21 board and card games that teach math, logic or reading

Use all four operations to race to 101. The colored board teaches prime factors and multiplication patterns. Rounds take about 30 minutes, and you can bump rivals back to start.

Wake sleeping queens by playing pairs and simple addition equations. Short and a little silly. It was invented by a 6-year-old girl, and games take about 20 minutes.

Roll, add or subtract, and move through a swamp. A first math board game. Odd and even spaces add extra math, and games take about 20 minutes.

Keep a running total to 100 and snatch the Zeus figure. Fast mental math. It also introduces the Greek gods, and rounds take about 15 minutes.

Remember your hidden cards and aim for the lowest total. Memory plus addition. Rounds are quick, and it teaches kids to remember cards and plan ahead.

One deck, many number games, from matching dots to making ten. Different card styles show the same number many ways, like dots, ten-frames and tallies, which builds strong number sense.

Make true equations from a grid of number cards before anyone else. Multiplication and division at speed. Kids learn to see many equations in one set of numbers.

Watch for: Competitive; can frustrate slower calculators.

A roll-and-write dice game that builds addition and risk-taking. Twenty minutes, any number of players. Even non-gamers pick it up in one round, and kids learn to think about odds.

Pass cards around and collect sushi sets. Scoring sneaks in addition and multiplication. Rounds are fast, the art is cute, and kids learn to plan sets while watching what others take.

Secretly bid on donut cards; if two players want the same one, nobody gets it. Strategy and reading other people. It plays in about 20 minutes.

Spot sets of three cards where each feature is all the same or all different. Kids often beat adults. It also plays solo, and rounds take about 20 minutes.

Place your colored pieces corner to corner and block your rivals. Spatial thinking for the whole family. Rules take a minute to learn, and four players can finish in about 20 minutes.

Slide cars and trucks to free the red car. Forty challenge cards from easy to very hard. It works as a solo game for quiet time, and the puzzles grow with the child.

Build a path of wooden blocks so the knight can reach the princess. A first logic puzzle with a fairy-tale theme. Solutions are in the back for parents to check.

Build a tower path so the marble lands on the target. 3D planning with a satisfying drop. Sixty challenges grow from easy to very hard.

Play cards to move a turtle through a maze. A parent acts as the computer; kids learn sequencing and debugging. Rules grow as kids do.

A cooperative whodunit where players collect clues to find the fox that stole the pie. Teaches deduction, and everyone wins or loses together. Rounds take about 20 minutes.

Bingo with pictures and words, dispensed from a slider. Early readers match words without pressure. Older siblings can call out the words to help little ones play along and feel part of the game.

Build your own crossword from letter tiles as fast as you can. Easy to adjust for younger spellers. Rounds take about 15 minutes, and the bag travels well.

Make runs and sets with numbered tiles. Teaches number patterns and flexible planning. Kids learn to rearrange tiles already on the table, which builds flexible thinking. It works for two to four players.

A cooperative adventure: work together to grab treasures before the island sinks. Planning and teamwork, not math. Each player has a special power, so everyone matters.