Have you heard the news? A new Scrabble game is coming to town!
We hope you’ve read our blog on Scrabble as a play-based learning tool. We explored how children can learn while enjoying a game of Scrabble.
For the first time in years, Mattel, who owns the rights to the game in some parts of the world, released a new version called Scrabble Together.
Scrabble Together, which is not very different from the main Scrabble game, now allows families and friends play with each other instead of playing against one another.
The main aim of the game is to make it more inclusive for anyone who finds word games intimidating. It is a game that brings people together, is more enjoyable and less competitive.
Here's how the game works;
The game is a double-sided board, with the regular scrabble on one side and Together mode on the other.
Players win or lose as a team by completing various goals.
Players win Scrabble Together when they complete 20 challenges.
The new Scrabble game has something called goal cards, which offer various challenges to players related to word length, individual letters and word placement. For example, a goal card can have the challenge 'play a word containing at least two different vowels, or play a word that does not contain A or E.'
There are also helper cards that players can use to complete goals in many different ways.
Scrabble Together is now shorter as you do not get to compete against each other.
Teams that successfully complete 20 goal cards will win the game, but any goal left unsolved after using all helper cards will result in a loss.
So, how can you incorporate this new game as a play-based learning idea for your children?
Here are a few tips below:
Vocabulary Building: Since the game still involves exploring words, parents can help their children learn while playing by discussing the meaning of words they encounter during gameplay. For example, you can have a dictionary handy to look up unfamiliar words or tell your children to repeat words they are unfamiliar with as they play.
Spelling Practice: Scrabble Together offers an excellent opportunity for children to practice their spelling skills while playing. You can encourage your children to spell words correctly as they build them on the game board.
Critical thinking: The new game involves using goal cards. Once each goal has been completed, the card can be placed in a completed card pile. This can help children build up their critical thinking and problem-solving skills, which could also help them in Math, quantitative reasoning, and verbal reasoning.
Teamwork and Collaboration: You can emphasise the importance of teamwork and collaboration by encouraging your children to work together to form words and complete as many goals as possible.
Scrabble Together offers a fun and engaging way for children to develop essential language and cognitive skills, and the new game fits in perfectly as a play-based learning idea.
Would you be trying out this new game? Leave a comment and let us know what you think!