Hi Ho! Cherry-O is a counting game recommended for children ages 3 to 6, making it appropriate for preschoolers, kindergarten students, and some first graders, although it should only be used with adult supervision, since it contains small parts which could be a choking hazard. The game board is decorated to look like a cherry orchard. In the center of the board is a spinner, which children spin to determine how many cherries they should pick. The goal of the game is to be the first to clear your tree of all its cherries.
Candy Land is a classic game that reinforces basic counting skills with children. Players move pawns across the board, which is decorated with landmarks like the Candy Cane Forest and Gum Drop Mountain. The cards in a deck are marked with dots to indicate how many spaces a player should move across the board. This teaches kids counting and numerical skills in multiple formats; they must recognize the number of dots on the card and then count their way across the board with their pawn.
Chutes and Ladders is a child-friendly version of an ancient Indian game called Snakes and Ladders. The game is one of odds; players roll a die and advance across the board. Occasionally, they will land on a square that will allow them to take a shortcut up a ladder to advance more quickly. Sometimes they may land on a chute, or slide, which will send them back towards the beginning of the game. The game is played on a grid of 100 spaces -- 10 across and 10 up -- and players move horizontally and vertically in an attempt to be the first player to reach the 100th space.
Monopoly is another classic game that can be used to teach and reinforce more advanced math skills, like multiplication, as well as money skills and strategies. Players buy and sell property, pay rent and move across the board, all of which provides ample opportunity for practicing counting skills, addition and subtraction and more. The player with the most opportunity to learn math skills is the banker, who passes out the money, makes change, and collects money for public property.