PAL Award Winners – Games
Exceptional toys, games and books / media that encourage language, spark fun and invite creative play.
PAL Award Winners
Established by respected speech and language expert Sherry Artemenko MA, CCC-SLP, the PAL Award recognizes exceptional toys, games and books / media that, through their design, content, quality, and character, promote play that advances language. PAL winners in the hands of kids spark fun and creative play with lots of talk!
2024
Ziggurat by MindWare
Ziggurat by MindWare is a thrilling legacy-style board game that unfolds over six captivating chapters, each revealing new challenges and twists. It...
Chronicles of Light: Darkness Falls by Ravensburger
Chronicles of Light: Darkness Falls is an engaging cooperative board game that challenges players to work together over several rounds. Four heroes...
Giant Feed the Woozle by MindWare’s Peaceable Kingdom
Giant Feed the Woozle is bigger than ever! This cooperative, action-packed game brings fun, teamwork, and learning together. Players feed the silly...
10 Days in the USA by The Op Games
The planners of the family will love 10 Days in the USA. This game revolves around creating the best travel route possible, which requires strategic...
Sight Word Slam by Educational Insights
Sight Word Slam is an interactive and energetic game that makes learning sight words exciting and fun. It has two game modes—Letter Slam and Word...
Match it! – Alphabet Match by TLJI
Match it! – Alphabet Match is a colorful puzzle designed to introduce little ones to the basics of the alphabet. It’s an A to Z way to combine...
Disney Lorcana TCG: Gateway, by Ravensburger
Disney Lorcana: Gateway is an awesome trading card game that combines strategy, planning, decision making, and beloved Disney characters in a...
Cake N Bake Challenge by Hey Buddy Hey Pal
The Cake N Bake Challenge is a fast-paced game, designed to combine fun and learning. Players race against each other assembling cakes based on...
My Fun Shapes by SimplyFun
My Fun Shapes is an educational game that introduces young children to the foundational concepts of shapes, colors, and spatial awareness. With...
2023
Tightrope by MindWare
Tightrope - the balance and blocking strategy game - engages players in various skills, including hand-eye coordination, planning and...
Qwirkle: Color Blind Friendly by MindWare
Qwirkle is a well known, family friendly board game that blends strategy, logic, pattern recognition, and math. The new Color Blind Friendly...
GooGames by Sky Castle Toys
Time for 90s nostalgia and squishing and playing with GooGames — a handheld, water based game that keeps kids busy as they reach different...
Narwhal Waterfall by MindWare’s Peaceable Kingdom
Peaceable Kingdom creates amazing games that foster collaborative play, camaraderie and language skills. In Narwhal Waterfall, players work together...
The Happy Marshmallow Game by MindWare’s Peaceable Kingdom
Everyone loves a good campfire, especially when there are marshmallows involved! The Happy Marshmallow Game is all about collecting and roasting...
Safari Park Jr. by Smart Games
Safari Park Jr. by Smart Games is an educational adventure for young explorers and animal lovers. Through planning, problem-solving, and creativity,...
Cauldron Quest by MindWare’s Peaceable Kingdom
Cauldron Quest is a magical brew of cooperative play, joint decision-making, problem-solving, and strategy. Players work together to break a spell...
Wooden Jigsaw Puzzles by Ravensburger
Ravensburger's Wooden Jigsaw Puzzles are a fusion of tradition and innovation, bringing families together through the art of puzzling. These vibrant...
Meet Mahjong by ThinkFun
MahJong is a tile-based game that was developed in China 300 years ago. Meet Mahjong by ThinkFun will teach the fundamentals and the rich history of...
2022
Imagination Poppers by MindWare
Imagination Poppers combine calming sensory stimulation and creativity in one focus-forming game. The silicone centers pop back and fourth and each...
Scooby Doo: Three Night Fright by Ravensburger
Scooby, Shaggy, Fred, Daphne, and Velma adventure through their next mystery and encounter 3 different supernatural creatures with Ravensburger’s...
