good cooperative board/boxed games for younger kids?

[tribord]

MIL wants to buy DD (age 3) some board games.  What are some good games I could suggest so I don't end up with Candyland?  :) 

[Red Pajama]

http://www.amazon.com/Can-Do-That-Games-01017/dp/B002V3RCE6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=toys-and-games&qid=1301257813&sr=8-1 

http://www.amazon.com/Wonder-Forge-Seuss-Super-Stretchy/dp/0981924840/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1301257836&sr=8-1-spell 

First is the Richard Scarey busy town find it game. Cooperative and fun.

Second is Super Streachy ABC also a cooperative game. Perfect for those learning letters.

We have both, and I'd recommend both.

[HollyBearsMom]

Personally I (we) love Candyland!

But at 3 these games were pretty popular 

Memory

Cranium-Ballon Lagoon and Cariboo

Bunny Hop

Labyrinth

Snail Pace Race

Diggity Dog

Chutes and Ladders

Not technically "board games" but these were fun too

ABC game Ravensburger (actually you cant go wrong with any of the Ravensburger games!)

Hungry hippos

Zingo

Elefun

I Spy preschool games

[Shaki]

I second the snails pace race. http://www.amazon.com/Ravensburger-Snails-Pace-Race-Childrens/dp/B00000J0RY

That was a great one for my DD when she was that age, she's 5 now and we still sometimes pull it out and play it.

We also really like the princess board game (this is for a little older than 3) http://www.forsmallhands.com/store/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=82_101_489

and the haba orchard game (great for 3 year olds) http://www.threesisterstoys.com/p-230-orchard-game-by-haba.aspx

DD and her cousin can peacefully play these games together and have a great time. Players win or lose as a team, which is great if you don't want a toddler/preschool meltdown over who wins!

[tribord]

Thank you for the great suggestions 

[vrclay]

These are great.  Some good gift suggestions.

[MrsJPS]

CARIBOO! No question! I bought it when I worked with kids before I had my own and they couldn't get enough of it! It was a HUGE reward, and a great teaching tool too! Can't wait till my little one's old enough to play it!

[mandib50]

check out this link, they have some great co-operative games

http://www.familypastimes.com

My kids at that age loved Max :)

[gwynthfair]

Just bought Cranium Hullabaloo for my 4 yo DD, kind of similar to Twister. Pretty fun. 

[starflower1]

My daughter loves the Orchard Game by Haba.  (She is 3)  She also like Hiss by Gamewright.  Also, this isn't exactly a game but we have also had a lot of fun with Eboo "Tell me a story" cards.

[mtnsunshinemama]

http://www.learningherbs.com/wildcraft.html - we all love this game

[ecoteat]

We love Busytown! Also, Enchanted Forest. DD is 4 and we play a modified version that is a little simpler. I always tell her she can change the rules of a board game as long as everyone understands what they are and are ok with them! The Ladybug Game is fun too. We also like Mystery Garden.

[MomtoDandJ]

We love Hi Ho Cherry O. Basic math skills and super easy rules. You may have thought of it, but Memory is a classic and comes in many permutations now with different tv and movie themes.

[melissel]

Another thumbs up for any of the Family Pastimes games, both my kids still love Harvest Time and Princess, and they're 8 and 5! We also have a game called Chicken Count that we play competitively or cooperatively. And Cariboo and Hullabaloo too.

[MomtoDandJ]

This thread turned into a great list of games for the young kiddos! I just printed out everyone's suggestions and will refer to the list when my son's next bday rolls around! Thanks for starting it!

[MomtoDandJ]

This goes together with this post... a blog from a kindergarten teacher about "rules" for playing games with your young (preschool or kindergarten) kids. Tips for making sure it's a positive and tear-free experience. For those thinking of buying any of these games, I thought this might be helpful.

Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

[crittersmum]

Ha! We were looking for cooperative board games at that age for precisely the same reason: to avoid Candyland! Nothing new to add: we started off with Snail's Pace Race, moved on to Harvest Time and current favourites are Max and Busytown -- both of which I can play too without wanting to fall over from boredom.

[JudiAU]

If you search, there are several good threads already.

We like Orchard, Animal Upon Animal (both haba), Eeboo Slips and Ladders (cuter version, recycled),

I also really like this wood version of Four in a Row aka Connect Four http://www.braillebookstore.com/view.php?C=Board+Games