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Strategic Moves for Children
In this issue, we will focus on strategy-based games that engage the mind by transitioning it from a passive to an active state, helping to maintain attention for extended periods. It is not only children who struggle to keep their attention focused on tasks for long periods—adults face the same challenge in all activities. Intellectual games are important tools for improving focus.
The strategy games we will cover in this issue are referred to as “the art of organizing and coordinating activities to achieve a specific goal.” In the first half of the 20th century, mathematician John von Neumann and economist Oskar Morgenstern used the term “strategy” to describe the rational behaviors of two players trying to gain an advantage over each other.
Strategy itself is a process. The first step is setting a direction before taking action, preparing the mind consciously for the task at hand. Next, we develop a plan for the task, blend it with personal perspectives and life culture, and finally, put it into action and evaluate the results.
When we talk about strategy development, SWOT analysis should not be overlooked. SWOT is an acronym derived from the following English words: S: Strength (identifying the organization’s strengths or advantages) W: Weakness (identifying the organization’s weaknesses or vulnerabilities) O: Opportunity (expressing the opportunities available to the organization) T: Threat (indicating the threats and dangers the organization faces)
EYVAN: A Game of Intelligence and Strategy
In this game, players will use their strategic skills to move their castles to the designated locations. Each player receives one castle, nine large walls, and three small walls. The game is played on a platform where the castles are placed at opposite ends, marked with directional arrows. The walls remain outside the platform.
In Eyvan, players must move their castles by one step at a time—either left, right, forward, or backward—and use the walls to block their opponent’s castle from progressing. The goal is to reach the opponent’s side of the platform and place the castle at the designated spot before the other player.
Each player can only use each piece once. If a player’s castle lands on a cannon, they gain the right to move their castle two steps forward. If the castle lands on a knight, the player may take a wall from the board or from their opponent’s set.
ISTIF: A Game of Intelligence and Strategy
Istif is a fast and easy-to-learn strategy game that challenges players to think critically. Players start by choosing a color of game cubes and placing them on the designated spots on the game board. Each player places one of their cubes in any available position on the board.
In the preschool and elementary school versions of the game, the first player to align three cubes in a row—horizontally, vertically, or diagonally—on the square grid wins. In the middle school and higher versions, the goal is to align four cubes in a row, either horizontally, vertically, or diagonally, on both surfaces.
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