Scrabble Junior

1 Overview

Scrabble Junior is a double-sided word game for 2 to 4 players, designed as a stepping stone to regular Scrabble. The board has two sides: a Junior side for younger children (ages 5 to 6) where pre-printed words guide tile placement, and a standard Scrabble side for players ready for the full game (ages 7 and up). A beloved introduction to spelling and word recognition.

2 Components

• Double-sided game board (Junior / Scrabble)
• 101 letter tiles
• 4 tile racks
• 4 sets of colored chips (for scoring on Junior side)
• Tile bag

3 Setup

For both sides:

1. Choose which side of the board to play.
2. Place all tiles in the bag and draw 7 tiles each (Junior side) or 7 tiles each (Scrabble side).
3. Place tiles on racks without showing other players.
4. Youngest player goes first.

4 Junior Side Gameplay (Ages 5+)

The Junior board has pre-printed words on the grid. Players take turns placing one or two tiles per turn to cover matching letters in those pre-printed words.

1. On your turn, place 1 or 2 tiles from your rack onto their matching printed letters on the board.
2. For each tile you place, draw 1 replacement tile from the bag.
3. Complete a word: when the last tile of a word is placed, the player who placed it earns a scoring chip in their color. Place the chip on the completed word.
4. You can only place tiles on uncovered printed letters -- already-covered letters cannot be played on.
5. If you have no playable tiles, draw 2 tiles and skip your turn.

5 Scrabble Side Gameplay (Ages 7+)

The Scrabble side plays like standard Scrabble with one modification -- no blank tiles and a simplified scoring system to suit younger players.

• Build words crossword-style on the board, connecting to existing words.
• Score 1 point per tile played (simplified from standard Scrabble's letter values).
• First word must cross the center star.
• All new words formed must be valid English words in a dictionary.
• Standard Scrabble rules for word validity apply (no proper nouns, etc.).

For a more complete rules reference, see the full Scrabble rules.

6 Winning

Junior side: Game ends when all words on the board are completed or no more tiles can be placed. Player with the most scoring chips wins.

Scrabble side: Game ends when all tiles have been drawn and one player uses all their tiles, or no more valid moves exist. Highest score wins.

7 Tips for Adults Playing with Kids

• Junior side is genuinely fun for adults too as a quick, low-stress game. Don't just "let the kid win" -- the game is balanced enough that kids often win legitimately based on luck of tile draws.
• Use it as a spelling lesson without framing it that way. Ask "does that look right?" casually rather than correcting directly.
• Graduate naturally. Once a child is reading confidently, flip to the Scrabble side. The transition is smooth.

8 FAQ