Are you lost in the sea of boring baby and toddler toys that your little one demands you play with right now? Dreaming of your days as an 80s or 90s child catching moving fish, working your way through the gumdrop forrest in candy land, or gobbling up hippo food? Take it back to your 80s childhood and scoop up these classic games to start having a little more fun with your preschooler!
7 Games from your 80s childhood
1. Hungry Hungry Hippos
I can remember forcefully slamming on my hippo lever, balls flying everywhere. Trying to gobble up the most hippo food while you compete against your siblings or friends, this game used to keep my brother and I occupied all day. This game is good even for kids who have trouble taking turns or following rules since it’s a quick fury of action that everyone does together. Hungry Hungry Hippos definitely brings back some childhood memories!
2. Let’s Go Fishing
Let’s go fishing is a great way to work on timing, hand-eye coordination, and patience! As the fish rotate in a circle, get the fishing pole into their mouth at just the right time to catch them and fish them out of the pond. Sometimes finger fishing happens when my kids are too impatient and frustrated to use the fishing pole, but they love catching the fish. Do you remember in your 80s childhood wondering what was the magic that made those fish open and close their mouths, just waiting to be caught?
3. Don’t Break the Ice
We got a ‘Frozen’ version of this as a birthday gift, and I had almost forgotten it existed! My kids work on taking turns and gently tapping the ice. Some days are better than others, sometimes they forget that the concept is “don’t break the ice,” because they love crushing it as hard as possible. We have minimal meltdowns over who gets to hold the hammer, and overall have a lot of fun!
4. Connect 4
Sure, my kids don’t really get the concept of the game 100%. But they know that the goal is to get 4 in a row! I remember my 80s childhood included many days working to outsmart my brother or battling the babysitter with Connect 4. I’m so glad I get to continue the love of it with another generation.
5. Candy Land
Candy Land was one of the high ranking games of my 80s childhood, second only to Mall Madness. I loved making my way through the lollipop woods and fighting to be the first one to the castle. This is a great game to work on counting, colors, taking turns and makes for a perfect family game night!
6. Hi Ho Cherry-O
Counting, taking turns, and learning to work those darn spinners are what this game is all about! It also helps with fine motor skills since kids have to grab those teeny tiny cherries off the tree to place them on the basket during their turn. Playing Hi Ho Cherry-O, I remember dreading when the spinner would land on the basket and all my cherries would return to the tree (I still do too). This game is favorite in our house!
7. Chutes & ladders
So many memories of Chutes & Ladders from my 80s childhood! I still have it on my amazon wishlist, but I’m pretty sure I’m caving soon to buy it! Maybe it will help to reinforce with my kids that we don’t climb up the slide at the playground? Probably it will serve as a learning tool to practice taking turns and counting the spaces we can move, and learning cause and effect. I’m excited to cozy up in my jammies for game night with this in the future!
Are these games bringing back all the memories of your 80s childhood? I think one of my favorite parts of my kids getting older is that I get to play with these games again! Your preschooler or elementary age kiddo will feed off your excitement of these basic board games, and love spending time with you. Any time where my kids aren’t running around crazy and can sit still for 10 minutes playing a game is a win in my book! Add them to an Easter basket or to your Christmas or birthday list and you are good to go!
If you’re looking for more ideas on how to have fun with your preschooler, check out my craft and book pairings:
- Flower Planting Sensory Box
- Pot of Gold Rainbow
- Snow Sensory Box
- Thankful Turkeys
- Make Your Own Snow globe
Now stock up your playroom with fun activities to keep you entertained just as much as your toddler or preschooler!
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