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- Toddlers love to be part of the action no matter what you're doing, but it's hard to involve them in board games that are complicated or have small choking hazards as game pieces.
- Seek-a-Boo is one of my new favorite games because it's simple enough for my daughter to understand and enjoy playing.
- I'm using it to teach her how to take turns and play games.
- It's a simple memory game where kids search for matching cards, and there are multiple ways to change up gameplay for older or younger children.
- The game teaches and develops turn-taking, language skills, memory, and gross motor skills.
I've always loved a good board game and getting together for family game night. My 18-month-old toddler, of course, wants in on the action, but it's hard to find board games that she can actually play. She's not quite ready to understand even the simplest board games, so I began looking for games designed specifically for kids her age.
Of the games I found designed for toddlers, many of them were geared toward kids ages 2-3 and were still too complicated for my daughter. Not to mention, almost all board games have small pieces that are choking hazards for her.
I finally found Seek-a-Boo, and our whole family is loving it as a toddler friendly game. Seek-a-Boo is a simple memory game, and the gameplay is easily tailored to your child's skill level.
How the game works
Seek-a-Boo has 36 "seek me" cards along with 36 corresponding "find me" cards, and the cards are broken up into six color-coded categories: food, toys, clothing, colors and shapes, animals, and things found around the house.
The basic rules are simple:
- Place the circular "seek me" cards face down on the ground.
- Draw a "find me" card.
- Search for the corresponding "seek me" card.
With such a simple format, the game is easily customizable for different ages and abilities, and the instructions provide multiple ways to do so. For example, my daughter is just learning how to match, so I either place the seek me cards face up so she can easily find the match, or I only play with a few cards at a time. Seek-a-Boo is not designed for there to be winners or losers, but one way to customize the game for older children is to make it a race to see who can find the card fastest and keep score.
If you have a toddler, you know that it's extremely difficult for them to sit still for any length of time. Seek-a-boo gets them up and moving as they search for the correct card. For older or especially energetic kids, you can spread the cards all around the room to get them moving even more.
My daughter even loves to simply look through the cards and name the images. At 18 months, she is currently going through a language explosion, so identifying the pictures is educational and engaging for her. As she gets older, we'll be able to add more complexity and difficulty to the game.
The learning benefits are endless
This game can teach such a wide variety of skills, and because it's so simple, there are virtually endless ways to play and learn. Learning to be patient and take turns is hard and confusing for toddlers, so this is the first thing I worked on with my daughter when we started playing this game. Once she gets that down, she'll be ready to learn to play more games.
The cards are very large, so they're not choking hazards and they're easy for little hands to pick up. My daughter gets plenty of fine and gross motor skill practice, too as she walks, squats, and manipulates the cards.
I also really like that the pictures on the cards are pictures of actual objects rather than drawings. Real pictures help toddlers learn more about the world around them as they connect the picture to what they see in real life.
Finally and obviously, it teaches my daughter vocabulary and memory. As she searches for the right card, I'm always naming and talking about what she finds while encouraging her to name the objects as well. The instructions provide many language prompts to use with your child as you play the game.
Be careful with the cards
While I love that the cards are large for toddlers, one thing that I don't love is their lack of durability. In a game designed for toddlers, I'd like to see thicker and stronger cards. I'm not sure how well they'll hold up over time, especially if you have older kids who race to find the cards or younger kids who bite at or rip the cards.
My daughter is not typically one to destroy things, but many of our cards already have bends and folds. This is, however, a great opportunity to teach kids to be gentle and take care of their belongings.
The bottom line
This game is an effective and simple way to introduce toddlers to the wonderful world of board games. With so many different ways to play, I can see this game being fun for children 18 months to 3 or 4 years old.
If you're looking for other games for toddlers, we also love the game Count your Chickens; it's another one my daughter can understand and it has more of a board game feel, but the game pieces in Count your Chickens are small choking hazards. As long as you are extremely careful with children under three, it's another excellent one to check out.
If you have a toddler who is ready to start playing board games and learning about taking turns, Seek-a-Boo will provide your family with fun for years to come.
Pros: Easy for toddlers to understand, many learning opportunities, fun and engaging, multiple ways to play
Cons: Cards aren't very durable
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