What it is
Ball Bonanza is a ball game for the smallest players. A ball bounces around a pitch full of emoji animals, with a goal at each end. Tap anywhere and the ball flies toward your finger, knocking the animals into spins, squashes and surprised faces. Each goal has an animal goalkeeper shuffling along the line; it bumps some shots away but is slow and sometimes guesses wrong, so little ones score plenty. A goal sets off a big GOAL! with confetti and a cheer, every animal jumps for joy, and the ball comes back to the centre spot for a kick-off. Knock an animal into a net and it scores its own silly goal and does a little dance. Every so often a star, a clock or a circus tent appears; touching them with the ball adds a bonus ball, speeds everything up, or invites more friends. Nothing is counted and nothing can be lost.
How to play
On a laptop or desktop
With a mouse, Biscuit the puppy follows the pointer and kicks any ball he runs into. Click to kick the ball toward the pointer: aim at a goal to score. Press any key to kick it in a random direction.
On a tablet or phone
Tap where you want the ball to go, and tap near a goal to shoot. New fingers kick, so a whole hand on the screen sends it flying.
What children learn
- Cause and effect with a delay: the tap comes first, the bounce follows
- Aiming at a target: getting the ball past the goalkeeper and into the net
- Anticipation and tracking a moving object
- Emotional vocabulary from the animals' reactions
Tips for parents
Shout GOAL! together and talk about what the animals are doing: dizzy, surprised, wobbly. Two-year-olds love naming reactions. Ask which goal they will aim for next, then cheer whichever one goes in. If the ball gets stuck in a corner, one tap frees it.
Questions parents ask
Is there a way to win?
No. There are goals to aim at and every goal gets a big cheer, but nothing is counted and nothing resets or fails. Children play until they are done.
Can the goalkeeper stop every shot?
No. The animal keepers are slow and sometimes guess the wrong way on purpose, so even a two-year-old scores often. They bump a slow ball away now and then, which makes a goal feel earned.
Why do the animals change sometimes?
Every couple of minutes the animals wave goodbye and a new group walks in, so a long session stays fresh.
Does it work with a mouse?
Yes. Click to aim the ball, or press any key for a random kick.
