Rush Hour Traffic Jam Jr. is a game that teaches kids problem solving skills. A deck of cards displays various "problems" and the kids have to figure out how to move the vehicles around the board so that the ice cream truck has a clear path to make it's delivery. I've recommended this game to a couple families and it's been a hit everytime.
This toy teaches:
Problem solving skills & pathfinding. It can take anywhere from 2 to 20 maneuvers to get the ice cream truck from point A to point B. This task involves problem solving such as being aware that moving one piece in a certain direction may affect how another piece may be moved. It also involves pathfinding as kids must look at the whole board and plan out a series of steps that will maneuver the ice cream truck to where it needs to go.
The above link from Mindware is an affiliate link through the program VigLink. If you buy this product after clicking the link, we receive a small referral fee.
Robots, turtles, lasers, hidden gems, puzzles, and programming -- what's not to love?
Robot Turtles is a Kickstarter game that has been hugely popular, and not just because some of the turtles have lasers strapped to their backs. The game is designed to adapt to the ability of the players; young kids can give one direction at a time, older kids must plan out 'X' number of steps in advance and incorporate programing concepts such as functions and recursion to move the turtles through complex paths. There are no words, letters, or numbers on the game pieces so being able to read or count is not necessary, meaning even the youngest of turtle masters can play this game.
For our review, I had both my 4 yr old and 2 yr old play the game with me. The 2 yr old wasn't interested, but my 4 yr old did an excellent job of telling me where the turtle should go. Of course, Wes typically runs by his own rules so getting the gem wasn't on the top of his to do list, but that will change as we play the game.
This toy teaches:
Computer programing & coding skills. Kids give the turtles directions and the turtle mover must follow the directions on the card, in order. This is great practice for coding and thinking ahead in a serial fashion. The function frog teaches kids about functions and recursion.
Pathfinding. Also known as planning ahead, kids will need to look at the whole board and decide on the fastest, easiest route to take. Not quite as complex as the traveling salesman problem, this is an area where humans typically beat out machines in being able to determine, quickly the best solution.
Persistence. It can take a long time to get to the gem, and it can be pretty frustrating when the turtle goes where you tell it to go instead of where you want it to go. And sometimes, this requires persistence on the adult's end too. However, as long as you make it possible to get the turtle, you can encourage your kids to keep trying for their goal.
