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Really simple logic puzzles for 5yo?

14 replies

fuzzpig · 09/01/2013 17:45

DD (5.6, in yr1) has nicked taken an interest in my puzzle magazine that arrived today... obviously way over her head, but she says she would really like her own magazine of puzzles to do.

Any ideas please? :)

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CarlingBlackMabel · 09/01/2013 17:50

Not a magazine, but the game Rush Hour is a brilliant logic puzzle. Rush Hour

You get 40 layouts for gridlocked traffic jams, a little grid of streets and loads of vehicles. the objective is to get the Ice Cream van out of the traffic jam by moving the other vehicles in and out of spaces.

LavenderPots · 09/01/2013 17:58

was also going to recommend rush our my neice loves it =] (age 5.4)

LeeCoakley · 09/01/2013 18:03

You can get Sudoku puzzle books for children

SeeYouWhenISeeYou · 09/01/2013 18:16

I second Rush Hour and I would add Camelot Junior and Colour Code Game

LexyMa · 09/01/2013 18:23

There is a logic section on happypuzzle.co.uk with some good games. And there are lots of online puzzles if you search. If you want a magazine, have a look here: www.newsstand.co.uk/206-Childrens-Puzzle-Magazines/Subscriptions.aspx

fuzzpig · 09/01/2013 19:30

This is all fab thank you.

Am familiar with rush hour... have avoided it because I am completely shit at it Blush - the forward planning it requires is a big weakness (I can't play chess either!) But good to hear that 5yos could enjoy it.

The magazine I get is Beyond Sudoku, I really love all the logic puzzles in it. She was looking at a mosaic puzzle as she liked the idea of colouring in the squares like mummy :o

Any app suggestions would be welcome too.

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pellshky · 09/01/2013 21:34

Love logic puzzles and have shared quite a few types with my kids over the years. Never got to grips with chess though!

I can't remember what they could do at 5 but these might be worth a try:

Some online and printable easy sudokus on my site kershaw kids along with a simple mastermind style game.

conceptis has lots of sample puzzles including some ultra easy ones that may be suitable - you will need to search through each section though.

I enlarged and copied a few japanese style picture puzzles from a nonograms book (sunday telegraph book 1) for one of my children when they were quite young - they had the logic to do the easiest ones, but not the fine motor skills required to shade in the tiny boxes - hence the enlargements.

We had kakuro for kids book 1 which I think my son enjoyed from about age 6 - his numbers were enormous though, so could have benefited from enlargements here too.

On android there is a game called 'unblock me' which is like rushhour. I think sokoban might be worth a try too.

Looking through the games cupboard, these are the ones my kids liked:
hoppers, logic links, junior mastermind, towers of hanoi, rush hour, set.

Also, I picked up various logic books from "The Works" and just tore out the ones I thought they could do.

Good for keeping them occupied when out for meals, in waiting rooms etc.

Saracen · 10/01/2013 02:50

The Set Game: www.setgame.com/set/puzzle_frame.htm

It's a card game the rules of which are easy to grasp. You can play it cooperatively as well as competitively, or as a solitaire game.

One of the things which fascinates me is the variety of different strategies you can apply to this apparently simple game.

The above link is to a daily Set challenge online.

Saracen · 10/01/2013 02:55

The CD-ROM "The Logical Journey of the Zoombinis" is very age-appropriate and has a variety of good logical puzzles. It has been rebranded with some daft name about mathematics so parents will think it is educational and will help their child at school Hmm as if it weren't worthwhile in its own right.

Really fun. I used to play it all the time.

Saracen · 10/01/2013 02:56

We like the game "alchemy" on www.popcap.com/

Saracen · 10/01/2013 03:10

Any interest in chess? If nobody in the family plays, the CD-ROM "Fritz and Chesster Learn to Play Chess" is an excellent way for a young kid to learn.

I'm involved with several chess clubs and have lent this CD to numerous kids. It's very popular, and has a nice cartoony feel and an entertaining story. Despite the claims made by other products, this is really the only chess resource I know which can be used by quite young kids more or less unassisted.

IME most kids are capable of learning chess from about the age of four if they are interested. (Big "if"; many/most four year olds have other fish to fry and don't want to sit still for that long!)

CheerfulYank · 10/01/2013 03:52

Marking my place, 5 year old DS also loves puzzles :)

iseenodust · 10/01/2013 12:46

Very cheap sudoku books for kids in Asda.
We have Rush hour too and others by the same people (can't remember name) eg Izzi puzzle.
Mastermind game (4 colour pegs to deduce)

fuzzpig · 11/01/2013 10:47

Thanks for all the ideas! :) my amazon wishlist is now a little longer :o

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