Mad about Monopoly or crazy about Kerplunk?  Then the NSPCC’s new event – The Really Big Board Game Day – is the fundraising event for you.

On Friday, May 15th, workplaces, schools, community centres, pubs and homes are being asked to organise an event and raise money to support the children’s charity’s play therapy work.

And if you don’t have a big stack of games on hand, don’t worry, we’ve found a few that you can simply print out…
Well, when we say a few, there’s actually a whole website dedicated to printable board games –www.printableboardgames.net – so you’ll be spoilt for choice simply by visiting the one site.  As well as favourites such as snakes and ladders, chess, battleships and backgammon, you can also print out items such as a die if you’re annoyingly missing a vital piece from any game you already have.

Looking for a traditional game with a twist?  Download Mr Printables Rain & Rainbow Board Game – a beautiful variation of snakes and ladders.  “Rainbows take you up to higher numbers (like ladders) and black clouds and rain bring you back down to lower numbers (like snakes). Got it? Try chasing the rainbows and not get soaking wet in the rain!  Your goal is to reach the sun at the end.”

For something a little different head to the website of weekly story comic The Phoenix where you can discover Who can steal a scale from the Dragon? or take part in The Race for the Sandwich of Glory.

Board games aren’t usually lacking in colour but one that uses it as its focus is A Whole Lot of Tiny’s The Colourful Contest and is “great for developing an understanding of colours for youngsters”.

For double the play fun why not let your child’s dolls get in on the dice rolling action?  My Froggy Stuff made some “cute little board games so that all of our dolls can have a fun game night in the dollhouse house” and “made it a printable for whomever would like to join in on the fun”.

But, if you want to go massive rather than mini, then Diane Gilleland’s question “Why gather around a table to play board games when you can play them all over the house?” and her Make a Big-As-Life Board Game project on Makezine will appeal to you.  Make your own game cards or print out two sets from the downloadable template she provides.

If making up your own rules sounds good to you then head to Love to Know to download its printable basic game board, snaky game board, square board with spots for game cards or angled board.  “You can easily customize these boards with special spaces, decorations, and other embellishments before or after printing.”

Happy rolling!

Do you love finding printables on the internet?  Do you have particular favourites?  Or have you featured some on your own blog?  Email karen.malpass@inkfactory.com with your links and we may be able to feature them in a future post.