Games

1.HOT POTATO-MAKE A BIG CIRCLE W/ THE CHILDREN. IF YOU HOLD TWO CHILDREN HANDS AND SAY LETS MAKE A CIRCLE IT USUALLY GETS DONE QUICKLY. THE RULES ARE: WE ARE GOING TO PASS THE HOT POTATO TO

EACH OTHER. YOU TAKE THE BALL.... YOU TURN AROUND ONCE, AND PASS

THE BALL. LIKE THIS(DO IT YOURSELF). WHEN THE MUSIC STOPS WHOEVER HAS THE BALL IS OUT OF THE GAME.

KEEP DOING THIS UNTIL ONLY 2 OR 3 PLAYERS ARE LEFT AND YOU ANNOUNCE THE WINNERS. YOUR JOB DURING THIS GAME IS TO START AND STOP THE MUSIC.

GET THEM GOING AND EXCITED BY DANCING AND CHEERING THEM ON.

2.FREEZE- GET THE CHILDREN IN A STRAIGHT LINE FACING YOU .IF YOU GET ONE CHILD AND ASK THE REST TO MAKE A LINE BEHIND HIM OR HER THEN, STAND NEXT TO THE LINE AND ASK EVERYONE TO FACE YOU.... THE LINE WILL BE DONE EASIER.

THE RULES ARE: WE ARE ALL GOING TO DANCE. WHEN I STOP THE MUSIC EVERYONE MUST FREEZE AND MAKE A FUNNY FACE LIKE THIS ( YOU FREEZE AND MAKE A FUNNY FACE). ARE YOU READY? OK LETS START.

YOUR JOB DURING THIS GAME IS TO DANCE WITH THEM. STOP AND START THE MUSIC AND THEN FREEZE ALONG WITH THEM. AT THE END CHOOSE 2 OR 3 BEST FREEZERS AND FUNNY FACES AND ANNOUNCE THEM AS THE WINNERS.

3.LIMBO-BLOW UP 2 STRAIGHT 260 BALLOONS WRAP ONE AROUND YOUR WAIST

AND THE OTHER WILL BE THE LIMBO STICK .THIS WAY YOU WILL HAVE AN EXTRA LIMBO STICK. TAKE ONE CHILD ASK HIS OR HER NAME AND THEN SAY EVERYONE LINE UP BEHIND JOE AND YOU’LL HAVE ALINE RIGHT AWAY. THEN HAVE THE CHARACTER OR A PARENT COME HELP YOU HOLD THE OTHER END OF THE LIMBO STICK.

THE RULES ARE: YOU ARE GOING TO GO UNDER THE LIMBO STICK BEHIND ME AND TO THE BACK OF THE LINE. EVERY TIME EVERYONE GOES UNDER THE LIMBO STICK THE LIMBO STICK WILL GET LOWER AND LOWER AND LOWER.

IF YOU TOUCH THE FLOOR W/ YOUR HANDS, KNEES, OR YOUR BEHIND YOU ARE OUT.

YOUR JOB DURING THIS GAME IS TO HOLD ONE SIDE OF THE LIMBO STICK AND TELL CHILDREN THEY ARE OUT. WHEN YOU HAVE 2 OR 3 CHILDREN LEFT YOU STOP THE MUSIC AND ANNOUNCE THE WINNERS.

4.GROUP- GET ALL THE CHILDREN IN A CIRCLE AND TRY TO GET SOME PARENTS TO PARTICIPATE ALSO.

THE RULES OF THE GAME ARE: WE ARE ALL GOING TO DANCE AND WHEN I SAY STOP THE MUSIC I AM GOING TO CALL OUT HOW MANY TO A GROUP. IF I SAY GROUPS OF 2 YOU HUDDLE TOGETHER IN GROUPS OF 2. IF I SAY GROUPS OF 3, AND SO ON. WHOEVER DOES NOT GET INTO A GROUP IS OUT. FOR EXAMPLE, IF WE HAVE 2,2,2,2, AND 1, THE GROUP W/ 1 IS OUT.

