Would you like to help build your children’s spelling skills while playing a game? Scrabble Junior is a great place to start! In these Scrabble Junior rules, you will learn how to teach your children the beginning stages of the classic game of Scrabble.
Scrabble is one of the most popular word games in the world but is only made for ages 8 and up. Scrabble Junior is a great way to teach children the basics of Scrabble so they can learn to play when they are at the proper age!
Below, we cover both the beginner side of the game board and the advanced side, which encourages children to spell their own words and learn about proper placement on the game board.
This Scrabble Junior rules guide will cover the following:
- What is Scrabble Junior
- What you’ll need to play Scrabble Junior
- Scrabble Junior rules
- How to win Scrabble Junior
- Scrabble Junior video tutorial
- FAQs
- Similar game guides
Find out how to play Scrabble Junior by reading more below!
What is Scrabble Junior?
Scrabble Junior is a children’s introduction to the game of Scrabble. Instead of having them spell out their own words, the beginner side of the board contains words they need to fill in with their letter tiles.
Number of players: 2-4
Ages: 5+
Difficulty: Easy
Length of play: 30min
Category: Board, word, children’s, tile placement
Similar to: Scrabble, My First Bananagrams, Zingo Sight Words
Main Objective: Be the player with the most points at the end of the game by building words.
Why We Love It: It eases children into the fun game of Scrabble by providing them with a 2-sided board with a beginner side and an advanced side.
What You’ll Need to Play Scrabble Junior
Everything you need to play Scrabble Junior can be found in the box:
The following components are found inside each game:
- 2-Sided game board (beginner and advanced)
- 4 Character tokens
- 105 Letter tiles
- Game guide
Scrabble Junior Rules
Game Setup
Beginner Side (Printed words)
- Each player chooses a character token to use throughout gameplay and places it on the “Start” location on the score track.
- Take all the letter tiles and put them in a facedown pile within reach of all players.
- 3. Each player takes 7 letter tiles from the pile and places them face up in front of them.
Advanced Side (Blank)
- Take all the letter tiles and put them in a facedown pile within reach of all players
- Each player takes 7 letter tiles from the pile and places them face up in front of them.
- Choose a player to keep score with a pen and paper.
How to Play Scrabble Junior
Beginner Side
- The first player to make a move is the oldest player.
- The first player takes 2 of their letter tiles and places them on any matching letter on the game board. Your goal is to fill in as many words as possible.
- If that player completed a word this turn, they score 1 point and move their character token up one spot on the score track. However, if they complete a word that is outlined in the same color as their character token, they score 2 points instead!
- If you complete 2 connecting words in one turn, you score points for both of those words!
- When your turn is complete, take 2 letter tiles from the facedown pile and place them with the rest of the letters in front of you, so you have a total of 7 letter tiles again. Then, turns proceed in clockwise order.
- When all words have been covered by letter tiles, the player whose character token is on the highest score of the track wins the game!
Advanced Side
- The oldest player goes first. They place any number of letters tiles on the board to make a word. The first word placed must cover the blue star tile in the middle of the board. Turns proceed in clockwise order.
- If you want to exchange your letter tiles with new ones, you can pass your turn and exchange any amount of letter tiles for new letter tiles from the facedown pile. You cannot form a word this turn since you passed.
- Every new word that is placed must touch a previously placed word. Players score 1 point per letter in the new word that is formed, including any letters that were placed previously from another word.
- Take new letter tiles from the facedown pile to replace every letter tile you used this turn.
For example: If you used 4 letters, take 4 letter tiles from the facedown pile and place them in front of you.
You should always have 7 letter tiles in front of you before your next turn.
- The player with the most points after all letter tiles have been placed on the board wins the game!
NOTE: You cannot form words diagonally or backwards.
How to Win Scrabble Junior
Beginner Side: When all of the words on the board have been filled in by letter tiles, the player whose character token is highest on the score track wins the game!
Advanced Side: When every letter tile has been placed on the board, the player with the most points at the end of the game wins!
Video Tutorial for Scrabble Junior
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between Scrabble and Scrabble Junior?
Scrabble has a blank board, and each letter tile lists a point value which is how each word is scored.
Scrabble Junior has one side of the board that is printed with words already spelled out that need to be filled in by the letter tiles. The advanced side has a blank board but all letters are scored as 1 point each, unlike Scrabble.
What is the oldest age recommended for Scrabble Junior?
Typically kids over the age of 8 can play regular Scrabble instead of Scrabble Junior, depending on their word vocabulary. However, Scrabble Junior can technically be played by all ages.
When are kids ready to use the advanced side of Scrabble Junior?
Kids will be ready to use the advanced side when they are comfortable enough to spell words on their own!
Similar Games to Scrabble Junior (Our Guides)
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