FaceTime games to play with a 9-year-old grandkid

What works for a 9-year-old on a video call?

Nine-year-olds like secret codes, collections and facts. Codes and trivia land well.

Try a split-clue puzzle

Below is a junior detectives puzzle (ages 8 to 12). One of you reads the grandparent's clues, the other reads the grandkid's. Neither can solve it alone.

13 games for age 9

• Show and tell: Each brings one object to the camera and tells its story. Grandparents: bring something old.
• Story chain: Tell a story one sentence each. Grandparent starts with a real memory, kid adds a twist.
• Draw what I describe: One describes a simple picture; the other draws it without seeing it. Compare at the end.
• 20 questions: Think of an animal, place or person; the other has 20 yes/no questions.
• Scavenger hunt: Grandparent names a thing ('something blue and soft'); kid has 30 seconds to bring it on camera.
• Read-along: Grandparent reads a chapter book a little each call; the kid shows the pictures they drew of it.
• Split-clue mystery: Each holds half the clues to one puzzle and must talk to solve it. (This is what our game does every week.)
• Would you rather: Trade 'would you rather' questions and explain your answers. Great for finding out what a grandparent was like as a kid.
• Two truths and a lie: Each tells three 'facts' about their life; the other guesses the lie. Grandparents usually win.
• Online chess or checkers: Play on a shared app while you talk. Let the kid teach the grandparent the app.
• Cook-along: Make the same simple recipe at the same time, in two kitchens.
• Name that tune: Hum a song from your era; the other guesses. Then switch eras.
• Teach me something: The kid teaches a game, dance or app; next call the grandparent teaches a card trick or a word in the family language.