12 Fun Board Games For Girls Aged 3-9

Do you find it difficult to find good board games for girls that your kids enjoy playing together? When siblings have an age gap that’s more than a couple of years, it can be tricky to find fun board games they both love to play.

And this is especially true during the early childhood years, when the younger sibling is still a toddler or preschooler and the eldest is school age.

We’ve found some really brilliant, fun board games for kids that both GinGin and Roo enjoy playing together. There’s a five year age gap between them, so this is a tried and tested list of board games for girls that my two love to play together.

Boys will probably love these board games too! I just have more experience with the games my girls love to play.

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Here’s our pick of the best board games girls aged 3 to 9 love to play!

Fun Board Games For Kids: The List

1. Going on a Bear Hunt Board Game

The much loved children’s book We’re Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen and beautifully illustrated by Helen Oxenbury has been transformed into a classic board game for kids. Suitable for children aged three and over, this is a wonderful introduction to board games for toddlers that bigger kids will want to play too.

Two to four players can play this board game. And it doesn’t take very long to play at all, so smaller children – or older kids with a short attention span – won’t get bored playing it.

We got this board game for GinGin when she was three. Six years later and it’s still a game she loves to play. And Roo loves it too! It did take us a few times of playing it to realise that the dice only goes up to three and not six – ha! We’re Going on a Bear Hunt is definitely up there as one of our top picks of the best board games for kids.

2. Soundiculous Kids

Technically Soundiculous Kids is a card game, rather than a board game for kids. But it is brilliant fun and my girls play it all the time. There are two levels of difficulty, so small children can easily play with or without an adult. GinGin and Roo played it a lot during lockdown. It’s super quick to play and kept them entertained while I was in meetings working from home.

One of the things I love most about this game is that it encourages word recognition and challenges little ones to experiment making and guessing different sounds. It’s so tempting to act out some of the things rather than just make the noises, which makes it hilarious to watch and play.

Another great thing about Soundiculous Kids is that it’s small enough to pop in your handbag – or your kid’s backpack – to take out and play anywhere. Perfect to keep little ones entertained while you’re on a long journey or eating out.

3. Ludo

A classic board game for kids, Ludo is one of our go-to family board games. It’s the board game both girls get out to play whenever nana and grandad come to visit. What I love most about this board game is that it helps toddlers, preschoolers and school age kids learn how to take turns and be patient. Ludo also encourages them to develop their resilience, as well as cognitive behaviour like overcoming problems and using strategy.

We found that only using two counters, rather than all four for each player, made the game short enough to keep Roo entertained and want to finish playing the game until the end. Using all four counters – with the added likelihood of them being sent home repeatedly – is fine for bigger kids and adults who have a longer attention span than smaller children.

Some fun alternatives based on the Ludo format are:

Or how about this giant game of Ludo that can be played outside. It’s a great way to get kids moving while they’re playing!

4. Draughts

Draughts is another classic board game for kids. And it’s brilliant for helping toddlers and preschoolers develop their hand-eye-coordination, as well as learning to take turns. Draughts is a simple game for small children to learn, and it’s great for cognitive development.

Both GinGin and Roo first played draughts when they were aged three with either me or their daddy. Now it’s something they will happily play together.

5. Where’s my Cupcake?

Orchard Toys make absolutely brilliant, fun board games for toddlers and preschoolers. They’re all designed with small children in mind, with brightly coloured pictures and durable boards that are toddler-proof! And they’re all designed to encourage learning through play. There’s some great games for learning numbers, letters and short words.

One of our faves is Where’s my Cupcake? We got this for GinGin when she was two or three, and we still have it now for Roo to play with. It’s lasted really well, which you don’t normally expect from cheap board games for kids.

Where’s my Cupcake? is super-simple to play, and it doesn’t take long. It’s essentially a matching game, which is brilliant for cognitive development. The game also encourages children to use their manners, take turns and learn important social skills. There’s also a delicious cupcake recipe included in the game! GinGin is way older than the age range for this board game, but she still loves to play it with her little sister!

6. Junior Monopoly

I couldn’t put together a list of fun board games for kids without including this absolute classic. There are so many different versions of Monopoly now that it’s hard to keep up. But it does mean that you’re sure to find one that your kiddos will love. There’s a Trolls edition, Cars, Disney Princesses, Peppa Pig, Fortnite, Harry Potter and a Roald Dahl version too! (I’d say that some of these versions are definitely aimed more for tweens than toddlers).

