As a child psychiatrist, I often use games to work with the children with autism who I see regularly as my patients. All of these games can help with different aspects or challenges that some children with Autism Spectrum Disorder may have — they are also just fun.
Also, check out our other page with a list of toys for children with autism.
Best Games for Children with Autism
- I Never Forget a Face Memory Game This game is great for memory and also for recognizing and recognizing faces.
- Feelmo Speaking Cards These are good for helping teach emotions and feelings, and learning to identify and express them.
- What Would You Do At School If… This game helps teach problem solving skills, and thinking through situations that may be difficult.
- What Would You Do At Home If… This is similar to #3 in that it is a card-based game to help work through various social situations, this time designed for situations at home.
- Social Skills Board Games (6 Pack) This is a set of games that are designed to help with social skills. It is designed for elementary school aged children.
- Social Skills Chipper Chat Magnetic Game This one is a great value because it has 30 game boards in it. The games are designed to teach social skills in many different situations and setting.
- What Do I Do Flash Cards Game. This card pack works on social skills but also emotional learning for kids 3 years old+.
- Feelings In a Flash These cards contain scenarios and reaction faces showing different emotions. These are commonly used in classrooms and therapists offices but is great for home too.
- Counting and Sorting Game This is a great game for children with autism who enjoy sorting and organizing by colors and numbers. Can be very soothing for some kids.
- Yeti in my Spaghetti This is a fun game for kids 4 years old+ that has both sensory skills and social skills teaching such as taking turns.
- Kinetic Sand Kit This is a great sensory game that also allows for some group play or make believe.
- Teachable Touchables Texture Squares This bag of squares is great for talking about sensations, textures, and colors.
- How I’m Feeling This card set helps children with autism identify and think about their feelings and emotions in various situations in daily life.
- Mad Dragon This game helps kids age 6 and up identify and learn to deal with anger and frustration.
- What Did You Say? This is a great board game that helps with recognizing and understanding non-verbal language cues.
- Key Education Photo Conversation Cards These cards were designed for children with autism spectrum disorder to learn various social skills from photographs of children doing those skills.
- Daily Routine Chart This chart is created for children with autism and it uses photographs of daily activities to encourage productivity.
- Everyday Games for Sensory Processing Disorder This is a book of games to help children with autism with sensory issues.
- Lego. I had to include one more, because Lego is a great way for kids to move their focus to a tactile project. Also because there is no “right’ or “wrong” way to build with Lego there is less chance of frustration as it’s just a fun and creative way to distract from anxiety and spend some time building. Plus they have FREE SHIPPING every day on orders over $35!
**Note, if you purchase items from these links, we will get a small fee which we plan to put right back into creating more content and resources for you and your family.
Dr. Sean Paul, MD is a board certified child psychiatrist who specializes in autism and mental and behavioral issues in children with autism spectrum disorders.
