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Board games are not only an entertaining screen-free activity, they also offer a wide range of benefits for your little one's development. They encourage social interaction, practice skills such as counting and color recognition, enhance fine motor skills, boost language development, and foster family connection and bonding.

These are five games for the preschool age of 3-5 that are still in our game closet because they have just become family favorites!

Sneaky Snacky Squirrel

How to Play Sneaky Snacky Squirrel: The goal is to fill your "wood slice" with acorns of different colors. Kids spin the spinner and pick up the matching acorn color with the squirrel shaped tweezers. But watch out on the spinning wheel for the sneaky squirrel or windstorm that can blow off all the acorns you've collected.

Skills Learned: I love that this game practices color learning and matching skills, along with fine motor skills by using the squirrel to grab the acorn.

Independence Level: I played with the kids the first few times so they understood what to do, but they quickly got the hang of it. Since there is no reading required they were able to play all on their own at a young age.

Pancake Pile-Up

How to Play Pancake Pile-Up: Flip over a card and race across a distance to grab the first pancake shown in the pile. Kids carry it on a spatula and can't let it fall. They bring it back and set it on their plate, and then head back for the next pancake in the pile. The first to finish their pancake stack with a pat of butter wins. If you have more than 2 people, you can create relay teams.

Skills Learned: I love that this game gets kids moving! They are working on balance and coordination as they race back and forth with their pancakes. They also are practicing their matching and pattern skills.

Independence Level: This is a fun game to play with the kids, but it also is so easy for them to play on their own. There is no reading required and my kids would often set this game up in our hallway to race back and forth against each other.

Candyland

How to Play Candyland: Draw color cards and move your player along the board. If you draw the special character cards, you get to move to that spot. First one to the candy castle wins!

Skills Learned: It's a classic that has stood the test of time! Kids can practice taking turns and color recognition.

Independence Level: After playing with an adult, kids will definitely be able to play on their own. No reading is required. But this brings back such childhood nostalgia that I often find myself playing with the kids.

Pop the Pig

How to Play Pop the Pig: Kids roll the die to get a color. They choose the matching colored hamburger and take a look at the number on the bottom. They feed the pig with their hamburger and then push his hat down that number of times. Each time, the pig's belly gets bigger and bigger. Don't be the one that makes the pig's belt and shirt bust open!

Skills Learned: This game practices color recognition and counting. It also challenges fine motor skills with feeding the pig and rolling the die. Lots of turn taking and cheering goes on too!

Independence Level: This game is super easy for kids to play on their own after a round or two with an adult to understand what to do. It might take a little more practice for kids to learn how to reset the pig's belly, but my kids got the hang of it eventually.

Hoot Owl Hoot

How to Play Hoot Owl Hoot: This is an interesting game from Peaceable Kingdom because all players are working together to beat the game itself. Kids cooperate to try to move all the owls back to their nest by drawing colored cards before you draw all the sun cards (which means it's morning).

Skills Learned: Practice color recognition and strategic thinking! I love that it is a cooperative game where all players are on the same side.

Independence Level: Once again, it's definitely a game kids can play on their own after an adult shows them how it works. No reading is required, but it does take a little more strategy and teamwork.