ThinkFun Logic Games for Kids
For more than 30 years ThinkFun has been turning cutting-edge STEM concepts into fun logic games for kids. They teach kids about math and spelling but also computing and logic in fun ways. The kids don't even realize that they are learning while playing! Super fun, these game teach concepts that can't always be fit into the standard school schedules these days. ThinkFun has a number a fun new games for 2018!
Just a small sampling of ThinkFun's many game choices!
Laser Chess
Like regular chess, Laser Chess by ThinkFun is a two-player strategy game. Since receiving this game I've been trying to play at least one game every day with my oldest son. He just turned 8 so he is in the perfect age range for this game. As an adult, I love this game! It is much easier to learn than regular chess, but it still requires the forethought to plan your strategy for winning. After just a few games I could already see an improvement in my son's skills. He is more observant and thinks ahead more. Each piece can move the same way, just one space in any direction, so moves are easy to plan out. You can also choose to rotate a piece one turn instead of moving it. Bounce the laser around the board until it hits your opponent's king! But be careful that you don't hit your own piece or it will be eliminated. My son loves playing this with me, especially because he has beaten me a couple of times! It's also a mini science lesson learning about how lasers work and move.
Tail Spin
Tail Spin is less of a game and more of a fidget spinner. Hold the handle and flick the device up, out or forward and the gears unfurl, twist, and spin. All three of my kids love this though it is recommended for ages 8 and up. It takes just the right amount of movement to get it to spin, so it's fun to get it to work without wildly waving it about. It teaches patience and control while entertaining the kids!
Sign up for our emails and get our free Simply Sweet E-Cookbook?
Kaleidoscope Puzzle
Many of the logic games from ThinkFun are for only one player. Kaleidoscope is a single-player game that focuses on visual perception and reasoning. Pick a challenge card and stack the tiles to perfectly match what is on the card. There are four different levels of challenges from beginner to expert. You have to line up the cards just right and sometimes overlap the colors to get the correct layout and color configuration. Though I help him with it, my 4-year-old loves this one. He is all about colors and this has been teaching him not only reasoning skills but color mixing!
Word A Round 2
Word a Round 2 is the sequel to their very popular Word a Round game. Designed for older kids (and adults young at heart) the goal is to figure out where the word in the ring starts and be the first to say it out loud. Be the first and you win that card. When you take it, you flip it over to reveal the color of the next ring you are to look at and read. My younger kids love reading off the letters, but cannot read yet. My oldest loves reading, but this proves to be a unique challenge. He loves to go-go-go non-stop. So he gets a little frustrated with the time it takes to figure out where the word starts, but it is also teaching valuable skills. For him, namely, patience. It helps him to better visualize the word and take his time finding it. There are 100 cards with 300 words to find! It can also be combined with the original for an even bigger game!
Cat Crimes
Cat Crimes is ThinkFun's version of classic word logic puzzles. It is also a one player game, but I can read the cards out loud to my younger son and help him play it. There are four levels of challenge cards from beginner to expert that provide clues as to which cat committed the stated crime. The cats are placed around the table to visualize who was sitting where and finally deduce who the guilty party is. The final layout must meet all the criteria set in the clues and each card has only one solution. I personally spent over an hour playing this on all levels. I actually found the advanced cards a bit more challenging than the expert cards! My younger son loves to play the beginner cards and we talk through who is "upstairs sleeping" and who is sitting where at the table. My kids love picking which crime to solve, whether it's who ate the bird or who unraveled all the yarn.
Color Fold
A new take on their fun folding games, Color Fold used a silky soft cloth with various boxed colors. Again, there are different levels of challenge cards and you must fold the cloth so that it matches the layout on the card. No other piece of the cloth can be showing. The cloth is very thin, so folding it multiple times is very easy. The cards can be quite challenging though! Some even call for diagonal folds to match the cards.
Logic Games
These games bring me back to 4th grade and my "special" advanced math class. I do not remember doing any math but we played LOTS of fun games like these. It's difficult to find the same logic games I played, and I lamented the fact I didn't know how to teach my kids these skills because they are not really taught in schools anymore. These games from ThinkFun more than compensate though. I love them and thoroughly enjoy playing them myself. They are geared towards older kids, but I am already helping my younger kids start to understand and play them.
Don't forget to check out our other categories such as our Recipes section for tasty meals!
Great fun for the logical little ones.
All of these games are new to me but sound like fun. Great ideas!
thinkfun is headquartered in my hometown! Their games look awesome - we'd especially love laser chess to help hone our chess skills!
