Make Your Own Board Game | Board Game Templates & Planning Guide for Kids
I am SO EXCITED to post today, because I’ve been working hard on some new products related to Board Game Design! You can view those on my Teachers Pay Teachers storefront.
In this post, I will share what I’ve made (including some free board game templates!) as well as some of the benefits of board games, and my own creation, called Reyes Racal Race!
Here is a little summary of what I’ve made this month:
1. Story Elements Board Game
- Story Elements Board Game: A board game designed for elementary students! You can use this game over and over again, with any story! We’ve used it for several read-alouds, as well as a chapter book. It’s an amazing review of concepts like : title, author, illustrator, setting, plot, characters, problem, solution, and more!
I think the Story Elements Board Game would be an amazing partner game for siblings, or even a fun co-op game for a class you teach! You can discuss a story you read together while going over the Story Elements foundational to all literature!
2. Free Board Game Templates
- Free Board Game Templates: The second thing I made was a PDF of blank board game templates. You can download your copy here! Sometimes my kids are in the mood to color their own spaces, and sometimes they like to have a premade colored board! If I’m really organized, I can send the color print order ahead to the library that month, and include a few copies of colored game boards. If not, I can print them at home, thanks to our incredible Epson printer. (Have you heard of these?! I didn’t replace the ink until we had owned it for 14 months!)
- If your kids want to color their own spaces, print off the black & white version!
- I love seeing how creative kids are with these templates! They’ll create their own shortcuts, secret passageways, specialty game spaces and all sorts of illustrations to decorate the board.
In the free PDF, there are four colored versions available, as well as two black & white!
3. Board Game Planning Template
Board Game Planning Template: The third thing I made was a Board Game planning sheet, or template for kids! This template helps kids think through things like:
- What board games they already enjoy, and what makes them fun
- Planning out their Theme, Objective, Movement, Game Pieces, Obstacles, Surprises, Rules, and potential Beta Testers
- A reflection section to plan revisions, after they’ve tested out their game
The planning template is designed for kids 2nd grade and up.
Board Games For Kids
What other board games would you love to see? Later this month, I hope to release a Literary Device Board Game, to help kinds understand and review literary devices like simile, metaphor, personification, hyperbole, and more. I remember these concepts being confusing for me as a kid, and I think game play is an engaging, non-stressful way to reinforce big concepts like these!
Why Board Games Are Important
Since my husband and I had our first son 10 years ago, I’ve grown increasingly more interested in board games! I grew up playing some as a kid, but not a lot. As an adult, and especially a teacher and now homeschool mom, I see their value more and more. I love the spectrum of skills they reinforce! Things like strategy, cooperation, planning, and being a good sport & good loser are some of many.
My Own Personalized Board Game: Reyes Rascal Race
Several years ago, I found this Board Game Creation kit on Amazon. I wanted to create a sort of personalized game for my kids, that included our family memories.
I have always been a person who preserves–through writing, through photos, through scrapbooking, and even through tracking cute things my kids say, in the Notes app on my phone. I wanted to create a board game that encompassed all that, and also had personalized touches that are unique to our family!
I created a game called Reyes Rascal Race (Reyes is our last name)! I used a ruler to draw custom squares on the board, created shortcuts that are meaningful to our family (Mini-Bike Shortcut, Pelican Lake Shortcut) and fun surprises, like a trampoline that catapults you forward 10 spaces!
For the question cards, I wrote down funny quotations and memories for each of our four kids, and on their turn, they have to guess who said ______________or who did__________________. For example, “Whose first word was ‘uh-oh’?” and “Who used to sprinkle Cheez-its into people’s empty shoes?” Our kids get a huge kick out of them memories. I also made bonus cards that ask questions about how my husband and I first met, and fun details about us as a couple. The kids love knowing those fun details about us!
I hope this post was helpful for you! Shoot me a message if you have an idea for a product you’d like to see, or something you’d like to share: I’m all ears!
Cait
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