Blue Orange games keep minds sharp, while keeping summer fun
Kids love games and so do we! Imagine our excitement when we learned that we would be having a play-date with a young man from Paris, who would teach us to play all the new games from Blue Orange… while speaking in a gorgeous French accent!
During his visit, Gucci showed us 22 of his favorite Blue Orange games! We learned all new games and enjoyed some old favorites. I still think the “crème de la crème” is a game called Gobblet Gobblers. In this game of tic-tac-toe with a twist, players are allowed to usurp spots formerly held by their opponent. As Gucci says, “Gobblet Gobblers [is my favorite because], you can play it with children of any age, but there is also some strategy.” (Can you hear that being said with a French accent?)
Gobblet Gobblers isn’t the only Blue Orange game that puts a twist on old favorites.
Blue Orange’s Yamslam is similar to the popular dice game Yahtzee, but takes rolling and scoring to a whole new level with ample opportunity for bonus points!
For those who love to play Bananagrams, but consider themselves better math magicians than word wizards, Blue Orange presents Sumoku! In Sumoku, rather than combing letters, players roll a die, and then align numbered tiles to create multiples of the digit rolled. Goodbye, dictionary… Hello, abacus!
When it was time for him to leave, Gucci offered to let us borrow some of his toys. One of our favorites is a new game called Fast Track, the object of which is to send all ten wooden chips sailing into your opponent’s side of the board. The challenge is that you have to do so by using an elastic band to shoot them through a small hole. Swing by, and we’ll show you how to play!
By teaching important skills such as: hand-eye coordination, basic mathematics, number recognition, color recognition, sequencing, balance, and memory, Blue Orange products are the perfect tools for keeping your child’s mind sharp, while keeping the summer all fun and games!
Variations of the Blue Orange Game Spot It
Gucci’s Special Variation of Spot It:
During his visit, Gucci taught us a special variation of Spot It that is not listed in the instruction booklet.
Lay 12 Spot It cards on the table. The object is to collect as many cards as possible. The way you collect cards is by finding a match between THREE of the 12 cards. And, don’t forget - as in the other variations of Spot It – you must yell out the name of the matching items, before you can collect your cards! Each time three cards are collected, lay three more cards on the table. The player with the most cards, at the end of the game, is the winner.
Ultimate Spot It, (invented by the staff at Highland’s Ranch):
Possibly inspired by The Snipe Hunt Game (see earlier blog entry), the rules for Ultimate Spot It are as follows: Hide 10 Spot It cards around your house (or around a toy store). Then, gather a group of friends to search. The object of the game is to find and collect as many pairs as possible. In order to pick up a pair of cards, players must find the matching item between them, and – as in regular Spot It - call out the name of that item. But, beware! If you find one card, it is important not to give away its location, or another player could take it before you find a match! The player with the most pairs, at the end of the game, is the winner!
What’s Your Favorite Blue Orange Game?
Brandie (Manager – Highlands Ranch)
“Spot It, because you can play so many different ways, with so many different ages. Plus, you can make up your own way of playing, [like the staff at Highland’s Ranch did]! Another reason I love Spot-It is because it makes a great ice-breaker.”
Christy (Manager – University Hills)
“Pengoloo, because it teaches both memory and patience. Because each player essentially gets two turns at a time, children learn to be patient. Plus, the penguins are just so darn cute!”
Maria (Assistant Manager – University Hills)
“Gobblet Gobblers, because there are so many different ways to play. And, the pieces are so colorful and cute!”
