Scrabble Junior – A Gameschooling Review From A Homeschooling Mom
Scrabble Junior is a great game option for beginner readers. It gives the opportunity to enjoy a game with friends while working on vocabulary and language skills. Children will develop cognitive skills by thinking ahead and using strategic planning to win the game. There is a front and back of the board for 2 different difficulty options.
Gameschool:
- Cognitive Skills
- Spelling
- Combining Letter Sounds
- Good Practice For Beginner Readers
- Matching
- Strategy
- Turn Taking
- Healthy Competition
- Reading Not Required
Players: 2-4
Ages: 5+
Game Time: 10-20 min
Who We Play With: We started playing Scrabble Junior when my son was 3. My 8 year old still enjoys playing.
How To Play
Set Up
Mix up the letter tiles face down and hand out 7 to each player. On your turn, you must play 2 letters if you can. 1 letter can be played if you cannot place 2 tiles. If you cannot place any tiles, discard 2 tiles and pick up 2 new letters. Only 2 tiles can be played per turn. At the end of your turn, pick up to 7 tiles again.
Words must be completed from left to right or top to bottom. You cannot place a letter in the middle of a word if the beginning letters are not yet placed.
If you complete a word, score 1 point. If you complete 2 words with 1 letter tile, score 2 points.
Determining A Winner
The game ends when all the letter tiles are used. The player with the most points wins.
Advanced Play
Set up is the same.
The first word must cover the blue star in the center of the board. All words thereafter must connect to a word already on the board.
Words must be horizontal or vertical, not diagonal or backwards.
On your turn, place one or more letter tiles on the board to continue or complete a word. At the end of your turn, draw up to 7 tiles again.
Gain points by completing words. When you complete a word, you get 1 point for every letter in the word. Use a pen and paper to keep track of points.
All touching letters must form a word. If you cannot make all the letters that are touching form a word, you must find a different place to place your tiles.
If you are unable to place a tile, you can replace 1 or all of your letters from the tile pile and end your turn.
Determining A Winner
After all the tiles have been placed, the player with the most points wins.
Would we play this again?
Yes! Scrabble has always been a favorite of mine so having a junior version that we can play with the kids is awesome! Plus, I know that when they are playing scrabble, they are learning at the same time.
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