Wednesday

Educational games - Sketching and Painting

I will list some free online sketching and painting games for kids. You can visit their webpage by clicking on the images given below


Draw your Heroes









Butterfly color copy game







Drawings and stamps

Educational Games - Colors

I will list some free online educational games that are designed to teach colors and shapes. You can play them by clicking on the links below ( not the images )


Play Find the Shapes and Colors online









Play Sort shells for Bowa's collection








Play The Colors of Light 

Educational games - animals

I will list a few games that make children acquainted with animals. You can play the games by clicking on the links below (not the images)

Kids will love to feed these animated animals. Each animal needs to be fed different food, one item at a time. Play Feeding farm animals





This is a game of matching wild animals with their favorite food items. Click on a food item and then take it to the animal that likes it and click once. It will eat if it likes, or will refuse it.

Play Before Winter 




Educational Games - Shapes

I will list some online Educational games for kids that are designed to teach different shapes. You can play them by clicking on the images below



Kwala's great shape game



Boowa and Kwala's sugar house

This interesting game acquaints children with countries in the world by recognizing their shapes. May look daunting first, but is easy to play once you get acquainted with it.





Online Coloring pages

I will list some online coloring pages. You can start painting by clicking on the images below


The Nick Jr Coloring book has all it needs for online coloring for your kid. It has tools like crayon, spray can, paint bucket, 3 brush sizes, eraser, several coloring pages accessible on the same screen, and a full color pallet. This should be your first choice for online painting.

This image has prominently sketched lines, easy for kids to fill the color in.






In this amazing online coloring page, you can click on the medium bowl, put in on the stone, and select one color material and put it on the stone, to make the paint. Now you can use your finger to make drawings on the wall. You can dip your finger back in the paint if it is finished. Use the medium again to create a new color for drawing.

You can paint this Igloo online and then print it on a paper if you have a printer. The white board is for writing your name on it.






Mushrooms from woods


The sea shell shelf





This page allows you mixing  colors to make shades of your choice from the four basic colors. Splashing water clears the palette.







This page allows you to add  colors and animated objects into the pictures. More fun than static color pages.

Tree sculptures - online creative game

This one is a realistic gaming activity. It displays a full grown tree and several pruning tools to cut it into desired shape.
Definitely an interesting gameplay. Kids should love to play it, they can make different shapes and enjoy their creativity.
It is an artistic activity game meant for kids. You can accompany your kids to see how he is doing and you can suggest him different shapes from the sample shapes given at the top left of the game screen.

You can also print the final design if you have a printer attached to your computer. You can start playing this game by visiting its webpage on this link

Card based memory games

I will list a number of games that are card based. You can click on the links below (not the images)  to open the webpage and play online.


Play Winter Time online










Play Collections of shells online








Play The Pairs of  Tools online








Tuesday

School brain teaser - online memory game

This is a card based memory game, in which the image of an object at the back of the card is displayed for a short period of time when you click on it once, and then you need to click on other card with similar image in succession, that would turn both the cards over. You have 30 cards and 30 clicks at your disposal. It is not an entry level card game, if your kid has played a similar game before then it is an enjoyable game, otherwise you should accompany your kid in playing this game for the first time. The objects are all familiar for school going kids. It is definitely a game worth playing for exercising observation and memory for kids aged six and above.
You can start playing this game from it's webpage on this link 

Find the ball - free online observation game

This is a classic game of shuffling objects that everyone of you may have come across in real life. Well what better way than to introduce it to the kids in form of a ball hidden under a glass. This game is meant for kids aged four and above. It takes steady observation of the glass under which the ball is placed and it is not difficult to recognize it after shuffling.

The game's stated skill developments are observation, logic and mouse click. You can enjoy it yourself before you let your kids have a try. It is pretty easier and should not be difficult for kids to get to it. You can start playing this game on it's webpage on this link

The Clever Beaver - free online Tic Tac Toe

Playing Tic Tac Toe could be much more fun if your opponent is a clever Beaver, and makes Hmm sound while thinking before each move. The animated beaver adds life into this online Tic Tac Toe.

