276 – Five Tools for Easier Gaming – The Family Gamers Podcast

Dice and cards can be hard for little hands. What can you do to make game components – especially from “grown up” games – easier for kids (and elderly) to handle?

Fact: This past December, shoppers planned to spend $276 per child on gifts.

Thanks to First Move Financial for sponsoring this episode.

What We’ve Been Playing

Roar & Write (an Animal Kingdoms game)

Chai – making tea for customers is hard!

Draftosaurus

Yummy Yummy Monster Tummy

Agropolis

Bat Flip – feels like Smash Up with a baseball theme (on Kickstarter January 18)

The Cupid Crisis

Rolled West

Welcome to new community members

Stop in and say hi!

Break – So Clover! SNAP review

Andrew reviews this clever clue-giving word game. Watch the video or read the transcript.

Accessories for Easier Gaming

When playing games with young children (or with elderly parents/grandparents) what are some tools that can make the experience easier?

First – card holders! There are lots of types available. We prefer this kind that stand up on their own and grip the cards. But there are also card trays or the “little hands” card holders from Gamewright that gives a handle to hold the whole mess of cards.

Second – our favorite accessory is silicone baking cups. We use these to hold any kind of small components, but especially to hold and pass the meeples in Draftosaurus.

Third – ways to contain dice. Dice trays are a MUST for this age – otherwise the dice go bouncing across the table. Thankfully, you don’t need an expensive dice tray – the box lid will do just fine.

Fourth – Dice towers can also be helpful. Instead of throwing a handful of dice across the table (gulp!), they can be dropped into the dice tray to roll them.

(Don’t forget a cup to hold dice before rolling – a must for little hands when there are more than 2 dice to hold.)

Dice towers and dice trays don’t HAVE to be for the whole table to use – sometimes it’s more powerful for a kid to have “their own” stuff.

Finally – Lazy Susan! We haven’t done this yet, but this one looks great – sturdy and inexpensive.

What have you found that helps your family enjoy games with ease?

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