Kaleidoscope Puzzle

Card-stacking pattern game.

This is a pattern logic game. The goal is simple: Choose one of the 40 challenge cards and then orient the correct transparent, plastic pieces to make that pattern. There are four levels of difficulty, 10 challenges for each level. Turn the card over and the solution on the back shows you which pieces to use and their correct orientation. Puzzles will use either two or three transparent plastic pieces to solve.

You will have to know a little about what secondary colors result when primary colors are mixed, or learn fast. For instance a red and blue stacked on top of each other will make purple, blue and yellow make green. I am not really a fan of this game. One of my biggest issues with this game is that when playing Kaleidoscope Puzzle you have got to be sitting under really good lighting to make the new color mixes obvious.

Each of the six transparent cards is basically divided into four big sections, but depending on how the card is oriented, there are eight possibilities. For instance, looking at the example on the front of the box in the image above, the top section is blue and green. Moving clockwise, the next large section is yellow, the bottom section is divided into red and orange sections, and the last section is divided into red and white. Note how the orange on the bottom is hard to differentiate from the red next to it. The easiest puzzles start with four sections and no overlapping colors, and as they get harder the sections and mixed colors increase. Here is a sample card from each level. Under them are the backs of the cards with the solutions.

 

Front of cards with puzzle, first card from each level of difficulty.

 

Back of cards with solutions. Cards are oriented as they should be stacked.

 Try this:

• Play with the cards before starting a game. Stack and turn pieces so that the player can see how colors are mixed and create other colors.
• Look at the back and choose the appropriate cards for the player in advance to save time or start slow.
• Think about the secondary colors first and what colors will be needed to make them. That will give you an idea of where at least two of the colors will be located.
• Work on logic, problem solving, visual discrimination, spatial relations, visual closure, eye-hand coordination, manual dexterity, process skills, executive functioning skills, play and leisure exploration and participation
  

In the box:  6 transparent plastic card tiles with primary colors, 40 challenge cards 

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

Tribond Jr.

Tribond Jr. - Lists of 3

Cognitive flexibility, an executive functioning skill that is important in problem solving, is front and center in Tribond Jr.. Also required is the ability to categorize and, occasionally, sequence. You will be given a list of three things and you must figure out what they have in common. The game designer calls them Threezers. Here are a few examples:

• A car, a tree, an elephant - They all have trunks
• Brown, polar, grizzly - They are all types of bears
• On your mark, get set, go - A three command start for a race

The game board is folded into fourths to fit in the box. There are 1,100 Threezers on the 200 cards, six per card. The six Threezers on each card are numbered (1-6). The Threezers are on one side and the answers are on the other. There are two dice, a number die and a color die. The colors on the die match the color spaces on the board. 

The lists that are three of the same things (like three different kinds of bears) are much easier and quicker to figure out for most than the list of three completely different items with one matching attribute. 

Object:
Be the first person to move around the board and return home.

Set up:
Open the board and place it in the middle of the players. Slide one of the card decks into the box and set it by the board. Each player chooses one pawn and puts it on the home spot on the board. Place the dice nearby.

Play:
The first player throws the dice. The number die will indicate which Threezer they will be asked about (Threezers are numbered on each card 1-6). The person to the player's left will be the reader and will read the Threezer out loud. If the player answers correctly, they may move their pawn to the next space on the board that matches the color that was thrown on the die. If the die is white, they may trade spaces with anyone on the board, or stay put. If they answer incorrectly, their turn is over. Play until someone reaches home and wins the game.

Try this:

• Allow the player to read off the card if it is hard to hold three things in their mind as they contemplate. 
• Involve everyone, no waiting between turns. Give each player a piece of paper. Players take turns reading a Threezer. Everyone writes down a guess, then the reader turns the card over and reads the answer. Each player who got it correct gets a point. Play for a predetermined amount of time and the person with the highest score wins. Or play until someone reaches a predetermined score.
• Forget the game, just play with the cards. Write one Threezer on a white board or piece of paper so all can see. Work together as a group to figure out each answer.
• Work on the hardest category - three completely different items with one matching attribute. Describe the first item and see if anything thing you say would apply to more than one item. If it does, does it match two? Three? If not, describe the second item and try again. Keep going until something clicks. A car, a tree, an elephant. A car has wheels, rolls, is made of metal, holds people, has windows. No to everything. A tree is tall, has leaves, has a trunk, etc.
  
• Work on cognitive flexibility, categorization, sequencing, socialization skills, executive function skills, process skills, play and leisure exploration and participation
  

In the box: Game board, 6 pawns, 2 dice, 200 cards, card box
 

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