This game is meant for kids aged six years and above. It utilizes observation, understanding, logic and mouse movement.

Your kid would definitely start to like Tic Tac Toe if it is designed in this way. You can start playing this free online game on its webpage on this link 

Tidy up kitchen - free online memory game

This memory game is an excellent example of a game that uses familiar articles seen in daily lives. A bit more advanced as you need to rely on your initial observation of the locations of different objects in the initial picture. You have a helping hand in the computer as it will only accept if you try to keep an object in its original location. And you also have an option of visual clues, you can use it twice.

The good thing about memory games is that you get better playing at it once you start playing them. You get an idea of how these games function, and then you need to be precise in your observations. This online game is meant for kids of age six years and over. The game exercises memory, observation and mouse movements.

Definitely a game with educational values along with entertainment. You can start playing this game by visiting its webpage on this link

Tidy Library - free online memory game

This is a part memory, part shape recognition game. Meant for kids of six years and above, this game is highly recommended as an educational activity.
The initial image shows a tidy book shelf with different books of varying sizes and colors and other objects kept in it.
When you start the game some of the books and objects are removed from the shelf. You are supposed to guess or remember their original location and put them back. The easy part in it is that, a book or an object will only go to its original location, or else it will bounce back, so there is plenty of chances for you to try and err. In the beginning this game may look daunting in the first glance, but is pretty simple and easy and fun to play. Kids should do it much faster if they replay this game after the first time.

You can start playing this game by visiting its webpage on this link

The treasure map - free online board game for kids

The treasure map is a free online board game with computer as your opponent. It is meant for kids aged four years and above.
It is easy to play even for smaller kids. All they need to do is to click on the dice when it is their turn. The numbers are automatically calculated and the pieces are also moved automatically. So it is just a fun to watch things happen on their own. There is a commenting voice in the background and also the events are displayed in text form in the book at the right corner. It can provide 10 to 15 minutes of easy entertainment for kids.
You can play this game by visiting its webpage on this link

The Caterpiller maze - online game for kids

If your kid likes to play maze games, then this game should not be missed. It is a caterpillar finding its way through a maze in a leaf. It is so brilliantly disguised that you won't be able to identify the maze at the first glance. The veins of the leaf are drawn as a maze. As the caterpillar moves in the maze, it starts eating the part of the leaf making chopping sound as it makes it way through. A fun thing to watch.

You can play this game by visiting the webpage of this game on this link

UnderSea maze - online game for kids

This is yet another brilliantly done maze game. It is a free online game intended for kids of age six years and above. The maze is not complicated and the graphics are beautiful and attractive. You can start moving the fish by clicking on it and then just moving the mouse to guide it through the maze. The fish movement looks realistic.
Good as an entry level maze game for kids.
You can start playing this game from its webpage from this link

The LadyBird maze - online game for kids

This is another well done maze game, in which a ladybird insect has to find its way through the maze. You can start moving the ladybird by clicking on it and then moving your mouse around the maze. The movement of the ladybird is cute. The kids would like to watch it move. It is intended for kids aged six years and above. You can start playing this game on its webpage from this link

The cave maze - free online game

In this brilliantly done maze game, you find yourself inside a prehistoric cave with a lamp. The light of the lamp makes some portion of the cave visible as you move through the maze. It is a different experience than the traditional mazes where the entire maze is visible. It is a free online game for kids aged six years and above. It is not just about finding the exit, but you come across prehistoric objects in different parts of of the cave. It should be a fun to play this game for kids. You can start playing this game on its webpage from this link



The Lava maze - online game for kids

In this game of maze, you have to guide a fireball through the maze. When you see the maze on a full screen it should not be difficult for kids to find their way out through the maze using the mouse movement. This game is meant for kids of age six years and above. Once you successfully pass through the maze, the path you traveled is filled with graphics of molten lava, kids would love the visuals.
You can go to the webpage for this game from this link 

Monday

Pick a pretty bunch of flowers - online game for kids (age 4 to 6)

This game is titled "Pick a pretty bunch of flowers". It is a free online game suitable for kids aged 4 to 6.  The screen displays a field with flowers in it, you can pick a flower by clicking on them, you need to click on as many flowers as you can within 15 seconds. There is a timer that shows the time elapsed and then in the end you can see a bunch of flowers and the total number of flowers you managed to pick. A good way to practice rapid mouse clicks.

