The best mind games for children are games that provide the best blend between fun and mental stimulation. In other words, these games can be a fun outlet for your kids while educating or tasking their minds. No doubt, this can be a huge advantage as most children want nothing more than to eat and play. So this list is for everyone who wants to make their kids smarter playing online games.
While that is actually a good thing because it means the child is developing as they should, you also want to get a head start on their learning and mental development. But, rather than force them to study books, it may be more effective to get your kids games that are both fun and educative. In other words, buy them brain games.
But now, here comes the question of what games to pick.
Today, numerous game manufacturing companies advertise various products as top games for mental stimulation in children. However, while some of these products truly have the advertised effect on kids, others are not worth their salt. Thankfully, we’ve done all the homework for you and will now present our findings.
In the next few paragraphs, we will explore the best mind games for children. Of course, we factored in an age when coming up with items on this list. This is crucial as you don’t want to get a mind game that’s way below your kid’s mental level or worse, too difficult for them as this may get frustrated. The games on this list are ideal for children between 7 and 14 years.
But, before we reveal our top picks in mind games for kids in 2022, let us examine some of the benefits playing these games will have on your children.
Benefits of Brain Games for Children
Knowing the best mind games for children is crucial. But, why?
You see, the early development of a child’s brain is very essential to the functions of their brain. However, some brain functions (such as analysis, solving problems, and creativity) just won’t develop on their own. So, you’ll have to stimulate these brain functions to help them develop.
One surefire way to do these for your children is to encourage them to play brain games!
That way, your kids get to enjoy their playtime while you sneak some learning in there as well. That said, here are some perks of allowing your child to play mentally stimulating games.
It builds their reasoning capacity
The best games for children come as teasers or simple puzzles. However, being simple does make the games less effective. You see, your kid can’t just play these games without thinking. So, as long as there’s a little thought process before they win (or get correct answers), the game is doing its job.
There’s no doubt, regularly playing these mind games will stretch your child’s mind and imagination. Also, in the long run, these problem-solving skills and creativity will improve their thinking patterns and capacity.
It helps build children’s focus
You will notice, your children’s focus is at the highest levels when they’re having fun. This may either be when they’re playing with toys or when they’re watching their favorite cartoons. Whichever the case may be, they usually have laser-sharp focus during those times.
While being focused can be a good thing, nobody wants their children to focus on watching cartoons forever. Thankfully, mind-stimulating games can help you channel that focus into productive learning.
You see, the best mind games for children capture their attention and help them stay focused for the duration in which they’re playing. This will be a plus as they learn to stick to their guns until they win or reach their desired goals.
It improves your child’s memory
Finally, one of the most effective ways to help your child develop an excellent memory is with the right mind games. When children play these mind games, they develop their ability to retain information. Of course, the best mind games for children will also challenge your kids to use their memories. The best part? Your kids won’t even realize they’re engaging in mental development tasks.
That said, let us examine the best options of mind games for children today.
→ Must Read: The 16 Best Brain Games for Kids to Play Online in 2022!
The Best Mind Games Online to Make Your Children Smarter
Before we jump into it, bear in mind that the best and the most effective mind games for children are never too easy or too hard. Instead, they strike a fine balance between having fun and accomplishing mental tasks. Here are our top options;
This game has been in existence for many years, yet it has managed to remain very relevant. The reason is simple – it’s one of the best mind games for children (and even adults). Indeed, playing Sudoku will force you to put your thinking caps on as it requires substantial analysis and deduction skills.
The game display has a 9×9 grid with numbers in some, and some other boxes empty. The main goal is to fill all boxes with the numbers 1 through 9 without repeating a number in any line or box. Therefore, you have to think before fitting any number in a row, column, or box. Sudoku is a good mind game for children because it teaches them how to analyze and plan.
Puzzle
One of the best ways to engage your children productively is to get them to play a mentally stimulating game. What better game to play than puzzles?
Puzzles are very stimulating and engrossing in a unique way. You see, the game focuses on developing the brain and reasoning skills of your child. Best of all, it really puts your child’s problem-solving ability to the test. Indeed, there is no doubt that puzzle games are among the best mind game options as they immediately capture your child’s attention and curiosity.
Besides, with puzzle games, there are so many gameplay options your child can choose from – with variations from creative designs to difficulty levels. Moreover, most puzzle games can accommodate multiple players. So, you and your kids can have fun playing brain games together.
Scrabble
When your child is young and has started learning words and sentences, Scrabble is a surefire way to boost their vocabulary development. Scrabble is arguably the most popular mind game that focuses on general vocabulary mastery. This is one of the top mind games for kids in 2022.
Scrabble not only helps develop the brain but also helps improve retentive memory. Furthermore, it also contributes to improving the creative function of the brain, as your children have to create new words.
The game has a grid and each player has a series of random letters in their keep. Each person then tries to form as many words as they can using the letters that they have. Also, the Scrabble playing board offers players double or triple score bonuses, depending on where you form your words. Scrabble is an excellent way to develop your child’s intellect and concentration skills.
MoneyHunter Corp
Giving children fun tools and resources that will encourage mental activity is vital at any age. Brain stimulation while solving games that they enjoy will help develop their critical thinking and reasoning skills while building memory and focus. These elements will benefit them as they mature and apply them to other areas.