Minecraft Biomes by Ravensburger
Ravensburger delivers 3x49 Minecraft puzzles where kids explore and recreate their own experiences on this puzzling adventure. There are three...
Cake-N-Bake Challenge by Hey Buddy Hey Pal
Bakers, start your ovens! The Cake-N-Bake Challenge is a fast paced, color matching game where players stack layers of colors that match their...
Holiday Puzzles by MindWare’s Peaceable Kingdom
Looking for a festive holiday gift this season? Puzzles are a fantastic choice! They’re fun and educational as they promote different learning...
Happiest Day Game by Funko Games
The magical Happiest Day Game by Funko Games is a must for every Disney Theme Park enthusiast. The Happiest Day - Magic Kingdom Park Edition -...
VENN by USAopoly
If you’ve every used a Venn Diagram before then you know it’s a tool consisting of overlapping circles to compare and contrast items. It’s a...
Puzzle & Play by MindWare’s Peaceable Kingdom
Two awesome play activities in one! MindWare’s Puzzle & Play combines the incredible learning benefits of puzzles with pretend play. There are...
Ghost in the Attic by MindWare’s Peaceable Kingdom
It’s a spooky, dark night. The ghost in the attic of the Haunted Manor is awake! Friends work together to escape the house and lock the ghost...
2021
Happy Birthday to You! Game by Funko Games
Follow Dr. Seuss’ Birthday Bird all over the town of Katroo. Players move around the game board collecting as many cards and stars as possible. The...
Bubble Gum Rummy by MindWare’s Peaceable Kingdom
Kids are going to POP for Bubble Gum Rummy, the fast paced and quick thinking matching game. Best suited for 3-5 players and animal lovers five and...
Happy Or Not by Skill Ease
Children experience all of the same emotions that adults do. However, they aren’t always as equipped to talk about them. It can be joyous to...
Mickey and Friends Magical Treats by Wonder Forge
Mickey and his friends ordered some magical fun food. Young game players loved seeing silly foods like Minnie waffles, Donald cupcakes, Goofy...
My First Math Dice by ThinkFun
Start building a love for math early with ThinkFun’s My First Math Dice. It includes a pair of dice and two chip counters with 30 counter chips in...
Rhyming Bingo by MindWare’s Peaceable Kingdom
Rhyming Bingo by MindWare’s Peaceable Kingdom has an educational twist on a classic game. Rhyming is an essential phonemic awareness skill for...
Ecologic Memory Eating in Season by Adventerra Games
Ecologic Memory, Eating in Season is the newest entry into the fantastic family of preschool games by Adventerra Games. This fun memory game teaches...
25 Words or Less by USAOpoly
Teams go head-to-head competing to guess 5 target words listed on their card. But unlike other wordy guessing games, the objective is Less is More!...
Tapple by USAOpoly
Tapple is a fast-paced word game that will keep players thinking and exercising their vocabulary skills in a hilarious way. With 144 different...
2020
Polar Adventure: Disappearing Ice by Adventerra Games
Adventerra's Polar Adventure: Disappearing Ice takes preschoolers' polar animals on a trail across mini-icebergs, avoiding setbacks that cause...
Hungry Bins Learn to Recycle by Adventerra Games
Learn the language of recycling and composting while playing a lively game of "memory" with Hungry Bins' 32 tokens. Mix the tokens, flip them upside...
Ecologic Memory Game: Animals at Risk by Adventerra Games
Since we've all enjoyed the amazing games by Adventerra that teach us to take care of our planet in such clever ways. we're excited to see their new...
Ecologic Puzzle: Respect the Earth by Adventerra Games
Preschoolers take note...now you too can have fun learning about protecting our planet thanks to Adventerra Games! Their new 2-piece, self...
Stories of the Three Coins by MindWare
Join together in the land of Storia to create an adventure story based on characters, objects and of course the three gold coins. Tell your tale...