We have the standard version of Junior Monopoly, which we got when GinGin was only three. She also had the LOL version for her eighth birthday. Even though it’s supposed to be 8+ both GinGin and Roo play it perfectly together. It’s one of those fantastic board games for girls that GinGin and Roo love to play together.

As well as learning how to take turns, there’s some simple play-money transactions in the classic version of Junior Monopoly, which is great for introducing counting and sharing.

7. Junior Cluedo

Another classic board game for kids that just had to make this list of fun board games for girls. Junior Cluedo is possible to play with children as young as three or four, but they will definitely need help from a grown up! Roo loves to play this game with GinGin but, honestly, she does get a little frustrated when I have to help her. Nevertheless, I still think it’s a great board game for kids.

8. Hatchimals Eggventure

Are your kids obsessed with Hatchimals? Mine are! Anything small and cute is a winner for GinGin and Roo, so Hatchimals Eggventure is one of their absolute favourite board games for girls. (I’m pretty certain boys would enjoy it to…)

It’s a really simple game, which incorporates moving a Hatchimals character round the board and collecting matching cards to win. As soon as your little one can recognise numbers and count they’ll be able to play this board game without an adult. GinGin and Roo love to play their Hatchimals board game, but they also make up their own little games using the cards and the character, so it’s really great to encourage imaginative play too.

9. Pop Up Pirate

Who doesn’t remember playing this classic game from your own childhood? Anything nostalgic is a winner in our house, and that includes Pop Up Pirate! It’s a game of pure chance that helps develop children’s hand-eye-coordination. GinGin and Roo love this game as much as I did when I was little.

10. Silly Safari Bingo

Annoyingly I can’t find anywhere that has this in stock, but I wanted to show you the exact game we have just in case you ever find it. There are so many versions of kids bingo, but I like this one because both GinGin and Roo love to play it together. It keeps them occupied for ages!

There are also some really good bingo games that encourage word recognition, as well as the more traditional number based ones like this one and this one for older kids. While I was searching for Silly Safari Bingo, I came across a travel bingo game that looks really good. It’s magnetic, so would work well on long journeys or anywhere really.

11. Dobble

We discovered Dobble when my nephew had it for Christmas one year. It was an instant hit with GinGin and Roo who just wanted to play it again and again. I’m pretty sure Roo was only two at the time, but it didn’t stop her wanting to get involved!

There are lots of ways to play Dobble, so it doesn’t become too stagnant. But I’d suggest sticking to the easier ways to play if you’re playing with toddlers or preschoolers. Dobble comes in a tin, so it’s a great game to take away as well as play at home.

In addition to the classic version of Dobble, there’s now also a Harry Potter version as well as beach, Marvel, Disney Princesses, Pixar, Paw Patrol and LOL. There’s probably loads more that I haven’t found yet too. Personally, I’d love to see a Mario version of Dobble!

12. Snakes and Ladders

Last on my list is the classic board game for kids: snakes and ladders. Surely we all remember playing this ourselves as kids! This is a brilliant game to help toddlers and preschoolers learn number recognition and how to count. It’s also another good way to practice important social skills, such as taking turns and resilience (those ladders can be so annoying!)

We have a wooden board version of snakes and ladders that both girls love to play, because it makes them feel a bit more grown up. But we also have a jumbo Peppa Pig edition too. GinGin has long since grown out of Peppa Pig, but she’s not too grown up to want the Peppa Pig counter when they play this together. (Also, the giant board makes a great play mat for messy play!)

Fun Board Games For Kids: A Recap

So there you have it. My list of 12 fun board games girls aged 3-9 absolutely love! We hope you found these suggestions helpful and have fun playing these board games too!

What Next?

Read these posts next or bookmark them for later:

• 21 Non-Toxic Toys Your Toddler Will Love
• Best Dinosaur Books For Toddlers (Girls Love Dinos Too)
• 20 Toddler TV Shows (when you don’t have Netflix)
• How To Quickly And Easily Make Puzzles For Preschoolers
• 5 Simple Habits That Will Improve Your Toddler’s Sleep

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Jennie (GinGin & Roo)

Hi, I’m Jennie and I’m the blogger and content creator behind the award-winning blog GinGin & Roo, a UK parenting and lifestyle blog.

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