has a fantastic line-up of media resources that the whole family can enjoy. Find below a few of the notable apps and game-themed movies.
Apps
Sago Mini Pet Cafe (2+) I love all the Sago Mini apps. This is a great first game for the youngest users, and fun for bigger kids too. Cute, thoughtful, and intuitive, Pet Cafe is my 3 year old’s favorite!
Monument Valley (7+) I can’t say enough about how much I love Monument Valley, which is a beautiful strategy game that my 7 year old and I play together (she helps me when I get stuck!). It’s everything I love in an app: beautifully designed, superbly rendered, thoughtful, challenging, engaging, and fun.
Minecraft (8+) Creative building, strategic gameplay – a great option for grownups and kids to play together.
Dreii (8+) Simple, beautiful, and collaborative; work together to puzzle through each level and stack shapes to progress.
If you and your kids are more in the mood for a movie, below are a few family friendly titles you can enjoy together.
Movies
Toy Story (4+) A heartwarming tale of love, loyalty, drama and friendship – and the special bond between kids and their toys.
The Parent Trap (6+) A sweet update of the classic; family, mistaken identities, and lots of fun.
Mad Hot Ballroom (8+) An inspiring documentary about kids’ competitive ballroom dancing.
Spellbound (9+) Follow 8 middle schoolers as they prepare for and compete in the prestigious and intense National Spelling Bee.
Join SmartFeed‘s free service, and make use of the hundreds and thousands of carefully curated, excellent media titles to make your Family Game Night a super fun night!