You can play the game by clicking on this link 

You can see the game in action before you play in the video below.





The Rain Game - Kids age 4 to 6

"The Rain Game" is a free online game for kids in the age group of 4 to 6. It aims to teach and improve hand to eye co-ordination. The idea is to catch the rain drops falling from the cloud above over an umbrella that can be controlled by the mouse movement. It has different levels of gameplay. A new level starts as you complete current level.
You can start playing it by clicking on this link.
You can watch the gameplay in the video below.


The Flying seeds - Kids games (age 4 to 6)

This is a free online game for teaching mouse movement, and mouse press for kids of age 4 to 6 . The longer the left mouse button is kept pressed, the higher Marcelino can jump.

There are two levels of difficulty, you can make the game more interesting if the kids master the easy level.

There are seeds of different plants floating in the air, Marcelino the kid can be controlled by the mouse movement and if he jumps right under the seed he can capture it, and then sow it and look at how it grows. Each tree is displayed in grown up form along with its name. There are a total of 4 different seeds floating in the air.  You can play the game by clicking on this link. You can watch the gameplay of this game before you play in the video below.



Where is Marcelino hiding - Kids Games

"Where is Marcelino hiding" is the name of this game, suitable for kids of age group (4-6). You see a picture of a house and the neighbourhood, and small Marcellino hiding, you need to locate him and click on the image, you need to click on his picture that is visible behind the object. It may take some precise mouse positioning to do that, and some amount of quick decision making as Marcelino comes our of hiding if you do not locate him within a minute. He has plenty of spaces to hide. It is a good game that can help children to master mouse movements and the game is absorbing enough to keep them engaged for a few minutes. You can start playing this game on this link. You can watch a video of the game below.

Computer games for Kids - things to be aware of

Computer games can become a staple diet for the children of today. We often are aware of and take care that children do not over consume junk food and ruin their health. It is obvious in case of the food because we can also eat that which we allow our children to eat. But it is not the case with the computer games that we allow children to play.

I would like the parents to be aware of the games that you allow your children to play, because the games can impact their minds, and can make them addicted to them before you realize. Often parents can not spend time with their children to accompany in the computer games nor they are aware of what the games are about. I think as responsible parents you should invest some time to learn what your children are playing, and how it may or may not impact them.

The same question was faced by me, as a non gaming person myself, I though computer games to be a time wasting activity and was never much interested in.

I had to share my computer with my 5 year old nephew to let him play computer games online and offline, who within a span of an year became proficient in computer games, that I had to concede my inability in helping to get around a particular game he was playing. Moreover when he seemed knowledgeable in games that had theft, robbery and violence in the gameplay, I became a little concerned.

As a society we allow and do not allow a certain things. For example we do not go and steal someones vehicles or crash them, but how come children are exposed to such ideas in computer games?

Let me put it this way. In course of talking to our children do we ever mention stealing, crashing, shooting and so on. We do not talk about them because we do not do such things nor do we think about them. So something that we don't do, nor we intend to ourselves nor allow our children to do them, then how come we allow children to engage in simulations of such things.

I feel upto a certain age children should be kept away from even the ideas of those things which would put them in harms way. That is where I decided to look at the games that I had installed on my computer and online games that I was allowing my nephew to play.

I would make a list of the games that I came across, and put them in perspective so that you can make an informed judgement whether to let your children play them or not.

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