These look like a lot of fun. I've never heard of some of them.
laser chess looks amazing
I like that laser chess is easier than regular chess.
I love how the cat crimes works your problem solving skill and it looks like fun to me to play with my grands, thanks!
I love these games, they would make you think. My Grandkids love games and these would not be any different. I love the Cat Crimes and the Color Fold. The others are just as interesting. They really came out with some great games. Thanks for sharing.
Really looking forward to playing the cat crimes. Seems interesting and fun from what you wrote.
All of them sound fun. I'd love to play them
We are always looking for new games, the Color fold looks like it could be a challenge
Tail spin and color fold looks fun. I love all these games. Great for family game night.
Our family plays board games on Friday nights. I haven’t heard of ThinkFun games before but they sound fun and challenging for my 2 granddaughters. The game Cat Crimes would show them by using logic how to know who is the criminal. Kaleidoscope would be great to help them with visual perception and reasoning.
cat crime that is the gam we choose
I think they are all great games. They also learn and still have fun playing the games.
I have never played chess but my grandkids know how to play. Maybe the laser chess would be a good way for me to learn so I could play with them All of the games are different and would be fun to learn.
I've never heard of these games before, they do look like a lot of fun.
Word a Round 2 sounds really fun and interesting game that I would like to play with my friends and family.
I have never heard of some of these games, they sound like a lot of fun, especially the Cat Crimes.
Oh my goodness! That laser chess is something I need! My 10 year old niece LOVES chess and I have a difficult time playing her. The lasers would be super helpful for my brain! Hahahaha!!!
I am also adding Color Fold to a purchase list. What a great thinking activity! I think I would make my mom play that one and exercise her brain in a fun way.
Thanks for bringing these games to our attention. I love when a game is both fun and educational! The pictures are very helpful in getting a better idea about the games.
Love to p play these games with my kiddos
I like the wide variety of games they have.
It's been raining all-day, everyday here in Orlando. My family has been playing lots of board games, and we could use some new ones. Cat Crimes looks perfect for us.
I love playing fun learning and thinking games with my grandchildren. These sound awesome. Thank you so much for sharing these
My girls are turning 11 & 13 next month. Great gift ideas!
It's great way kids learn about math and spelling but also computing and logic in fun ways
Wow. All these games sound great. I think my favorite is the Cat Crimes game. That would be fun to play with my niece. I know it's a one player game. But like you, I'd read the cards for her.
We love playing games. These look like great games to have.
The Cat Crimes game looks super cute and my family would love playing it. I love that these games encourage learning and building skills while also being fun.
I love logic games. Helps using thinking skills.
THey all look and sound like fun family games that we can all enjoy!
All of them sound fun. I love playing games together.
I’ll go with Cat Crimes looks fun and engaging.
I like the Think Fun games because kids learn without realizing it. They think that they are just having fun. The games are so unique.
I came here to look at the review for laser chess and the cat crime game, but was enticed by all the other games. I think that the color fold game looks most interesting in that it is a very simple concept, but it can be quite complex in figuring out how to fold the cloth. I think my son would enjoy that very much. I think he would look at it at first and think that it's super easy, but would be surprised that it's harder than it looks which would entice him all the more.
The laser game looks fun!
Laser Chese sounds like it right up my son's & my alley.
I love playing games with my grand kids that teach them at the same time. I am looking forward to playing Cat Crimes with my grand kids. I think they would love it
Cat Crimes looks like such a unique and fun game! My daughter is obsessed with cats so it is perfect for her. 🙂 Thanks for your review!
What an interesting selection of games these are. It looks like there would be something for all ages and interests. I would like to get the Kaleidoscope puzzle for my 4 year old grandson.
I think my little niece would love the Cat Crimes and I love it makes you think also
I love all these awesome ThinkFun Logic games,especially because kids learn while playing them without knowing it,they have fun while learning and I love that,skills like problem solving and math being integrated into a fun game is a genius way to teach kids!
I am sure that these games are great for young children. They seems to be alot of fun. I enjoy finding out about new games for the kids.
We love Winning Games!! They have an awesome selection and variety!! I like that they have one player games!! Cat Crimes looks sounds like our kind of game!!
Car Crimes looks like a good way to get children to think logically, use deduction strategies and solving the problems by figuring out what the clues are leading to. All in all, logic skills are so important.
these games look great. i loved loggic problems as a kid!
Oh my gosh, that Cat Crimes game is adorable. It would make my whole family happy. Some of us love cats, the rest of us love games!