Preschool Games for Boys

Bug Hunt

• To play this game, you will need five to eight plastic bugs such as worms, butterflies, crickets, grasshoppers and ladybugs. Discount stores often sell inexpensive bags or tubes of plastic bugs.

  While your child is playing or napping, hide the plastic bugs around a large room like a playroom or family room. Put some of the bugs in easy-to-find locations like the top of a chair. Hide other bugs in less obvious places, like on the leaves of a plant or peeking out from the pages of a book. Call your child into the room and have him look for the bugs. Help him build his vocabulary by asking him to name each bug as he finds it.

Toy Tale

• Use your child's toys as learning tools. On its "Play and Learn" website, Fisher-Price recommends a game called Toy Tale. Gather six to 10 toys such as a building block, plastic car, doll or ball. Put all of the items in a paper bag, then sit on the floor with your child.

  Tell him that you are going to create a story together using the items in the bag. Pull one toy out of the bag and use it to inspire the beginning of your story. For example, if you removed a plastic car from the bag, you could start your story by saying "Once upon a time, there was a speedy red car named Chuggy." Ask your child to take an item from the bag and verbally add it to the story. He might pull out a ball and say, "One day Chuggy met a ball named Bouncy." Continue the story by removing one toy from the bag and adding that item to the story's plot until all items are gone.

Obstacle Course

• This game gives boys a chance to climb, crawl, jump and move around, making it a good activity for rainy days when they can't play outside.

  Build an obstacle course using blankets, cushions, laundry baskets, a large cardboard box and any other props you can find around the house. Encourage boys to climb over, under, around and through various obstacle to reach the finish line.

  After they have completed the course once, time them to see if they can complete it more quickly on the second round.

  Encourage them to move the props around and create a different obstacle course.

Find the Coin

• To play this game, several children form a circle. One boy is selected to be "it." He stands in the middle of the circle, covers his eyes and begins counting. The other children pass a coin around the circle, keeping it hidden in their palms. At the count of 10, "it" opens his eyes and tries to guess who has the coin. The other kids try to trick him by pretending to pass the coin even when they don't have it. "It" calls out the name of the person he thinks has the coin. If he guesses correctly, the coin holder becomes the new "it," and the game starts over again.