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El Cucuy Is Scared Too! by Donna Barba Higuera read-aloud

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a personal favorite about a girl awaiting her father's return to Mexico from his journey to the U.S, a journey that parallels the path of the monarch butterflies. This book also has a tie-in to Day of the Dead celebrations. 

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This nonfiction book showcases interesting bookmobiles around the world.

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This book is about a girl overcoming her shyness at a mendhi party with the help of her dadi or grandmother.

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template and instructions for making a doll inspired by Latin American designs

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The Piñata that the Farm Maiden Hung by Samantha R. Vamos read-aloud (bilingual)

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This is a book about a girl who learns to celebrate her bicultural identity.

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simple watercolor craft with template, tribute to the painted elephants that march in the Elephant Parade in Jaipur, India.

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This stunningly illustrated rhyming book is told from the perspective of a Colombian bus as it makes its way through the Andean mountains and into town.

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This book explains the different ways children make wishes in different countries around the world.

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a rhyming picture book about Mexican Day of the Dead customs.

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This beautiful book highlights the famous night markets of Nigeria.

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Interactive Picture Dictionary- 7 different languages

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Interactive Picture Dictionary- 7 different languages

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Lonely Planet Kids encourages children to discover the fascinating world around them. Come explore!

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This version of the classic song "The Wheels on the Bus" is set in India. 

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An example of the Mexican artform of Alejibres from the movie "Coco". 

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An example of the Mexican artform of Alejibres from the movie "Coco". 

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Dante Is Full Of Surprises ✨ | Coco | Disney Channel UK

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This fun read-aloud is set in Southeast Asia and is about a boy and his cat accompanying their Baba on his rickshaw rides through the city.

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This book is about the masquerade traditions of West Africa and also is a touching story about how a girl remembers her grandfather after he passes away.

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This book is about a girl who visits an Iranian bazaar with her grandmother.

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I have 100s of stamps from different countries. Feel free to borrow a bag of stamps and complete this fun writing activity. Students can pick a favorite stamp, draw it on the page, identify the country it is from, and write a description.

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Stamp Writing Response- Vertical

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Korean Game: How To Play Gonggi 공기놀이 하는법

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Carrom Board Game - How to play Carrom with rules |  Best Traditional Game - Family Game/ Activity

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Barefoot Books World Atlas- available on App store- interactive atlas with facts, music, and animations. 

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Barefoot Books World Atlas- available on App store- interactive atlas with facts, music, and animations. 

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The Life of / La vida de Llort

Born April 7, 1949, Fernando Llort was a world-renowned Salvadoran artist. His artwork sparked an artisan movement among El Salvador's agricultural workers. He taught them how to use their artistic ability to make a living. As a result, the town's agricultural faction quickly transformed into an artisanal atmosphere, generating jobs outside of farming. To this day, Fernando Llort's art continues to inspire many to try their hand at artistry!

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Llort Mosaic Art DIY | Lil' Libros Learning Portal

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The Life of / La vida de Llort Born April 7, 1949, Fernando Llort was a world-renowned Salvadoran artist. His artwork sparked an artisan movement among El Salvador's agricultural workers. He taught them how to use their artistic ability to make a living.

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Coloring Pages based on the art of El Salvadoran artist, Fernando Llort

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Coloring Pages based on the art of El Salvadoran artist, Fernando Llort

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Learn Simple Phrases in over a 100 different languages 

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Learn Simple Phrases in over a 100 different languages 

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free app to accompany Hello Atlas book- perfect for all ages

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Browse a growing collection of curated read-aloud videos (some by the author or illustrator) – with student activities and educator guides.

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Tutorial on Rock, Paper, Scissors in Japanese:  Jan-Ken/Jankenpon

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Tutorial on Rock, Paper, Scissors in Japanese:  Jan-Ken/Jankenpon

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Rock, Paper, Scissors(じゃんけん), Japanese Custom #4

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World's Most Amazing Kendama Ninjas! Ft. Zoomadanke

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Kid friendly tutorial on basic Chinese Jump Rope technique

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Kid friendly tutorial on basic Chinese Jump Rope technique

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How to do Cat's Cradle EASY! Step by step, with string

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How to Make and Play Chinese "Hacky Sack" Jianzi 毽子. Super Easy!!!

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Traditional games have maintained their popularity for centuries because they can be played again and again and still be entertaining. All the board games on this list can easily be made with a pen, paper and a few tokens, which make them great for quick and easy boredom busters, too. Not only that, but playing traditional games from around the world will teach your children about other cultures.

