Modified Monopoly for Kids

C loves the Scooby Doo Monopoly game I received at Christmas a few years ago, but when we tried to play it last year, it was too much for him...all of the rules, the money, going bankrupt, etc. He's been begging to play it again recently with the additional clause of "I won't cry!" I thought there's still got to be a way to make this easier, so we made up our own rules this morning. I'm pleased to report the version we created was tear-free, easy for C to play, full of teachable moments (money, counting, logic, etc.) and after one game, C was pleased to complete a game, but he was also ready to put the game away, so we did not have to play endless rounds.

Our rules:

• Each player gets $500 to start, and $200 in the middle for the Free Parking jackpot


• Players still get $200 each time they pass go


• Shuffle the deed cards and deal 3 to each player. If any players have the same color cards, for example, one gets Park Place and the other gets Boardwalk, return to the pile and deal two new cards. The goal is after dealing that no players share colors or railroads.


• First player to collect a colored set of deeds wins (Ex: Park Place and Boardwalk, or all 4 rail roads, etc.). So, if I have a yellow deed, green deed, and blue deed, and I land on another yellow deed, I am going to buy it. I will have one yellow deed left to land on to buy and win the game. Other players may thwart me by purchasing the remaining yellow deed if they land on it before I do, but we played a friendly game and did not do that.


• If you land on a space someone owns, you still pay rent


• No buildings/hotels


• Jail/doubles rules still apply


• Utilities and tax rules still apply, so if a player lands on a utility, he/she would likely want to buy it. Even though the utility will not be used to win the game, it generates income for the owner of the utility.

Our game took about 30 minutes to play and C enjoyed playing such a "big boy" game!