My favorite board game as a kid was chutes and ladders, sometimes as a variation known as snakes and ladders. It was fun, because you never knew what was going to happen, and I enjoyed playing it over and over again. Working in toys, I do get customers asking me about the game for their kids and grandkids, so I know it's still popular. I would definitely recommend it to someone looking for a good classic. It's a great game without having to worry about reading skills. This is a great game for ages 4 and up.

Another fun board game is Cosmic Cows, something I found out about last year. If your kids like yahtzee, then they're sure to like Cosmic Cows. It's the same premise as yahtzee, where you each take 3 turns to roll the dice and get points for rolling 1-through-6-of-a-kind, a full house, a straight, and chance; the only difference is you do it on a board and have cow pawns. The object of the game is to get three of your cow pawns to your space zone at the end of either side of the board. At all times, the cow pawns are up for grabs, making the game a fun challenge. To play, the cows start out sitting in the middle of the board in the slots for 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, free (lets you go directly to your space zone), full house, straight, and chance. If you roll all 1s, you move the cow in the 1 slot down 1 toward your space zone. But, if your opponent also gets all 1s, he is allowed to move your cow back in his direction. This is a great game for ages 6 or 7 and up.

Learn more about this author, Natasha L. Kohlhoff Polak.
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