Money Hunter Corporation known as MoneyHunter Corp is another fantastic resource for parents, caregivers, and teachers to guide children on their path to learning and enhancing these skills. They have dozens of Hunts to explore when searching for mind games to help make kids smarter.
Blue Blocks
Since its inception, building blocks have always been an excellent choice of brain games for children. However, Blue Blocks takes an interesting twist with its gameplay. Of course, your child still gets to play with exciting blocks. But, there’s more.
In a game of Blue Blocks, the goal is to free a blue character’s pathway to the exit door. However, your child can only do this by reorganizing the blocks till it reaches the exit door is free. Quite simple, but the game comes with its fair share of twists and turns. Of course, through all these, your child can build their logical reasoning and analytic capabilities.
→ Must Read: The 12 Best Riddle Games Online to Play in 2022!
Lumosity
The best mind games for children are the products of superb creative thinking and innovations. Lumosity is no different. Just like with the best mind games for friends, Lumosity is also perfect for the growing child. Indeed, the game came to be after comprehensive research from neuro-physical experts. So, you can be sure your child is getting the right mental training.
Lumosity features more than sixty tasks that test different functions of your child’s brain. It helps your children to grow their memory and ability to solve problems easily. This game comes with a nice game interface that has several features to interest your child while developing their brain excellently.
Helpful Games
Next on our list of the best mind games for children, we have Helpful Games. As the name implies, it is a helpful game that has a word hunt game that plays with words and helps your child become smarter with the English lexicon.
For this game, your children will see flashcards and will have to pick the one relating to a word. So for instance, if the word shows your child shoes. The flashcard options you’ll see may include a shoe-related option such as soles.
Helpful Games helps your children to remember words very easily. Furthermore, it is also one of the best mind games for children who are learning new words. This way, they’ll be able to relate words to corresponding pictures. Besides, children who play Helpful Games regularly find that they have a better grip on thesaurus as they grow.
Candy Crush
Most people who already Candy Crush rarely think about it as a mind game. But, it is indeed one of the best out there.
This game has been around for quite some time, and it’s still one of the top mind games for kids in 2022. It comes with a colorful interface that will interest your children. This game is a very addictive and interesting mind game for children and even adults.
There are different instructions per level of this game. For some of the levels, your child may just need to hit a particular score. While for some, your child needs to arrange different cookies to free fruit or some fruits. This game helps your children to focus and think logically.
Memory
As the name implies, this is one of the best mind games to improve the memory of children. In this game, your children will receive two flashcards on a grid. And they have one goal; which is to find all the similar pair flashcards. The game will reveal only two cards at the same time to the player.
After that, the pictures on either of the two cards disappear. But when these flashcards become similar, their picture will show clearly. As a result, your child needs to remember the location of each of the cards. The memory generally aims to sharpen the concentration and memory skills of your children.
Maze
Maze is another one of the top mind games your children should play in 2022 as it offers significant analytic developments.
Quite predictably, the entire point of Maze is for the player to find a way to safely exit the maze in gameplay. However, it won’t be easy. Aside from the fact, a maze is never easy to navigate, there will be other obstacles along the way that will try to stop the player’s progress.
Of course, this presents an exciting challenge for your children. They get to analyze, plan and navigate their way to their goal. Along the way, they build their concentration, analytical skills, and even patience, thereby coming out of the maze as smarter children.
Monopoly
Monopoly is truly a game of the ages. While many people only play the game for fun and bragging rights, Monopoly can help develop essential mental skills in children of all ages.
A typical game of Monopoly involves some luck (as you have to play with dice). But, more importantly, top-notch decision-making is crucial to winning the game. You have to decide between buying, selling, or renting various properties in the game as well as many other decisions.
Playing Monopoly can help your child develop their decision-making skills, as well as their ability to plan and execute. Also, the game helps their arithmetic skills as they have to keep track of their finances in gameplay. Finally, it can teach them to dust themselves off and try again when they lose, which is undoubtedly a critical life skill.
DragonBox Algebra 5+
Another mind game for children that deserves a place on our list is DragonBox Algebra 5+. This game aims at improving your child’s number skills.
Many children do not like having to calculate numbers, which is essentially the basis for mathematics. Thankfully, DragonBox Algebra 5+ can help you pique their interests in numbers, and consequently, arithmetic.
DragonBox Algebra 5+ requires your child to match pictures of bugs, fish, and whatnot to satisfy the appetite of a hungry dragon. But, the effects it has on your child are way more significant. The game introduces basic math concepts such as positive numbers, their negative equivalents, and even algebra!
The best part? The game does this without any scary math equations.
Chess
This game needs no introduction. Many people say that chess is the ultimate mind game that offers the chance for strategic thinking. While this is arguable, there is no doubt the game can help your children develop their reasoning and analytical skills.
So, if you want to boost your children’s mental capacity and cognitive functions, chess is an excellent way to go!
Final Take
Engaging your children in mind games is a surefire way to develop their brains. However, it not only works this way for children, even adults can benefit from playing mind games. Hopefully, this article has given you some insight into the best mind games to play with your friends and also help your children become smarter.
Let us know how these games go. We’d love to hear your feedback!