Games are Energy Connectors!
They take the pressure off of those awkward moments and help get conversations going, forgeting about the daily drudge.
We all need to be in our Kid laughing out loud sometimes and just Having Fun!
These games are easy, they don’t need much to set up. Have plenty of prizes and treats ready!
Mail Call – Place chairs in a circle, using 1 less than needed. Everyone takes a seat. The player without a seat stands in the center of the circle. They say, “Mail Call for everyone (wearing yellow, has a cat, wears hats…” Everyone with that description finds a new seat, without retaking their initial seat or moving to the seats next to them. The person in the center also races for a chair. Whoever is left standing at the end stands in the circle next, and the game continues.
I Spy – The 1st Player picks something in the room and describe it: “I spy something blue.” Everyone else will guess what it is, asking only yes or no questions. Whoever guesses correctly 1st wins a prize, or is the next Spyer.
20 Questions – The 1st Player writes what they are thinking on a piece of paper (a movie star, animal, statue). Everyone asks Yes-or-No questions about what or who they are (Is this a person, is it in USA, a female, in a museum?). They have 20 chances to guess or the other person wins. Whoever guesses correctly wins a prize or is the next to answer questions.
Reporter – One person starts by being a reporter while their pair is the interviewee. For 1 minute, the reporter will interview the other person on a chosen subject and attempt to get as much information as they can before switching roles. Encourage the group to really get into their roles. Offer example questions for guidance. The person who can recite the most facts about the other (school, favorite drink, job, sports, hobby) wins.
Paper Telephone – is a combo or Telephone and Pictionary. Hand out a stack of small papers and pencils. Invite all to write a sentence on their 1st piece of paper. Players then pass their stack to the next person who reads the sentence and then creates a visual of that sentence on the next piece of paper in the stack. Alter between words and images. By the time you get your original stack back, the sentence has become a wild and wonderful transformation.
Human Knot – Usher Players into a circle and have them close their eyes tight. Then, everyone reaches out and links 1 hand with a player across the circle. They link the other hand with another person in the circle. Then, ask everyone to open their eyes and try to untangle the knot they’ve made without breaking the chain!
Keepin’ Cool – This game is all about keeping cool when under pressure. Players are given a spray bottle filled with water. They guide the floating balloon toward a trash can or bucket by using only the spray. If the balloon hits the ground, they have to start over.
Organization is Key – Divvy up an even number of M&M’s or Skittles and a cup for each color (or use crayon to color cups). Using only 1 hand, everyone separates the most candy by color in 1 minute.
Connection! – Players get in a circle. Give 1 Player the yarn and begins describing their life. When another player can relate to (say, “I like dogs.”) the player shouts “Connection!” The 1st child tosses the 2nd player the yarn, continuing on. Repeat until everyone has related and the yarn has created a web between all the children.
Crazy Handshake – Split into pairs; each pair develops a creative handshake. Once done, the pair splits and each individual partners with another group member. The newly formed pair then teaches each other the original handshakes and together creates a new one. Set a time or number of pairs.
Ping Pong – Whoever can transfer the most ping pong balls from 1 bowl to another–using only a spoon in their mouth wins! No hands allowed, except to pick it up the dropped ping pong, placing it back into the original bowl to continue the game.
Tower of Pisa – Stacking Oreos (or another cookie). How will you stack Oreos can be like you eat them, all together or twisted apart. See how many you can stack in 1 minute without the yummy tower collapsing.
Under Over – Get into Teams of 4-8 each. Each team lines up with the front child holding a ball or balloon. On ‘Go’ the children must pass the ball, alternately, backwards over their heads and between legs until it reaches the last one in the line. This child then dashes around to the front to repeat the process. This continues until the original front child is back at the beginning when the whole team sits down. The winning team is the first to sit down.
Balloon Toss – Nothing beats classic fun with water balloons when the weather is hot! Fill up balloons with water and place the finished water balloons in a bucket. Split into pairs and give each pair 1 balloon. Have the pairs toss the water balloon back and forth with each person taking a step back every time, widening the gap between partners. The pair that has gone the farthest in one minute while keeping the balloon intact wins!
Adding Words – In a circle, the 1st player says a word (the, a, one…). The 2nd person says the 1st word and ADDS a 2nd word, and on around the circle, making a complete sentence. Go ahead, be ridiculous, that’s the fun of it all.
Kings – Shuffle a deck of cards and gather everyone around a table. Place a can of soda, or other drink, in the center. Place the cards facedown around it. Follow the assigned rules for Kings (or make your own rules) for each card. After drawing a card, slide it under the can’s tab before performing the card’s rule. When the can pops, whoever placed the last card must drink it.
Telephone – Gather in a circle. Pick one phrase to whisper in the ear of the person next to you—no repeats. That person will whisper what they heard to the person next to them, and so on until the phrase gets back to you. To make it more difficult, play music in the background.
Pair Thee Well – Prepare word pairs (salt and pepper, milk and honey, sail and wind, peanut butter and jelly) on separate pieces of paper. Tape 1 to each person’s back or under their chin so they can’t see it. Players have to walk around and ask closed questions (with a yes or no answer) to find out what their phrase is. Once they find out, they have to find their pair & by continuing to ask questions (these can be open or closed) they have to learn 3 new things about the other.
I’ve Got Your Back – Create Teams. 2 teammates sit back to back. When the game starts, the Kids link arms and bend their knees. Then they attempt to stand up without using their hands. Whichever team can stand up 1st wins.
Volcanic Eruption – Each Player gets a 2-liter Diet Coke bottle, a roll of mints, and some construction paper. Cover the bottle with paper to look like a volcano (optional). Roll up the construction paper to make a funnel for the bottle. Drop the mints in–1 at a time–from a distance. Kaboom! The fastest explosion wins! The explosion can rise as high as 10 feet! Watch out!