Board games can help children deal with anxiety and are now a scientifically proven way to boost their maths skills, according to Professor Luke O’Neill.

On The Pat Kenny Show this morning, the Trinity Professor said a new study published this week shows that board games can have real benefits for children.

The review of 19 separate studies carried out over 23 years shows that classic games like Monopoly, Snakes and Ladders and Othello can improve counting, numeracy and other maths skills.

He said the studies examined children aged between three and nine-years-old who played board games twice a week for a month-and-a-half.

“They tested them in all these mathematical tests and in 52% of the tests, there was a clear improvement,” said Prof O’Neill.

“So, the kids' counting skills, numeracy skills and various other aspects of mathematical ability all went up.

“The great thing, I thought, was that their interest in maths went up. It’s hard to get kids interested in maths at the best of times, but the fact they were getting used to numbers and moving counters on boards and all of that made them interested in maths.

“So clear evidence, as if we didn’t know, that especially when you are three, four, five years of age, you could be much better at handling numbers if you play a board game twice a week.”

The metal car piece on the go to jail square in Monopoly. Image: Martin Bennett / Alamy

Prof O’Neill said another recent study highlighted other benefits to the games – improving children’s hand-eye coordination, teaching them to follow rules, helping them learn to lose well and introducing them to teamwork.

“I think my favourite was improved attention span and of course, the times we live in, there are very short attention spans these days for children because of all the distractions,” he said.

“If they focus on a game for five, 10, 15 minutes - a lifetime I suppose for them - their overall attention span then improves.”

Prof O’Neill said board games can also help children deal with anxiety.

“Many children have social anxiety and if you give them a board game, there are a set of rules to follow so that relaxes them slightly first of all,” he said.

“Then, they’re with friends and they can build friendships in a, kind of, safer, less stressful way because you don’t need to worry about having a conversation.

“You’re following a game, you’re with friends and you’re enjoying yourself – so they have shown very clear effects now on social anxiety in particular.”

Prof O’Neill said studies have also shown that board games are a good way to encourage children to unplug from the modern digital world.

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