The games on this list are known as abstract strategy games and they fall into several categories based on the objective of game play. Abstract strategy games rely on player's thinking, logic and visual perception skills. They do not rely solely on chance or athleticism! ( Good news for many of us, ha ha ha)

Happy playing!
How to use this resource:
I've arranged the games by general geographic location. At the bottom of this article you will find a list sorted by type of abstract strategy game. Each game introduction links to detailed written instructions, where you can also find a printable game board for most of the games. If video instructions are available for any of the traditional games, I've included them here.

Games from Asia

China

Watermelon Chess, or Xi Gua Qi, is originally from Hangzhou, China. It's a battle game and totally unrelated to regular chess!

Pong Hau K'i, is also played in Korea, where is is known as Ou-moul-ko-no. It is a blockade game in which you try to prevent your opponent from moving.

Korea

Five Field Kono, or o-pat-ko-no in Korean, is a battle game. It operates on the same principle as the better known "Chinese checkers."

India

Kaooa, also known as "Vulture and Crows" is a hunt game for two players. The star-shaped board adds a fun twist.

Lau Kata Kati is from the Lower Bengal region of India. It is a battle game for two players that has a butterfly shaped board game and nine tokens per player. Like other battle games, the goal is to capture all of your opponent's tokens.

Indonesia

Tchuka Ruma, a traditional game from Indonesia, is part of the family of mancala games, versions of which you can find on several continents, particularly Asia and Africa. It is a solitaire game we made it into a multiple player game by racing to see who could solve the puzzle first.

Mancala games are games of transfer usually played with stones in boards with multiple depressions.

Thailand

Len Choa is a hunt-type game in which one tiger goes up against six leopards. Roar!

The Philippines

Tapatan is a three in a row game and may seem familiar to many players. Similar positional "in-a-row" games are played around the world, such as three-men's morris or Achi ( played with four tokens per player).

Traditional Games from Africa

Liberia

Queah is related to the draughts family of abstract strategy games. Draughts games include the very familiar checkers and generally pit opponents with an equal number of tokens against each other using diagonal moves.

Zimbabwe

Tsoro Yematatu is another three-in-a-row game for two players. It uses a triangular board.

Nigeria

Dara, a three-in-a-row game is very different than the other positional games included in this article. It's a bit more complicated to learn but once you get the hang of it, it's just as fun as the others.

Kenya

Shisima is a positional game from Kenya. Shisima means "water" and the tokens represent water bugs trying to skitter along to the the water source in the center of the board. Shisima uses an octagonal board.

Europe

Nine Holes is a familiar game to many. It is a positional game popularized in Britain and similar to tic-tac-toe ( aka naughts and crosses).

Fox and Geese is a hunt game played in many European countries, dating back to the 12th century C.E.

Pentalpha is a solitaire brain teaser played on a star shaped board. I believe it is from Crete, but I am not 100% certain of that.

Solitaire, also known as Patience is more commonly known as the name of a popular card game. However, it is also the name of a peg board game that originated in 17th century France. It was also widely played in Britain.

Oceania/Pacific Islands

Mū Tōrere from the Māori people of New Zealand is a blockade game played on an unusual star-shaped game board.

Lu-Lu is a dice game from Hawai'i. This obviously isn't a board game and it is a game of chance, rather than an abstract strategy game but I wanted to include it anyway. Lu-Lu dice teaches basic math skills and uses flat dice you make yourself ( or use our printable). I don't have a video but click on the image to transport yourself to the written instructions!

Traditional Games from The Americas

Picaria was played by indigenous peoples of Southwestern North America. It is a three-in-a-row game thought to have been adapted from games introduced to North America by Europeans.

Kolowis Awithlaknannai was played by the Zuni people in what is now occupied by New Mexico. It is a battle and capture game in the Alquerque family of games.

Games by Type
Positional games: Positional battle: Blocking games: Hunt games:
In these games, it is typical for one player to attempt to block, and the second player to capture.
Capture games

Watermelon Chess

Queah

Kolowis Awithlaknannai

Lau Kata Kati

Transfer games: Solitaire games: Other:

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Traditional games have maintained their popularity for centuries because they can be played again and again and still be entertaining. All the board games on this list can easily be made with a pen, paper and a few tokens, which make them great for quick and easy boredom busters, too.