Jabuka by Jabuka Games, Inc
After playing Jabuka, a clever twistable letter word game, I'll never look at a coffee bean the same way again! The inventor, inspired while sitting...
The How I Survived Game by MindWare
The How I Survived Game is described as "where weird and wacky wins" which is why it was wildly popular with some 7 year-olds I played it with! Your...
Slappy Camper by MindWare
Our slappy campers are having a hilarious time racing to gather their gear for a camping trip. Flip a card to see what piece of camping gear to...
Is or Isn’t by SimplyFun
Get ready to play a game of Bingo based on one's knowledge of synonyms and antonyms while moving your cute critters along the game board. Set up the...
2019
Recycle Rally by Adventerra Games
You know this game's a winner when the teacher (me) learns too! I opened the beautifully illustrated game board of a town and started reading the...
WaterGames by Adventerra Games
Want to pick up your conservation IQ while swimming down a beautiful river? Join in this fun family game of gaining and losing water filled with...
SPARK Jr. Sequencing Cards by Spark Innovations
Every child's day is filled with fun activities with a beginning and end and several events in between. Kids learn by remembering and describing...
Twisted Tales by SCS Direct
Want a story-telling game with a twist? Each player contributes "Twisted Tales" story cards for the storyteller to weave his tale. The cards range...
Eagle Chase by SimplyFun
Just assemble the thick, beautifully illustrated gameboard of the United States and you know that SimplyFun has given us a gift of fun learning and...
Match-O-Rama by The Op | Usaopoly
Get ready for a fantastically fun, easy to learn party game for the whole family, 8 years and up! Flip a card to read your category, secretly write...
Baa Baa Bubbles by Spin Master
We laughed hysterically with Soggy Doggy last year and now we have Baa Baa Bubbles to carry on the surprise fun. Bubbles, our sneezy sheep is hungry...
Friends of a Feather by Ravensburger
The eggs have hatched in the nest but the birdies are missing their colorful tail feathers. Each turn add feathers to your bird by drawing from the...
Mickey’s Snuggletime by Wonder Forge
Snuggle time has never been more fun with your own cuddly blanket game board that kids can unfold over their covers and maybe even invent their own...
2018
Not Parent Approved
Just the name of this game will get kids interested for sure. My 12 year-old friend walked in and immediately recognized this game from playing it...
Blank Slate by USAopoly
It's fun to find a game whose directions are so simple that you can start playing within minutes. But hold on. This fill-in-the-blank "game where...
500+ Sight Words Flash Cards Bundle Kit by Think Tank Scholar
Learning to read is an exciting milestone in the life of a child and might I say for their parents too! Learning sight words, those words that...
Shadows in the Forest by ThinkFun, Inc.
Playing in the dark has always added an extra element of excitement as is the case with a round of "Shadows in the Forest," the newest innovative...
Quercetti Rami
This clever binary abacus looks simple at first glance but offers the opportunity for some deeper learning of math concepts and vocabulary, problem...
Big Money by Wonder Forge
Calling all mini-entrepreneurs for some fun learning about assets, payouts, industry bonuses and the market dealing with zillions of dollars! "Big...
Disney Villainous Game by Wonder Forge
Our 10 year-old player got more excited about "Villainous" as play progressed. When we finished he said, "That's a fun game" When I asked why? he...
Five Little Fish by Ravensburger
How can five little fish be so cute with those big black eyes looking up at you from the lily pads? Kids couldn't wait to flip a lily pad card that...
Otrio by Spin Master
Kids and adults were fascinated with and quickly became addicted to playing Otrio which seemed simple at the start but really required great...
2017
Brik Buster by Strictly Briks
Kids love to build and hammer so it's no surprise that kids designed this fun family game. Plenty of stacker briks and baseplates come in bright...
Invisible Think by Mindware
Get ready to visually concentrate and laugh out loud as you spin the spinner to see who will be handicapped by wearing special red lensed glasses,...
Alex Toys Future Coders Robot Races
Kids can become the robot AND the coder in Alex Brands' new "Robot Races," an active coding game. Start by personalizing your robot headpiece with...
