Addition, geometric shapes, and some good ol’ competition? Count me in—I’m ready to Drop It! 

Between you and me, Drop It!, by Thames & Kosmos, is an educational game—but worry not, the kids will be having so much fun playing, they won’t even realize they’re doing math.

The game works like this: Each player chooses a color and will gather all shapes of said color and place their marker on the game board. But before we focus on the game board, let’s turn to the masterpiece that is the magical vertical standing board. The youngest player will be the first to drop one of their shapes inside of it.

Picture the Connect Four game board, except instead of dropping red and black circles into designated slots, players are dropping various shapes into an unassigned wide open space—where they could land absolutely anywhere 😵.

Once the piece has landed, players must assess whether or not any landing rules have been broken. First off, did the piece land in a safe column or a safe row? While there are no distinct rows and columns, the board follows a similar concept to BATTLESHIP, where kids have to line it up with their fingers. The rows and columns will list what shape cannot land there; players should be checking to make sure their shape landed in a safe row or column.

But wait! Hate to drop some bad news, but there are some other rules players should be looking for while evaluating the shape’s landing. For example: shapes of the same color or shape cannot be touching 🚨.  Kids can find a list of all the landing rules in the instruction booklet. If a player does break the landing rules, no points are subtracted. Points can only be added to a player’s tally (Golly gee, I wish bank accounts worked like that). The instruction guide will help kids calculate their points each turn. 

Now, I mentioned a game board earlier. While the vertical standing board base is the main shebang of the game, the game board is an extra opportunity to score some points. Depending on how many points a player scored from their shape landing, translates to how many spaces a player can advance on the board. Certain spaces on the board, if landed on, allow players to add points to their tally. I would recommend having paper out while playing so kids can track their points easily. 

Once players have dropped all their shapes into the board, the game is over. Now it’s time to add up all the points between the shapes landing’s and any additional points scored on the game board. Whoever has the most points wins. Woo hoo! Now drop it low and have a dance par-tay!

TBH this game is like bowling. You aim to knock down a certain pin, but then the ball travels its own course and you lose to your grandma at your birthday party.  It’s luck, mixed with strategy. And it’s addition and geometric shapes mixed with fun! 

About the author

Kelly Corbett

Kelly Corbett

Kelly is an editorial assistant at Adventure Publishing Group. When she's not writing/playing/thinking about toys, she's probably spilling coffee on herself, laughing at her own jokes, or doing something awkward somewhere. As a quirky redhead, she one time tricked her friends into thinking she was the new face of Wendy's fast-food franchise as a prank. She's not, but a chili lover can dream right? You can follow her on Twitter @kcorbzz.

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