There has been a lot of debate as to whether playing games has any positive effect on the people that engage in them. Aside from the fun aspect, researches have shown that those who engage in violent activities at a later age were used to playing video games involving lots of violence while growing up. Some others have argued that some other games do not help the cognitive development in children.
Scrabble, on the other hand, has been proven to have social, health and emotional benefits to those who play them. This article, therefore, seeks to point out some fundamental reasons why you should engage more in playing scrabble compared to other games.
- It Teaches Vocabulary
One of the apparent advantages of playing scrabble is that it will help you expand your vocabulary. As a game, it will help you improve your word derivation skills. Research has shown that people who play this game tend to master the usage of prefixes and suffixes than people who do not. They use it efficiently and correctly.
Aside from increasing your ability to spell words correctly, it will also help you learn the meaning of words and their usage. Although you are not supposed to make use of a dictionary except when a word is challenged, most new players learn scrabble with a dictionary close by. You can improve your knowledge of words in the game of scrabble at this site Unscramblex.com.
If you’re looking for specific areas to improve your vocabulary, try Unscrambled-Words.com, where you can learn words by length or by which letter they start with.
Using dictionaries is not acceptable in a competitive game of scrabble because the competition is meant for players to display their spelling and vocabulary skills.
- It Teaches Strategy
Strategy in scrabble involves planning your words, even though there is a risk of it being blocked by your opponent. Players often want to create or build out their word combinations and as such target double and triple letter/word score squares on the board.
As a player, you can strive to hit the 50-point bonus awarded for using all seven letters or tiles in a particular turn or gameplay. This is called “bingo” by most players and referred to as “bonus” by the English version of the game( US). Also, some letters are quite challenging when forming words with them, so they must be played quickly or the player risks having those letters when the game ends.
- It Builds Your Intellectual Capacity
Research has shown that people increase their cognitive abilities by playing several word games, and this compensates for lack of education. When players teach others about some rare words being used, they can acquire new knowledge in science, philosophy and history just by expanding their word scope via gameplay.
- It Increases Social Bonding & Cooperation
Families, friends and neighbors have enjoyed playing scrabble for long periods, thus strengthening their social skills and bonds. Gameplay naturally helps us learn how to adapt to new sets of rules and work in consensus for the common good. Group games are widely accepted as a form of social entertainment, where people spend time with each other for enjoyment and recreation. A dinner party may turn into a game night when a scrabble board is brought out.
- It Increases Personal Confidence & Improves Emotional Well Being
It has been proven that playing scrabble enhances personal confidence. Even when a player does not win, there is this strong sense of personal achievement derived from playing the game because he or she must have solved a particular logical problem in each turn of play. Also, players are mostly proud of forming words with high scores. As we keep building confidence in ourselves and our abilities, we are better positioned to deal with and tackle setbacks and also make better decisions throughout our lives.
- It Helps You Health-Wise
The game of scrabble does beautiful things for the health of people who engage in it. From young to old, it has tremendous benefits to their health. Some are highlighted below
- Lowers the risk of mental illness: Scrabble always keeps the mind stimulated and engaged, thus strengthening the brain and reducing the risk of developing dementia or other diseases that can affect the brain.
- Makes you happy: during a game of scrabble, it is always fun, and there will be a great deal of laughing taking place thus increasing the number of endorphins being released which increases compassion, trust and empathy
- Reduces blood pressure: Endorphins released during the game of scrabble also helps to lower and maintain blood pressure levels. Muscles become relaxed, and there is more blood circulation.
- Improves the immune system: when feeling sad, depressed, stressed or anxious, the body’s natural defense system is lowered. But when there is a feeling of excitement, one’s immune system will be heightened and will ward off diseases and illnesses.
In conclusion, the game of scrabble can do beautiful things in the life of an individual, as was explained above. So if you do not have this game in your house, it’s time to go to the nearest store and pick one up.