Alex Toys Future Coders Bunny Trails
How do you make coding fun for 4 year-olds? You let a bunny teach them! Teaching coding is hot right now but not every product is this much fun for...
Hatchy Matchy Game by Spin Master
Hatchimals are one of the hottest toys for kids and now they are part of an easy matching game which adds the surprise of "hatching" two mini...
Top Trumps by Top Trumps USA Inc.
Top Trumps' themed decks of cards are loaded with fun facts on different subjects--The United States, Harry Potter, Baby Animals and Peppa Pig to...
Soggy Doggy By Spin Master
Watch out because when this doggy gets one too many showers he is going to start shaking and guess who gets wet? Players move around the board and...
Ideal 4 Way Spelldown
Parents are increasingly looking for great family games so why not add some learning to the fun? "4 Way Spelldown" is a portable, self-contained...
Rainbow Croquet Caddy by Hape
Kids can set up, play, supervise and take along this cute croquet set to wherever there is a patch of grass! I love how they can organize their game...
2016
Memory Palace by Peaceable Kingdom
Heads up everyone--Peaceable Kingdom has brought us yet another fantastic cooperative learning game that is loads of silly fun! Set out the 16...
Tell-A-Tale by Getta1Games
As a speech language pathologist I certainly love a cooperative story telling game! Set up Tell-A-Tale Fairy Tale Edition's slotted base, punch out...
Cheese Stack by Getta1Games
Cheese Stack is a fun beginning game for preschoolers with an element of pretend play as mice Pip and Squeak attempt some balancing feats! With 3...
SmartGames Little Red Riding Hood by Smart Toys and Games
"Little Red Riding Hood" is a favorite fairy tale that comes alive in SmartGames' new preschool puzzle game. With 48 challenges to solve, kids get...
Wonder Forge Dr. Seuss Thing Two and Thing One Whirly Fun Game
This game was so much fun, do I dare say that a 10 year-old wanted to keep it as the family played together? Wonder Forge, known for its creative,...
Disney Jr The Lion Guard Boulder Burst Game by Wonder Forge
Kids loved playing this game as they simultaneously built up the dam higher and added "water" balls through the storm clouds. Who can pull out a...
Suspicion™ Game by Wonder Forge
Pass out the invitations to the masquerade party at the estate of art collector Baron Whitetooth, and the game of suspicion, secret identities,...
Circuit Maze by Thinkfun
I told my 10 year-old friend that I had an electric current game for him to try and he was sitting outside my house when I got home, so excited to...
Alphabet Woods by SimplyFun
Take a walk in the Alphabet Woods, building trees with letters in alphabetical order. Kids put together the puzzle base and started adding their...
2015
Space Hawk by Ravensburger
Ravensburger’s new Space Hawk augmented reality toy and game is re-entering the earth's atmosphere and headed to North America. This creative...
Sesame Street Alphabet Kitchen app Interacting with Tiggly Words
Preschoolers have always delighted in watching their silly friend, Cookie Monster, gobble up cookies and crumbs. Now Sesame Street has partnered...
Puzzlets by Digital Dream Labs
Puzzlets by Digital Dream Labs is a welcome new addition to the vast array of digital kids games which also promise redeeming educational value. In...
Ideal Who Lives Where? by Alex Brands
There's something fun and a little retro about playing an all wooden game with little friends. We set out our 10 houses with animals shapes cut out,...
Star Wars: The Force Awakens Star Destroyer Strike Game by Wonder Forge
Get ready for a fast-paced strategy game that requires quick thinking and cooperation to escape to safety with one of your Resistance heroes...
Rally Up! by Blue Orange Games
Rally the kids around this fast thinking game as players flip over one of 110 exotically illustrated cards and scan for images that belong to the...
Rory’s Story Cubes: Moomins by The Creativity Hub Ltd.
Kids opened Rory's Story Cubes’ compact carrying case and couldn’t wait to roll the icon dice and start their story of Moomintroll’s next adventure....