YOUR JOB DURING THIS GAME IS TO DANCE STOP AND START THE MUSIC AND CALL OUT THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE PER GROUP. GET GROUPS OF 3,2,4,5, ETC. AND

WHEN YOU ARE DOWN TO JUST A FEW DECLARE THEM THE WINNERS.

5.MUSICAL CORNERS- CALL 4 ADULTS FROM THE AUDIENCE TO BE THE 4 CORNERS. STAND THEM IN A SQUARE ABOUT 10 STEPS AWAY FROM EACH OTHER. GIVE THEM EACH A NUMBER. CORNER 1, CORNER 2, CORNER 3, AND CORNER 4. LINE THE CHILDREN UP AND ASK THEN TO GO AROUND THE CORNERS.

THE RULES ARE: THE CHILDREN WILL GO AROUND THE 4 CORNERS AND WHEN THE MUSIC STOPS YOU WILL TOUCH A CORNER WITH YOUR HAND. I WILL HAVE 4 NUMBERS WRITTEN ON THESE PIECES OF PAPER. I WILL GO TO THE AUDIENCE AND SOMEONE WILL PICK A NUMBER. IF THE NUMBER OF YOUR CORNER IS PICKED, YOU ARE OUT BUT, IF YOU ARE NOT AT THE CORNER THAT IS OUT.... YOU CONTINUE TO PLAY. THE CORNERS WILL REMAIN THROUGH OUT THE GAME.

YOUR JOB IS TO START AND STOP THE MUSIC AND TO GO TO THE AUDIENCE W/ THE 4 NUMBERS SO THAT SOMEONE WILL PICK ONE AND TAKE SOME CHILDREN OUT. I LIKE TO PUT THE NUMBERS IN BACK OF MY BUSINESS CARDS AND LET THE PERSON THAT CHOSE THE NUMBER KEEP IT. THEN I JUST PUT THAT SAME NUMBER ON ANOTHER BUSINESS CARD FOR THE NEXT TIME I STOP THE MUSIC. I PASS OUT CARDS THIS WAY.

6.ADULT BACK TO BACK CONTEST:

GET 5,7, OR 9 ADULTS TO PLAY THIS GAME. ASK THEM TO PICK A PARTNER AND GET BACK TO BACK W/ EACH OTHER HOLDING THEIR ARMS TOGETHER BY THE ELBOWS. ONE PERSON WILL NOT HAVE A PARTNER AND THAT PERSON WILL GO WITH YOU.

 

 

 

THE RULES ARE: YOU WILL DANCE WITH YOUR PARTNER BACK TO BACK. THIS

YOUNG LADY DOES NOT HAVE A PARTNER. WE ARE GOING TO COUNT TO 3 AND WHEN WE DO YOU WILL SEPARATE FROM YOUR PARTNER AND GET ANOTHER PARTNER. SHE WILL TRY TO GET A PARTNER ALSO. WHOEVER DOESN’T GET A PARTNER COMES TO ME AND WE COUNT TO 3 AGAIN.

YOUR JOB IS TO HOLD THE HAND OF THE PERSON THAT DOES NOT HAVE A PARTNER AND COUNT TO 3 W/ THEM AND LET THEM GO SO THEY CAN FIND A PARTNER. WHEN YOU SEE THAT ALMOST EVERYONE HAS LOST AT LEAST ONCE YOU TAKE THE PERSON WHO HAS NEVER LOST AND DECLARE THEM THE WINNER.

7.FOLLOW THE LEADER: LINE EVERYONE BEHIND YOU OR BEHIND THE CHARACTER. HAVE THE CHILDREN FOLLOW YOU OR THE CHARACTER AROUND THE PARTY DOING WHAT THE LEADER DOES. DO HAND MOVEMENTS, JUMP, WIGGLE, AND ANYTHING ELSE YOU CAN THINK OF. THIS PARADE AROUND THE PARTY GETS THE GUEST A CLOSER LOOK AND YOU GO THROUGH THE TABLES AND EVERYONE WILL ENJOY THE PARADE.

