Ease Kids Back Into ‘School Mode’ Seamlessly by Having Fast-Paced,Word-Based Family Fun
As the halcyon days of summer draw to a close, it’s understandable for even the brightest kids to feel a bit anxious or crestfallen at the thought of the looming school bell. The joyful freedom of summer contrasts quite starkly with the regimented academia of school. It’s a sudden transition, even if you enjoy learning, so kids can be forgiven if their minds aren’t quite as sharp as they were when summer started. If only there were some enjoyable, nigh imperceptible way to get the pliable minds of your kids back into the education zone.
JoPat Games may have an idea! In the weeks before school is back in session, break out your box of Cross Spin! ($24.99 | 2-6 players | ages 8+) While playing Cross Spin, players are expected to exercise their language comprehension, reasoning, spatial awareness, and sense for abstract connection. And the best part is, it’s all a natural and super fun byproduct of playing the game! Your kids won’t even realize they’re back in the brain gym while playing Cross Spin during family game night. And parents, believe us when we say you won’t mind, this game is a ton of fun for adults too!
A crossword puzzle every day is handy for keeping your mind sharp, so Cross Spin is an extra-effective way to get your mind moving thanks to the additional gameplay elements. To start, every player chooses a matching crossword puzzle from their 10-board booklet. Based on how many words fit in the puzzle, the same number of category cards are then drawn. With 160 different cards, Cross Spin’s categories are numerous and eclectic. Players should be open-minded and ready for anything.
Now the pressure is on! All players must attempt to solve their puzzles by thinking of words that both match the category cards and fit into their puzzle. This really puts your vocabulary and abstract thinking to the test. Imagining solutions that fit two distinct requirements at once is a wonderfully fun challenge. Feeling stuck? Try rotating your game board to get up to 3 additional perspectives! Thinking of multiple potential words is already a fun mental workout, but having the freedom to rotate the puzzle opens up even more possibilities and will put your spatial awareness to the test. So long as all your word spaces are filled and every word is readable, you nailed it!
The winning player then flips the 20 second hourglass, turning up the heat on the remaining players to finish their puzzles as much as possible! Practicing working under pressure is an excellent skill to develop for quizzes and tests in the classroom. Once time is up, points are tallied based on puzzle completion. After that, pick a new board and draw new category cards to begin anew! Because Cross Spin comes with 160 category cards and 10 puzzle boards with 4 orientations each, you’ll never play the same round twice! Cross Spin’s replay value makes it the perfect game to capstone the final days of summer and get your kid’s mind active and back in the groove of learning. If you want to make the experience extra educational, have everyone share what words they used to complete their puzzles after each round. Who knows, someone may learn a new word or two!
What makes Cross Spin so brilliant is that it challenges your brain in these useful and disparate ways as a natural consequence of playing. The ability to rotate the game board helps you become a more adaptable problem-solver; when something isn’t working, try a new approach! The wealth of category cards and puzzle permutations rewards an extensive vocabulary and invites vivid imaginations and out-of-the-box thinking. The race to complete your puzzle first can foster an appreciation for healthy competition and an easier time performing under pressure. And most critically, playing Cross Spin gets kids engaged and interacting in-person with others in the spirit of having fun, instead of having their eyes glued to a screen. Good social skills are vitally important in school! All these factors coalesce into a board game that’s also ideal for educators to keep in their classroom. Break out Cross Spin for a lesson and kids will love to learn!
“My daughter, her friends and I had a great time playing it while keeping our thinking caps on!!!” said @ProductTesterReviewer on Instagram.
Photo Credit: JoPat Games
If you haven’t been sold on our thesis yet, why not give JoPat Games’ work a peer review by trying the daily puzzle on crossspingame.com? You may be surprised how challenging it can be, but trust us, you won’t want to give up until you solve it! For off-hours or recess where phones are allowed, the downloadable Cross Spin app offers a single-player version of the game to practice your skills in advance of the real deal against opponents.
Interested families or teachers can find Cross Spin on JoPat Games’ official website and TikTok shop, as well as on Amazon. Prime your brain for back-to-school while having a blast with Cross Spin!
ABOUT JOPAT GAMES
JoPat Games is a Chicago-based game company dedicated to creating easy-to-learn, fun-to-play games that bring friends and families together. Its first release, Cross Spin, is a fast-paced word game perfect for game night—now available both as a physical board game and as a daily web puzzle/downloadable app for on-the-go play. Learn more at JoPatGames.com.