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July 18, 2023

Our Favorite Single Player Games for Kids

Is there a day that goes by without my kids pulling out some sort of game? I don't think that there is! But, even with five kids, it is hard to always find someone to play a game with you. And while I love board games and will always happily join a game if I can, that's not always a possibility. Enter single player games. We have added a few of these types of games to our home over the last few years. And they are perfect for travel, those times when no one else is available to play, or those moments where your child just needs to play alone. 

There are so many great single player options available to meet a variety of different interests and skill levels. So I thought I would share a few that we have loved here in our Montessori home. 

Single Player Games We Love for Our Montessori Family


A collage of single player logic games for children from toddlers through elementary school

These games tend to be logic based and fairly quick. I also love that most of these are challenge based on skill and can hold the attention of both younger and older kids. Here are some of our favorites: 

  1. Rush Hour: These take a little bit of work to set up but tend to be really engaging and fun. I love that there are extension packs to make more challenges to keep people entertained. Some of these are very hard. Ages 6+
  2. Gravity Maze: This one could be used by more than one person, but my kids tend to fight if they use it together. This one is one of our more challenging single player games but I also like that they can experiment with just building the little marble runs. Ages 8+ 
  3. Little Red Riding Hood: This one is so cute and sweet and lends itself to a lot of pretend play. It is easily self-correcting and not too challenging.  This brand has so many games to meet a variety of interests and stages. Ages 4-6
  4. Squirrels Go Nuts!: Same brand as the last one. I love the size of this one and it's simplicity to set up. We have taken to travel and it's worked great. Downside, the nuts can roll away on you if you aren't careful. Ages 6+ 
  5. One in A Chameleon: This one is deceptively hard and could also be played competitively. The magnets make it a good choice for travel, but it can be really frustrating. Ages 7+ 
  6. Building Site: A lot the early HABA games can actually be played alone or cooperatively. It is memory based. There is nothing in the game play enhanced by more people with this one. I love that it also lends itself to pretend play. Ages 2-4

Most of these games are self correcting, so they truly can be played all alone. And, some of them, I even find fun (not going to lie, some of those rush hour set ups take me awhile!) 

Single player games are a great addition to your children's shelves in your Montessori home. And there are so many great ones even beyond those listed here. Do you have any favorite single player games for kids?

Who says you need more than one to have fun? Single player games are an excellent way for your child to develop key skills while having fun. Check out our top picks for engaging single player games for kids that are sure to captivate their imagination and logic skills, in our recent post.

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Comments

Martha B
Martha B said…
I have one kid, so I’m looking into these immediately!