Rory’s Story Cubes: Batman by The Creativity Hub Ltd.
Get ready Batman fans, "Once upon a crime..." has never been so much fun than with Rory's Story Cubes. My friends needed no instructions as they...
Pictopia: Star Wars Edition by Wonderforge
Star Wars fans will love Pictopia's newest edition, challenging them with 1000 questions ranging from trivia tests related to helmets, devices used...
2014
Tiggly Math Interacting With Tiggly Cardtoons by Tiggly-Kidtellect Inc.
"Can I play counting?" my 4 year-old friend kept asking me. I was immersed in a board game with his older brothers and thought he wanted to join us....
Storybook Game Set-Level 1, 5 Pack by Play Together Read Together, LLC
Learning to read is an important milestone for kids. To some it comes naturally while others need some encouragement and maybe a little extra...
Pictopia: Disney Edition App by Wonder Forge
Put your thinking caps on as you enter the world of Disney in this visual trivia game spanning movies, theme parks, animated classics and TV shows....
Doc McStuffins Spot it! Numbers and Shapes by Blue Orange Games
Doc McStuffins, Lambie, Hallie and Stuffy add to the leaning fun in this latest Spot It! game aimed at teaching numbers and shapes. Three game...
Jake and the Neverland Pirates Spot it! Numbers and Shapes by Blue Orange Games
Join Jake, Cubby, Izzy, Skully and Tic-toc Croc as kids enjoy this latest version of Spot It! learning their numbers and shapes. Three game options...
Star Wars Force Grab by Wonder Forge
May the force be with you if you play this game with 8 year-old boys, as I did. Okay, I was warned that one little friend was a Star Wars expert....
Disney World of Disney Pictopia Game by Wonder Forge
This ultimate picture-trivia game is incredibly fun "family" entertainment but I will tell you, get ready for the kids to heartily beat the parents...
Disney Palace Pets Royal Pet Salon by Wonder Forge
As soon as little girls saw the box of the Royal Pet Salon, they were excited to play. They chose their favorite well-coiffed Disney pet, spun the...
Disney Junior Super Stretchy Game by Wonder Forge
You've heard the tip to stretch before you exercise--well consider that a prerequisite for playing this game of super fun! My little friends got...
2013
Early Reader Treasure Hunt App by uKloo
Take the uKloo fun on the road with their new FREE app, an extension of their popular Early Reader Treasure Hunt game that exercises emergent...
Choice-A-Quence by Let’s Choose
Grab this little pack of cards for a lively, thoughtful conversation about behavior and consequences as kids can speak into a toy microphone (or...
Doodle Jump by Ravensburger
Leave it to Ravensburger to use their exceptional die cut engineering magic to fashion a 3D Doodle Jump playing surface adapting the popular app to...
Bugs In The Kitchen by Ravensburger
What do you get when you combine a Toy of the Year Finalist HEXBUG™ nano™ and the classic high quality, uber-creative, die-cut marvel, Ravensburger...
Skunk Bingo by Gamewright
Get ready for some log-jammin' fun as players slide their animal cards in one end and wait anxiously to see who pops out the other side. Spin to see...
That’s It! by Gamewright
If you want just the right party game that can also double as a perfect learning tool for teachers, play "That's It!" by Gamewright. The tiny box is...
Rory’s Story Cubes Voyages by Gamewright
Take a trip with Rory's Story Cubes Voyages, using the 54 images to generate epic stories! Players took off in many directions, inspired by the 9...
Disney Doc McStuffins All Bettter! Game by Wonder Forge
Playful pretend meets problem solving in Doc McStuffins All Better! Game. I could hardly open the package fast enough as little hands were grabbing...
Disney Jake and the Neverland Pirates Shipwreck Beach Treasure Hunt Game by Wonder Forge
Yo ho ho and away we go! Kids gathered around to place their doubloons on the grid over a map of Shipwreck Beach (which doubles as a clever storage...
