More than just fun with 'Connect 4'

There are many opportunities to turn common household games and objects into learning experiences for your child.

A great example of this involves the classic 'Connect 4' game.

Depending on the age of your child or the number of children in your home, you can use the Connect 4 tokens to teach concepts or words.

I use this game for older two year olds. If the child is working on putting multiple words together, I will ask him to say "more please" or "I want more" before giving him a token to put into the game. If the child is working on articulation, I will ask the child to imitate certain words, such as "alligator" or "fish." Again, depending on the child's age, we will match colors and count the tokens.

The Connect 4 game that I have is SpongeBob themed, which children love. Children then have a chance to talk about SpongeBob and Patrick and their favorite parts of the show, such as "jellyfish" or "crabby patties."

With older children, you could work on vocabulary words or math problems. There are tons of options for this game; be creative and have fun with it!

On a rainy day, try out this game with your child to help improve their language and problem solving skills.


Thanks to Beverly Maurice for this fabulous idea!!

Katie Zink, CBRS therapist