Games to Play With Scrabble Tiles
Children can play various games with scrabble tiles to improve their linguistic skills and vocabulary. These games can also help them in learning basic math and develop a creative thinking in them.
There are some consonants that appear in words frequently, but score less than higher-scoring letters. These lower-scoring consonants include L, N, R, S and T.
Word Game
A favorite among word game enthusiasts, Scrabble is a crossword-like board game that tests a player’s vocabulary and strategy. There are many ways to win a Scrabble game, from remembering unusual words to racking up points with strategically placed 2-letter words.
In the basic game, players draw seven tiles from the Scrabble bag. They then place them on a 15-by-15 grid in a word-building pattern across and down with one letter on the center square. When they make a play, the value of the word(s) is added to their cumulative score.
Each tile has a specific letter and point value. There are also two blank tiles that may be used as any letter, scoring 0 points. In addition, some of the premium squares on the Scrabble board offer multipliers: a tile played on a Double Letter Score (DLS) or Triple Letter Score (TLS) square increases its value. However, these premiums are only applied to the first play that covers them.
Crossword Puzzle
The classic Scrabble game is still a great way to test your linguistic skills. But it can be fun to try out a few other games with your Scrabble tiles.
For example, you can play anagrab – a word game variant that uses Scrabble tiles and has a similar game mechanism as Scrabble. In anagrab, each player starts with seven tiles, face down and works to arrange them into a valid Scrabble board in front of them. There is no turn taking and words can be built either entirely from the pool of letters, or by adding one letter to a previously played word (e.g. DEVIL).
The other players can challenge a play by looking it up in a dictionary to make sure it is acceptable. If the word is unacceptable the player who made it loses their turn. If the word is valid then it stays on the board. This allows for more complex plays.
Memory Game
Memory games are a great way to help kids develop their concentration, thinking skills, memory and sequencing. This is also an ideal activity for a rainy day when it’s hard to get out into the garden.
Each player starts the game with seven tiles face down. They are placed in a communal draw pile, and around this each player creates their own Scrabble board. The player is free to arrange their tiles into a word, but they cannot duplicate words or place them in a double-word bonus square or on the star spin.
The first player to arrange all their tiles into a word scores the points for the entire word. The next players then add their tiles to the word, scoring the points for all the letters in the word except blanks (which score zero). Each subsequent player can challenge any other players’ words and if they can prove that the word is valid they win the game.
Brain Teaser
Brain teasers are games that challenge a person’s critical thinking skills and can range from easy to mind-boggling. They are also an effective way to help improve a person’s memory, attention span and focus. They can be played by one or more people. Some brain teasers involve solving a puzzle, while others require a more abstract thinking approach.
Scrabble
The game of Scrabble, also known as scrabble or lexicon, is a word game in which players compete to spell the highest-scoring words on an official Scrabble board. Each player begins by drawing seven tiles from a Scrabble bag. The first player to form a complete, valid Scrabble grid wins. To play, each player must keep track of the tiles used and bonus squares scored. Scrabble is a fast-paced game that requires the ability to use letters in different forms, including digraphs. Generally, tournament-style rules are followed regarding valid words and scoring.