Last Updated on 11 May 2023 by Colette
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This afternoon we’ve been playing our latest game from Orchard Toys: Cake Monster. Dave had played it with Ben and Chloe the other weekend but it was the first time I’d have chance to join in with them.
The game is super quick to set up – you basically just need to slot the sides into the cake monster, give everyone a “cake stand” which is their board for the game and then set up the cakes according to which version of the game you are going to play.
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| The Cake Monster himself! |
The game is designed to develop number recognition, counting and observational skills. I have to admit the whole time we were playing it I was mentally assessing the skills Ben and Chloe were demonstrating.
Fill Your Cake Stand
In the first version of the game you spin the spinner and pick up the cake to match. The first person to fill their cake stand is the winner – however if you happen to find a cake with the Cake Monster on the back you have to feed it to the 3D Cake Monster. You must ensure that you fill your cake stand with 5 differently numbered cakes so if you spin a number you already have you miss a go.
Chloe, at 3, is able to count to ten quite happily however she doesn’t recognise the numbers yet. The game gives several opportunities for her to work on this – first as she spins the spinner and has to read which number it lands on and then again when she counts up the number line to see which sort of cake she needs to pick up. Once she has chosen her cake and placed it on the cake stand she is given a third opportunity to practice recognising numbers when she ensures she doesn’t repeat any cakes on her board. You can also count the number of toppings on the cake to match the number on your spinner. Ben who, at 5, is obviously more confident with recognising the numbers and counting didn’t need to count up the number line to find his cakes and actually didn’t really use the number line at all – mostly he just remembered which cake was which but the number line was there for a quick reminder if necessary.
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| Spinning the spinner |
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| Counting on the number line |
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| Feeding the Cake Monster |
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| This is the face of a little girl missing a turn |
Feed the Monster Bingo Game
To play the Monster Bingo Game you need to separate out the Cake Monster cards as these are not needed for this version. Each player fills their cake stand with matching cakes and then each time the spinner is spun everyone takes that number cake off their board and feeds it to the Cake Monster – the winner being the person to empty their board first. Dave thought this game was pretty dull but Ben and I enjoyed playing it. We went for the trickier version with the numbers hidden so that you had to count the number of toppings on the cake.
What we love about it:
* The instructions are simple so the game is very quick to learn and easy to play
* There are two games to play – both of which can be made more challenging for more capable players
* The pieces are bright coloured and appealing to play with
* The pieces are made from good quality, substantial card so as not to be easily damaged by young players
* Everything is easily stored in the box (which itself is good quality)
* It doesn’t take too long to play
* There are lots of different ways to support learning
* It’s great value at less than £10
What we’re not so keen on:
* Dave wasn’t so keen on the “bingo” version of the game as he thought it was boring however I really liked it, I think probably because I could see the learning potential!
So – teacher head on here . . . this game is encouraging turn taking and good sportsmanship (particularly if you have to feed the Cake Monster your card or miss a turn due to already having cake of that number on your board) Both versions of the game give the opportunity to practice counting on a number line, number recognition, counting with one-to-one correspondence, matching and memory skills and I could happily use this in the classroom as well as at home!
Why not read some of our other Orchard Toys reviews:
First Times Tables | Times Table Heroes | Heads & Tails | Shopping List | Once Upon a Time Dominoes | Penguin Clock Face | Who’s in Space? | Ladybirds
That sounds like a lot of fun!!
Love her face bless . Looks like a fun game
That looks like a lot of fun, what a great Christmas gift! 🙂
I love Orchard Toys games, this looks like another really great one, with lots of learning potential. Love Chloe's face when sh'e counting 'two'. #TriedTested
This sounds like something Buba would love to play! I bet his face on would be the exact same if he missed a turn too. lol Great review hun. #triedtested
My children will love this game! Looks fun #triedtested
I've been on the look out for games suitable for my three year old for a while, this may be added to the xmas list! x
That's brilliant. I've made a note of it – think my twins would love this for Christmas!
I like Orchard Toys-in fact we've just bought my son the giant road track jigsaw for his birthday. I think they have good learning potential as well as being fun. I have to say, the turn taking is one of the hardest things to teach and learn isn't it?!
It looks like a lovely game perfect for a wet afternoon.
#Tried/Tested
I love orchard games. fun with learning mixed in, win #triedtested
I love Orchard games, they are great for little ones. I haven't seen this one before though #TriedTested
What a cool game. Great price too #triedtested
This game looks a lot of of tun. Cake monster… reminds me of, erm, me! 😉
Jenna
Really love Orchard Toys and was torn between this and Can you Guess? Love the play potential.
What a fab game!! Love the number side of things.
Lianne
This looks really good to help with numbers and turn-taking. We have the Orchard Games cupcake one but we haven't actually played it yet, it's mostly just been thrown around the lounge! I love the picture where Chloe is missing a turn! So cute x #TriedTested
This looks fun and I know Boo would enjoy it. Love the photo of the missing turn!
That looks like a cute and fun game! #TriedTested
I do like Orchard Toys games and this one looks like it would live upto my expectations. And I've seen similar faces here when it comes to missing turns in games #TriedTested
This looks like great fun, exactly the kind of thing my two would enjoy (and I am the same, always looking out for the educational opportunities!)
I love the orchard games and like the counting ideas for N. I do struggle to get him to actually play games
It looks like a fun game for my elder children. My 3 year old is a raging cheat so I'm not sure what she'd make of it!
This looks great – quite simple but lots of different possibilities for how to use the cards etc.
Aww, what a great expression! Looks like a game that D would really enjoy, I think I'll have to let Father Christmas know 😉
I love orchard toys, they are so durable and fun to play
We love Orchard Toys games and have quite a collection I love how they secretly encourage learning without the child realising! I've also find their games are great for children with a few years in between to play together, they can both get something different out of the same game! This looks like a game that my two would love, I think I may have to put it on E's Christmas list!
Sounds like a great game, awww bless her face when she is missing a turn =(
Orchard toys are brilliant – so handy for learning fun!
Love Orchard Toys and I really love the look of this game too! #triedandtested
I love Orchard Toys and it looks like they have come up trumps again. I love how colourful their products are too.
This looks so cute! #triedtested
Looks a cute fun game – though J would probably try to eat them! Lol