2012
Spell Trek by Simply Fun
Hop on a jeep and start your trip across a game board of desert, ice capped mountains, rain forest and tropics. You are trying to capture animals...
Word Bits by SimplyFun
I was just shuffling the cards and dumping out the dice when a word-game geek said, "I like this game already!" Turn over the top category card in a...
Nounsense by Maranda Enterprises
Nounsense is a fast-paced game that pits two teams against each other trying to quickly identify a person, place or thing based on their teammate's...
Speedy Recall by Maranda Enterprises
Speedy is the word as you are on the edge of your seat just waiting for the cards to be flipped over to scan your memory by category to come up with...
Rory’s Story Cubes MAX by The Creativity Hub Ltd.
How can you improve on our favorite language learning cubes, Rory's Story Cubes? Go MAX! Now kids and adults of all abilites can learn together....
Zingo! Sight Words by ThinkFun
ThinkFun has again lived up to its name, creating a game to make learning sight words fun! Essential to learning to read, sight words are the most...
Scrambled States of America Game–Deluxe Edition by Gamewright
In this mad-dashing geography game, kids are learning states, capitals, nicknames, location, categories, letters and syllables. Flip over a Find-It...
Rory’s Story Cubes–Actions by Gamewright
Roll out the newest Rory's Story Cubes set and get the action going. Each of the 9 cubes has 54 illustrated everyday verbs--listen, jump, draw,...
FitzIt by Gamewright
Kids and adults had such fun playing FitzIt, generating words based on the attribute cards they drew. My favorite was: what is usually used for...
2011
I Built It! Snakes and Ladders by I Built It! Games
Get ready for a hike through the jungle, climbing vine ladders and slipping down the tail of a snake. The large game board grabs a preschooler's...
I Built It! Memory Match +Tic Tac Toe by I Built It! Games
The possibilities are endless with Memory Match+Tic Tac Toe as kids create and customize their game before playing. Continually under construction,...
Gubs by Gamewright
Step up to the next level of game playing as you enter the world of Gubs, paying careful attention to the characters, tools, hazards, traps, events...
Splish Splash!
Jump right into this multi-colored pond of fun as you roll the die, drop the pebble into the collection of colored shapes and see if some splash...
Mermaid Beach
Intrigued that a girl her age actually created this game, my little toy tester jumped right into "Mermaid Beach" and loved it. There is no lying...
FLASHWORDZ
A flash is literally all the time you get to create words with four or more letters with FLASHWORDZ. Players get a fun, rounded rack to display...
Angelina Ballerina Dance With Me! Game by I Can Do That! Games
What little girl doesn't want to be on stage showing off her dance moves? "Angelina Ballerina Dance With Me! Game" lets everyone be a star. I Can Do...
Richard Scarry’s Busytown Busy, Busy Airport Game by I Can Do That! Games
Fasten you seat belts and get ready for take-off from Busy Town Airport on your very own passenger plane. Part pretend play and part game, this...
Word on the Street Junior by Out of the Box Publishing
This "wacky war of words" was unique and got even more fun, the longer we played it. The street is divided for two teams and the letter tiles of the...
2010
Rory’s Story Cubes by Gamewright
Kids love to roll dice--now they can toss nine picture cubes with clever images on each of the six sides and tell a story using the face up images....
Order’s Up by Gamewright
Things are hopping at the Ring-A-Ding Diner as players compete to quickly fill their orders before their opponents do. A game of fast...
S’Match by Thinkfun
S'MatchS' Match, by Thinkfun, is all about learning and remembering language categories. You have to know the story behind the invention of this...
What’s In the Cat’s Hat? by I Can Do That Games
Wait a minute, The cat just left his hat behind with a little surprise inside. It's our job to guess what it is. Kids love being the Hat Master who...
Take the Cake by Gamewright
Take The Cake"Take the Cake"is a great starter game for preschoolers who will love to decorate their colorful cupcakes. Simple but inviting, this...
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