Customer Reviews

WORDPLAY For Kids Game

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I purchased Wordplay because I am always on the look out for games with an educational dimension. My son (aged 9) seems to have taken quite a liking to it, which is great since he tends to shy away from anything that he says `feels like school'. He loves the spinner in the middle of the game board (a nice touch), and the idea of `spinning to get your letters' (which are then used to form words). The words themselves are left to the child's imagination and vocabulary skills, ensuring that the game remains flexible and interesting. Even when he is not playing with some of his friends, my son sometimes comes up to me and asks that I spin for him (so that he can proudly show me the words he has formed using `my' letters). All in all, very smart. Sometimes the simplest ideas really are the best.

This game is clever! It really is loads of fun for kids to play and at the same time (without their conscious knowledge) they are improving their word skills. The game has a spinner, which, off-the-bat makes kids interested. Next, all kids play each round which ensures that nobody has to wait their turn (waiting for their turn in a game to my kids seems like slow torture). Since, they are all playing in each round there is lots of competition to come up with the best and longest word to fit one of six categories (ie. boys or girls name, living creature, food or drink and I can not remember the others). All and All - a smart and fun kids game.

I played this game with my kids (under 8) and they seemed to like it: it is a spelling game and can be exciting for kids who have just mastered reading and writing. The participating adults can guide the game along, making it a cooperative game, rather than competitive.

The down side--and it is a big down side--is that the game is so cheaply made that it is nearly impossible to play the game: The spin-wheel, which is key to the game as it determines which letter of the alphabet gets randomly selected, does NOT spin at all. I can't imagine this particular part, if made slightly better (say, barely usable), could have cost that much more--this game isn't cheap to begin with.

Frankly, as much as my kids like this game, I feel that my money is not well spent.

So glad I bought this one. It's fun, educational and we have as much fun playing as the kids do. The great thing is that everybody plays every round which prevents waiting for your turn. In a nutshell, all players are given a Word Sheet. The spinner on the board is spun to pick 2 letters that must be in the word. As an example, let's say an "A" and "C" are the spun letters for the round. All the players write those letters on their own Word Sheet. Then the die is rolled to determine the category - say "living creatures". Then the 30 second timer is turned and everybody has 30 seconds to form the LONGEST word possible. When the 30 seconds are up, players compare words to see who formed the longest word. Each player advances on the board by the number of letters in the word they formed. So the player with the longest word advances the furthest. The trick we do to make it fun for us parents is that while the kids just need to find a word containing an "A" and "C" (e.g. cat, caterpillar), we parents have a harder job and must form a word with the "A" as the FIRST LETTER and the "C" as the LAST LETTER. In this instance, both us parents could not think of anything beginning with an "A" and "ending" in a "C" so we both did not form a word and we both did not advance on the board. But the kids advanced by 3 spaces each because they both formed the word "CAT". The kids were surprisingly enthralled with this game. They also love the spinner and always try to spin it the fastest and most. Anyway, this is a great family activity. The kids often play without us. We highly recommend it!

We got this game for our 6 year old, not knowing what to expect. Turns out that it really challenges her to come up with good words! After a few times, though, we didn't have to use the "adult rules" because (1) she was too good at it now, and (2) it was just as challanging for the adults as the children! Now, my 4 year old has joined in the game. We use a "stripped down" version of the rules for her: Now that she knows phonics, she came come up with a word that begins with one of the letters spun, and then writes down that word. Great practice for the whole family!

This is a great game. Prior to purchasing it, I had to spend some time figuring out if this was the Travel Edition or the Regular Edition of Wordplay for Kids that won a Teacher's Choice Award. It seems there are reviews for both here. What I found is that as of the year 2008 - Wordplay for Kids - comes only in the regular edition (the travel edition is no longer available). Some reviews here seem to refer to the smaller cheaper Travel Edition. Either way both games were great, you just need more space to store the regular edition as it comes in a bigger box with more components. The key though is that with either edition Kids love playing it.

This game has won a Teacher's Choice Award and when you see kids having fun playing and learning at the same time -- you know why. We most recently played the new upgraded Deluxe version of the game (I owned the cheaper "travel version" priced at $[...], but I highly suggest paying extra and buying the new Deluxe version priced at $[...] -- the new more expensive Deluxe game is made to last for years of play). We had the "travel version", but prefer this new "Deluxe Version". All kids play each round -- so there is no turn waiting. The spinner is spun and two letters are picked. Kids write down the two letters spun on their game sheet. Then the timer is turned and kids have 60 seconds to come up with a word in a particular category. For instance, one category is "Object or Thing", another is "Living Creature", another is "Food or Drink", etc. You get the picture. So the challenge for kids is not only to come up with a letter containing the two spun letters, but finding a word with the two letters in the chosen category. Keep in mind, the letters chosen can be used in any part of the word, not just the first and last letters. So, for instance, when the two letters spun are "G" and "A" and the category is "Food or Drink", kids all try to find a word which contains a "G" and an "A" but which is also a "Food or Drink". When time is up, all kids put down there pencil and reveal their word. Each players moves ahead by the number of letters in their word. Players only move ahead if the word is spelt correctly and if it is in the proper category. So, if a player formed the word "Orange", they would move ahead 6 spaces on the board. But if another player formed the word "Grape", they would only move ahead 5 spaces on the board. Whichever player reaches the finish line first wins the game. This is a terrific game. We love the new "Deluxe Version", as our "travel version" was too, too well traveled. This game is fun for both kids and adults to play together. Highly recommended!

I purchased this game from Amazon for my 10 year old grandson and he and his friends love it!

Some of the subjects are extremly challenging although everything does depend on the letters that you get.

I would definitely recommend this game to enhance learning and to encourage children to extend their thinking skills.

They also are able to learn new words from their friends.

My 6 year old daughter loves to play this and she learns a lot about how to spell words.
We can make it more challenging for adults, so they can play along with the little
ones and it really is fun to come up with words that have certain letters in them.

I bought this as a gift for someone else and was embarrassed by how cheap it looked when we opened it. To top it off, the sand in the timer was all glued or stuck together so that the only element of the game which you couldn't make yourself didn't even work. The parts look like they're worth less than a $0.25 and the boards and pieces are ridiculously cheap. They could've at least put an extra nickel or two into the spinner, the key element of the game. As it is, I think a kindergartner could make this game in their arts and crafts hour. I'd recommend traditional word games like Scrabble or Boggle instead of this.