YOUR JOB IS TO BE THE LEADER OR BE IN THE FOLLOW THE LEADER LINE. AT THE END PICK THE YOUNGEST PARTICIPANTS AS THE WINNERS.

8.MUSICAL CHAIRS- GET EVERY CHILD TO BRING A CHAIR AND LINE THEM UP IN 2 ROWS. ONE FACING YOUR WAY AND ONE THE OTHER. HAVE EVERYONE SIT DOWN TO MAKE SURE YOU HAVE ENOUGH CHAIRS. HAVE THEM STAND UP AND TAKE ONE CHAIR. HAVE THEM GO AROUND THE CHAIRS.... WHEN THE MUSIC STOPS THEY MUST SIT DOWN. WHOEVER DOES NOT GET A CHAIR IS OUT.

YOUR JOB IS TO STOP THE MUSIC AND TAKE ONE CHAIR OUT EVERY TIME. THE LAST TWO WILL BE THE WINNERS.

9.THE CHICKEN DANCE- MOST CHILDREN KNOW HOW TO DO THE CHICKEN DANCE AND IF YOU GET THEM IN A CIRCLE YOU CAN DO IT W/ THEM, AND THEN JUST PICK THE BEST 2 AS WINNERS.

I HOPE YOU KNOW HOW TO DO THE CHICKEN DANCE BECAUSE I CANNOT DESCRIBE IT.

10.THE HOKEY POKEY- MOST CHILDREN KNOW THIS DANCE TO, IT WILL BE LOTS OF FUN!!!!!

IF YOU HAVE FUN AT YOUR PARTIES, THE CHILDREN WILL TOO!!!!!!!!!!!
Baby Bottle Contest    up

Players:	2 or more
Equipment:	Baby bottles with new nipples, punctured by a straight pin
Preparation:	Fill the bottles up to the 1-ounce (28 g) mark with the water; Test them to make sure that the water runs out of each bottle at the same speed

At a signal, each "baby" tries to empty its bottle. The one to finish drinking the water first wins.
This is probably the most popular of all contests. It's hilarious, fast, and everyone loves being a baby again!
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Bumble Bee Contest    up

Players:	2 or more
Equipment:	None
Preparation:	None

Who can buzz longest without taking a breath? Start the contestants together. The first to quit loses.
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Grasshopper Contest    up

Players:	2 or more
Equipment:	None
Preparation:	None

Who can hop across the room fastest? First one to hop from the starting line to the opposite wall wins .
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Elephant Tug O'War    up

Players:	2 or more
Equipment:	None
Preparation:	None

Select a floorboard or some other line on the floor - the threshold of a door is fine - as the boundary line between the two "elephants". Each elephant (contestant) tries to pull other over the line.
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One-Legged Contest    up

Players:	2 or more
Equipment:	None
Preparation:	None

Who can stand on one leg longest? Pretty easy and boring, you think? Not necessarily. The rest of the people at the party are allowed to do anything they want to distract the contestants - except touch them in any way. That means it is illegal to throw anything at them, too, or hit them with anything. But you can try to make them laugh, make them dizzy, make them think you're going to do something that will knock them off balance!
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Losing Your Marbles    up

Players:	2 or more
Equipment:	A dozen marbles; 4 saucers or other small plates; 4 straws
Preparation:	Put 6 marbles on a saucer for each player

The object of the contest is to be the first player to move the marbles from one saucer to another - one at a time - with straws. Each player gets two straws and has to use them as chopsticks, picking up one marble at a time and transporting it from one saucer to the other - which is about 5 inches away. If a marble drops to the floor and rolls away, the player has the choice of going after it at that moment or continuing with the marbles in play and hoping the opponent does worse!
Note: It's a good idea to use marbles of different colors for the two players so there are no fights later about whose marble is under the chair and whose is lost!
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Blow-Me-Down Race    up

