Adam really wanted to play My Little Pony Monopoly. I felt dizzy just thinking about managing all those game pieces and rules. So we made up a two year old version.
We each chose a pony then took turns rolling one dice, counting the dots and moving our pony that number spaces. That's all. And it was super fun! The kids got practice taking turns, rolling dice, counting, moving game pieces - all foundational skills for playing board games.
I loved that we didn't need to buy a new game designed for younger children - we just used what we already have. It was a good reminder that with a little creativity any materials at hand can be adapted for a wide age range of children.
It was evidence too that simple is best, especially for young children. Nothing happened in our game, nobody won and we didn't pay attention to the pictures on the board. By some standards our version of Monopoly would be deemed boring. But the kids had fun because they had my undivided attention and were playing peacefully together. It would be cool to make a game that's just as simple but includes some toddler friendly activities like, "hop like a bunny three times." Maybe we'll do that next! Today's modified Monopoly session was a nice launching off place for just such a project...I'll keep you posted...