Here’s how I used to spend my family nights during my childhood:
After dinner, my dad would play Chinese chess with my siblings while my mother would play checkers with me (since I am not quite interested in playing Chinese chess). When my parents were busy, my siblings and I would play Snakes and Ladders and other kid-favourite games.
I am truly blessed for having these joyful childhood memories of spending our nights as a family.
However, that was before we had smartphones. Nowadays, with the advancement of technology, most of us no longer spend our family nights with games and activities. Instead, we bond with our smartphones and foster our relationship through social media.
To ensure that we have ‘quality’ time scrolling through our phones, we parents opt for the easiest way to prevent our children from distracting us. It is as simple as giving them another gadget and allowing them to play games and watch videos as long as we are still on our social media.
So, do you consider this as a family bonding night?
I am sure you know the answer from the bottom of your heart. If your family is currently struggling with this situation, worry not! We are here to tell you that you can be the change to kick start your family nights with a bang.
What you need is to read on and try out these 5 exciting games to start off your family bonding nights.
5 Exciting Games for Family Bonding Night
#1: Monopoly Board or Card Game
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Monopoly is certainly one of the most exhilarating board games that you can play as a family. Monopoly is a real-estate board game where players need to build their wealth by buying and developing pieces of properties.
Not only can you bond with your children, but you can also educate them about financial literacy through this game. Simply acquire more assets that bring you more income and you will become rich instantly!
You can enjoy the game with 3 to 6 players. You first start the game by giving each player a fixed amount of play money. Then, you proceed to roll the dice to decide who starts first. The person with the highest number would start off the game by throwing the dice and moving around the board.
If you land on an unowned property, you can buy it. However, you need to pay rent to another player if you land on his/her property.
Another variation that your family can enjoy is the Monopoly Deal Card Game. Transforming from a board game to a card game, it comes with 110 cards of property cards, rent cards, and many more. You can win the game by being the first player who collects 3 property card sets.
From my personal experience, I definitely prefer the Monopoly card game as it is more thrilling with its action cards, where you get to charge rent and make tricky deals among other players. You can play the game for many rounds as it only takes 20 minutes to end a round.
#2: UNO!
Do you still remember the last time when you shouted “UNO”? UNO is surely one of my favourite card games to play with my siblings. Worry not, we are never too old to play this game with our children.
To start the game, every player will get 7 cards. After drawing the first card from the draw pile to start the game, the first player can match either the number or the colour of the face-up card with a card in their hand.
The game will move on until one of the players yells “UNO” before playing his/her second-to-last card. If you wish to win the game, be the first person to finish up all your cards.
What I enjoyed the most about UNO is that with its special cards, such as draw 2 and wild draw 4, you will never know who is the winner until the end. You might be left with 2 cards in your hand for now, but you will get extra 12 cards if the players before you keep on using the draw 2 or wild draw 4 cards.
Trust me, your children will certainly love this game as much as you did during your childhood!
#3: Chess Games
You can set a daily or weekly chess night as one of the ways to spend some quality time with your family. Depending on your children’s preferences, you can try out a variety of chess games with them. As I mentioned in the beginning, I did not favour Chinese chess when I was young. Therefore, I played checkers with my mother, instead.
On the other hand, my siblings enjoyed playing both Chinese and Western chess games when they were young. They would discuss strategies on how to win the game and they would invite their friends to come over to our house to test out their strategies.
While playing chess with your children, you would have more time to have conversations with them. They would likely ask you questions about the game rules and the strategies to win. With this, your children would also get the opportunity to develop their critical thinking skills through strategising for each game set.
#4: Balloon in the Air Game
If your children prefer activities that involve movements, the ‘Balloon in the Air’ game would certainly boost up their adrenaline!
Simply find an empty wide space around your house and start blowing a few balloons. Then, your children can take turns to start tossing the balloons and make sure the balloons stay up in the air with their bare hands or tools.
Both you and your children can be as creative as possible on using which tools for the game. Some interesting ones include badminton racquet, paper plate, cardboard, plastic hand fan, and many more. If your children wish to win the game, be the one who has their balloon in the air for the longest time.
#5: The Highest Coin or Cup Tower
Do you have coins at home? Or do you have leftover paper cups from previous parties? If so, you can totally kick off your family bonding activities anytime you want!
To start the game, you can gather all the coins or paper cups on a table. Within a stipulated time, your children would need to build a tower as high as they can with the coins or paper cups. The winner is the one who builds the highest and steadiest tower.
This game would acquire concentration, balance, and critical thinking skills as they need to strategise to maximise their tower’s height.
Now is the Perfect Time for Family Bonding
If you were wondering when is the perfect time to bond with your children, the answer is none but now. Always remind yourself to spend some quality time with them by having fun together. What our children need is not fancy toys but our presence and attention when we are with them.
Wait no more and try out these exciting games and activities during your next family bonding night! You would once again feel the excitement of your childhood memories come to life while helping your children create their own joyful memories.
Year-end holidays are great in so many ways, especially when you have fun family activities to fill up your time. For more fun-filled holiday ideas right within your home, visit our Cuti-Cuti Family articles here!