Snakes and Ladders Game
Roll the die, climb the ladders, dodge the snakes and race to 100.
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Game information
- Price
- Free
- Skills
- Counting to 100Number OrderTaking Turns
- Players
- 1 to 4 players
- Platforms
- Phone / Tablet / Computer
How to play Snakes and Ladders
Choose vs Computer to play on your own, or 2, 3 or 4 Players to share one screen, then press Start. Every pawn begins on square 1 at the bottom left. When it is your turn the die glows in your color: tap it to roll. Your pawn hops forward one square at a time, and a voice says the number of each square it lands on. Stop at the foot of a ladder and you climb to the top of it. Stop on a snake's head and you slide all the way down to its tail. The first pawn to reach square 100, at the top left of the board, wins.
The numbers wind back and forth like a real board: 1 to 10 run left to right along the bottom, 11 to 20 come back right to left on the row above, and so on up to 100. Following that zigzag is part of the fun, and the voice keeps everyone on track. The Pause button stops the game whenever you need a break, and leaving the page does not pause it, so nobody has to press Resume after a quick look at something else.
Counting every square out loud
Snakes and ladders is a game of pure luck, which is exactly why young children love it: a four year old can beat a grown up fair and square. What it teaches comes from the counting. A child sees the dots on the die, counts on from the square they are standing on, and reads numbers all the way up to 100. That is why our voice names every square as the pawn lands on it, rather than jumping the pawn straight to its new place.
There is good evidence behind saying the numbers. In a 2008 study, Geetha Ramani and Robert Siegler had preschoolers play a simple board game with squares numbered 1 to 10, saying each number as they moved their token, for four short sessions. Those children got better at counting, reading numerals and comparing numbers, and the gains were still there nine weeks later, while children who played the same game on colored squares did not improve the same way (Ramani and Siegler, 2008). A snakes and ladders board is not that exact board, because its rows zigzag and the snakes and ladders jump, but the habit that made the difference carries over. Our review of how children learn math explains the study in more detail.
Playing the computer or friends
With one child, vs Computer is the default. The computer takes the red pawn and rolls its own die on its turn, out in the open: you see the die tumble, see the number it rolled and watch its pawn hop and count just like yours. It has no hidden advantage, because in this game nobody can have one. With 2, 3 or 4 Players, each child gets a color, Purple, Red, Blue or Orange, and the die and their name in the list light up when it is their go, which makes it easy to pass a tablet around a table or play on a classroom board.
Tips for parents and teachers
For a preschooler, sit beside them and say the numbers together with the voice, pointing at each square as the pawn lands. Ask how many dots are on the die before the pawn moves, and after a few games ask where they think the pawn will stop. For kindergarten and Grade 1, turn the sound off and let the child count the squares aloud themselves, checking against the number on the square. Landing on a snake is a good moment to practice losing gracefully, since everyone slides down sooner or later. If your child likes the rolling and racing, Ludo is the natural next step, with real choices about which token to move.
Questions parents and teachers ask
How do you play snakes and ladders?
Everyone starts on square 1. On your turn you roll the die and move your pawn forward that many squares, counting each one. Land at the bottom of a ladder and you climb straight up it. Land on the head of a snake and you slide down to its tail. The first player to reach square 100 wins. Here you tap the die to roll, and the pawn hops one square at a time while a voice says each number, so nobody has to count the squares alone.
Do you need the exact number to land on 100?
Not in this game. Some families play that you must land on 100 exactly and bounce back if you roll too high. We let any roll that reaches or passes 100 win, because a young child stuck near the top waiting for one exact number is the part of the game most likely to end in tears. If you prefer the exact roll rule, it is easy to agree on at the table with a real board.
What age is snakes and ladders for?
It suits children from about age 3 up to Grade 1, and older brothers and sisters happily join in. There is nothing to read and no strategy to learn: the die decides every move, so a four year old can beat a parent fair and square. The skills it practices are recognizing the dots on a die, counting on from a number and reading numbers up to 100, with the voice doing the counting until a child can join in.
Can several children play on one screen?
Yes. Choose 2, 3 or 4 Players and pass the phone, tablet or laptop around, or put the game on a classroom board. Each player has their own colored pawn, Purple, Red, Blue and Orange, and the die turns that color when it is their go, so everyone can see whose turn it is. With one child, choose vs Computer: the computer rolls its own die in plain sight on its turn.
Is snakes and ladders good for learning numbers?
It can be. Researchers have found that young children who play a simple numbered board game while saying each number as they move get better at counting and comparing numbers. The key is saying the numbers, not just moving the pawn, which is why the voice here names every square the pawn lands on. Encourage your child to say the numbers along with it.