We love to play games in our family!! So when the wonderful folks at Jax Games gave us the opportunity to review many of their selections, we couldn't wait to dive into this 'assignment.' Jax Games are so much fun, and so educational! A winning combination at our house! Jax literally has something for all ages starting with How Tall Am I? Even the youngest child can play this game, creating their own silly characters. There are 30 different sturdy wooden pieces to work with, to create your character, you roll the dice to see if you get to pick a hat, face, torso, legs or feet. Keep on rolling until everyone has their character made, and then measure with the custom measuring stick that is included. The one with the tallest character wins! This is a fun, silly game the little ones love!!

Pegs in the Park is geared for ages 4 to 8, but is fun for the whole family! It's a race through the Park to the Ice Cream Cart. Who's colorful peg will get there first? Will rain clouds or hungry ants get it the way? Pegs in the Park is a great first counting game, encouraging number recognition, and learning the concept of forward and backward. The game board and game pieces are very high quality, sturdy and colorful. We really enjoy this game; it sharpens counting skills in our little ones!

Sequence for kids is geared for children 3 to 6 years of age and again, the whole family plays this together! The object here is to get 4 of your colored chips in a row on the game board--then you've got a "SEQUENCE!" Play a card from your hand; place your chip on a corresponding character on the board. Use a Unicorn card to place your chip anywhere, use a Dragon card to remove one of your opponent's chips. Get four of your chips in a row and you win!! Sequence Dice is for 2 to 4 players ages 7 and up. We found this game to be great for our 4 year old, reinforcing counting skills, and thinking skills. To play, roll the dice and put your chip on the corresponding number on the board. If you roll a 10 you can remove an opponents chip. Roll an 11 and you can place your chip on any number. Roll a 2 or a 12 you get another turn. The object here is to get a Sequence of 5 chips in a row, and it is so fun to watch the little ones 'strategizing'. Lots of smiles for the whole family!

Cubes is a challenging, fun way to learn addition and subtraction! This game has been a fun help in cementing those addition and subtraction facts in our children's minds! Cubes is for ages 7 and up, and can be played with up to 10 players. (This would be a great 'math lesson' alternative for a homeschool family, or even a co-op!) Shake your six colored "cubes" in the shaker cup, to get one of many combinations of numbers, and your roll determines if you add or subtract chips from the pot. The chips are worth points, and the player with the highest number of points is the winner! Cubes is fun and a great challenge for the youngest players! Polygon...this is a very unique game. For 2 to 4 players, ages 7 and up, Polygon uses numbered tiles to 'build on' to create a scoring combination. Combine your two tiles per turn, with the tiles on the board already, to get the best score possible. This game involves a lot of strategy, and is so much fun!! You just have to play this as it is a DEFINITE thumbs up!

MATCH 'EM is a card game of numbers for 2 to 4 players, ages 7 and up. This is a fast paced, exciting game that everyone will want to play! This game helps children sharpen basic math skills, and is a great time for the whole family. The object here is to use your turn to get rid of as many cards in your hand as possible, by matching them to the value of the card in play. Thinking skills and strategy come into play here, and you want to cause your opponent to draw. When your cards are gone, you've won the hand, win three hands--and you're the winner of the game!

Another family friendly game from Jax is Over and Out. This is an exciting numbers game that reminds me a bit of 'twenty-one' with a twist. This is a great skill building game in addition and subtraction! Over and Out is a card based game, but the idea here is to be the last player in the game. Keep playing without going over the 'tip top' limit, and win! This is another winner from Jax Games! Jax has created some wonderful, family friendly games, that encourage thinking skills, math skills, and that bring out lots of smiles at family game time! The folks at Jax know the meaning of making learning FUN!!



-Product Review by: Lisa Barthuly & Family, The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine