Houdini Brainteaser

Houdini Brainteaser - A 40-challenge escape logic puzzle.

I received Houdini Brainteaser, a one-person brainteaser, as a Christmas gift. I have to admit I don't have anything like it. The box even boasts that it is the "World's First 40-Challenge Escape Puzzle". 

Houdini Brainteaser includes several pieces which will be used to bind Houdini. You can see the individual pieces in the image above. Your job is to free him, without using the clasps to release the pieces. Sounds intriguing, let's check it out!

One of the first things I do with a new puzzle is look at the challenges and then at the solutions. Yikes, no solutions! That had me sweating until I read in the instructions that the complete take-apart solution videos are on the ThinkFun website. So I headed to the website and sure enough, there they are. They also show videos for the set up part of the puzzles. You know there's a chance it will be difficult when you need a video to help you set-up a puzzle. This does make me a little nervous though, because games eventually retire so will the information for solving the puzzles still be there in a few years.

The 40 challenges increase in difficulty as you go. Here is a picture of the first and last challenge.

PLAY:

1. Select a challenge.
2. Tie Houdini up as shown.
3. Free Houdini getting him clear of all the ropes without undoing the clasps.

The Think Fun website has a link where you can see the set up as well as the solution to the puzzles if you are interested. Here it is ThinkFun.

Here are the Think Fun tips for freeing Houdini:

• Try to work him to one end of the rope.
• Experiment to see which pieces can pass through each other. VERY GOOD TIP TO START. I might have figured it out if I done this first.
• Try to keep your ropes from getting tangled.
• Free another piece before you free Houdini.
• Remember to use what you learn from previous challenges.

If you would like to read more about one-person logic puzzles, check out my post What's in Your Therapy Box? Logic Puzzles Edition. 


Try this:

• If you get too tangled up, just release the clips and start over.
• If frustration takes over, take a break. Most can't think creatively under those conditions. I know I can't.
• Use the set up cards only, if you have those who couldn't figure out the puzzles. Just those pictures can offer a VP workout.
• Work the solution as the individual watches. Then set up again and let him do it.
• Use the videos as a guide and stop as many times as needed to follow.
• Work on visual discrimination, visual closure, visualization, eye-hand coordination, spatial relations, executive functioning skills, manual dexterity, fine motor precision, bilateral coordination, grasp, problem solving, strategy, logic, process skills, play and leisure exploration and participation.  

In the box: 40 challenges, 2 ropes, lock & 2 rings, Houdini body and legs, trap cage, travel bag

If you are interested in purchasing this item or just want more information, click on the image below.

Angling Fever

Catch the fish, stack the fish. Lots of ways to play.

Angling Fever is a "simple" fishing game. Pieces are made of wood (except for fishing line) and come in four colors: red, green, blue, yellow. Each color has one fishing pole, one stand, and three fish. The fishing pole is approximately 36 inches long, including the line and the hook. The fishing line is a thin elastic cord that is just knotted at both ends. The fish are 4" long and 1.5" tall, including the ring on top. The stand is approximately 5" tall. The holes in the fish, for both the hook and the stand, are large enough so that it is not a tight fit.

At the end of each fishing pole is a hook, so this game is more challenging than the magnetic-type fishing poles where you just hover the piece over the magnet and they jump together. Because the hook and the circle at the top of the fish need to match up in a certain orientation, it may take a little time as you wait for the line and hook to quit moving and then turn it so that it can slip into the circle. You may lose some to frustration at this point.

 

Once you hook the fish, then you can move it to the stand. Again you may need to wait for the fishing line to stop swaying so that you can line up the hole in the fish to the pole on the stand. A quick way to stop the swaying is to touch it to the ground and then lift it carefully. If you are playing a game with more than one person, the one who gets all three fish on their stand first would be the winner.   

Try this:

• Scatter the fish on the floor and then call them by color, for order of catching.
• Eliminate putting them on the stand and just put them back into the box after catching them if two activities per fish (catching, stacking) is too tedious.
• Mix the fish on the floor and ask the player to catch all the red fish, then all the green, etc.
• Try fishing on the tabletop instead of from the floor.
• Place two stands on the playing surface. Then place one fish at a time in front of the player and ask him to catch and put on the correct stand. Or eliminate the fishing pole and just stack by hand.
• Remove the elastic cord and replace it with something that is less flexible, if the player is having trouble. Maybe twist together some pipe cleaners. Then change the cord to something less static and more dynamic, until you work your way back to the elastic cord.
• Untie the hooks from the lines and just hold the hook in hand and catch each fish and place it on its stand. 
• Work on visual discrimination, spatial relations, position in space, eye-hand coordination, manual dexterity, tool use, shoulder strength and stability, executive functioning skills, proprioceptive and vestibular perception, socialization skills, process skills, play and leisure exploration and participation 
  
  
   
  In the box: 4 fishing poles, 4 stands, 12 fish