Easy Pen and Paper Games
If you’ve ever found yourself waiting at a restaurant, stuck in a doctor’s office, or trying to keep kids entertained during quiet time—this list is for you. These easy pen and paper games are fun, fast to learn, and require nothing more than a pencil and a scrap of paper. That’s it!
From strategic showdowns to silly scribble fests, these games are perfect for kids, teens, and grown-ups alike. Whether you’re looking for a quick screen-free activity, a backup plan for long waits, or a go-to boredom buster for your bag or glovebox, these pencil-and-paper classics have you covered.
We’ve tested every game on this list with our own family (seven kids = plenty of chances!), and we’re rounding them up here in one place so you can find your favorites fast.
This is an on going series! We’re always sharing new games on Instagram and adding them here, so bookmark this page to your favorites and reference whenever you need a quick game to play!
Need some supplies? Here are the notebooks I love keeping in my purse and car to play these games and my favorite pens and highlighters to use when playing!
Lasso
Draw a grid of dots — 4×4, 5×5, and 6×6 work great but any size will do! Taking turns, you’ll start at one dot, and draw a line to another dot and lasso it. (circle it.) You may not draw a line that leaves the boundaries of the grid and you cannot intersect lines. Dots can have a lasso start from them a maximum of two times. You may only lasso an unused dot. When there are no more legal moves remaining, the player who drew the last lasso wins the game.
Full blog for how to play or you can watch here.
Ultimate Tic Tac Toe
Tic Tac Toe but with a twist! Draw 9 tic-tac-toe boards. You are still playing as Xs and Os, but now, each move determines which tic-tac-toe board your opponent must play in next. It’s like playing nine mini-games at once! When you win a tic-tac-toe game, mark a large X or O through the game to signify you’ve won. Keep playing until someone has won three mini games in a row to win Ultimate tic-tac-toe.
Full blog for how to play or you can Watch how to play here.
SIM
A sneaky math game perfect that makes the perfect boredom buster! Two players will go head to head to try and AVOID drawing a triangle in their color. The first player to do so, loses.
Draw six dots to form a hexagon on a piece of paper. (If it is easier, you can draw all of the connecting lines between each dot, but you do not have to.) Each player needs a pen, marker, or highlighter in their own color. Take turns drawing lines between two unconnected dots. The first player who forms a triangle in their color with each of the three sides connecting to dots on the hexagon’s outer points loses.
Watch our video for how to play.
NIM
An easy math game to play that’s simple to learn and highly strategic! Your goal is to avoid crossing off the last line. Start by drawing 3-5 rows (or more if you wish!) of lines or dots with each row a different length. Players take turns crossing off as many as they want from a single row. You must cross off at least one, but you can do more up to and including the entire row, but only from a single row per turn. The player forced to cross off the final line loses.
Did you know, you can play this with any pop-it fidget toys your kids might have? Give it a try!
Bridges
Draw any large shape on paper and divide it into 40–50 sections. Taking turns, players draw a “bridge” by marking a dot in one section, drawing a line through a second, and ending with a dot in a third. Sections can only be used once — no starting, crossing, or ending in a previously used section. You also can’t cross more than one section per bridge. The last player able to draw a valid bridge wins!
Watch our video for how to play.