Players:	2 or more
Equipment:	A dozen marbles; 2 (dry) medicine droppers (the kind that comes with nose drops - you can get them at a pharmacy); 2 small downy feathers (the kind in some sofa pillows) or see below
Preparation:	None

If you can't get feathers, take 2 rounds of tissue paper about an inch (2.5 cm) in diameter, and pleat them into cones.
Place the feathers or paper puff cones on a smooth-topped table near one edge. The object is to blow them across the table solely by means of air pumped from the medicine droppers. You may not actually touch the droppers to the feathers, but need to use the tiny puffs of air to blow them across. First one to blow his or her feather or paper puff off the opposite side of the table is the winner.
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Chimp Race    up

Players:	2 or more
Equipment:	None
Preparation:	None

Players stand side by side. At a signal, they spread their feet apart, bend over and grasp their ankles. In this positions, with knees stiff, they both walk to the goal line, about 20 or 25 feet (6 or 8 m) away. The one who gets there first wins.
If they lose the grip on their ankles, they must return to the starting point and begin again.
This is a super relay race, if you have a large group.
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Marshmallow Race    up

Players:	2 or more
Equipment:	A string about 1.5 feet (45 cm) long; A marshmallow
Preparation:	Pull the string through the marshmallow (you can tie it to a skewer and pull it through that way) so that the marshmallow is exactly in the middle of the string.

Give the players each one end of the same string. They have to chew along the string as rapidly as they can. The one who gets the marshmallow wins and eats it.
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Paper Training Race    up

Players:	2 or more
Equipment:	2 sheets of newspaper for each player (and a few extras in case they tear)
Preparation:	None

In this race you're not allowed to take a step that isn't on newspaper! You start by putting down a sheet of newspaper in front of you and stepping on it. Then you put down the second sheet of paper and step on that - and have to turn around and pick up the first piece of paper and put it down, before you can take another step. Repeat this process all the way to the finish line.
This too is an excellent relay race for a large group.
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Cross Parrot Contest    up

Players:	2 or more
Equipment:	2 sheets of newspaper for each player (and a few extras in case they tear)
Preparation:	None

The contestants are parrots, angry parrots, who are not permitted to smile. The rest of the people at the party can do anything they'd like to get them to laugh. The parrots are permitted to respond - parrot-style only - if they think they can without cracking up! (No one we ever watched play this game was able to keep from laughing if they tried to talk "parrot.") If you wish, you can make it one of the rules that parrots have to answer questions anyone asks in parrot voices. Last parrot to keep a straight face wins. Lots of fun!
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Feeding the Baby    up

Players:	4 or more
Equipment:	2 glasses of milk; 2 teaspoons or medicine droppers; 2 bibs or towels
Preparation:	None

This contest is similar to the "Baby Bottle Contest," but it is played by two couples - one against the other. A couple, of course, can be a boy and a girl - or two girls or two boys. In any case, one partner feeds the other a small glass of milk, using a teaspoon, one spoonful at a time. The winning team is the first to finish the glass of milk.
Note: Keep the milk glass small and don't fill it all the way to the top. The faster the contest, the more exciting it is.
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Ha Ha Ha    up

Players:	4 or more
Equipment:	2 glasses of milk; 2 teaspoons or medicine droppers; 2 bibs or towels
Preparation:	None

Players sit in a circle. The first player says, "Ha." The second player says, "Ha-ha." The third player says, "Ha-ha-ha," and so on, each player adding another "ha." Each "ha" must be pronounced solemnly. If any player laughs or fools around, he or she must drop out of the circle, but once out, anything goes. The eliminated players are free to do anything they can think of to make the other players laugh. No touching allowed.
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Hilarious Handkerchief    up

Players:	6 or more
Equipment:	A handkerchief
Preparation:	None

The players form a circle. One of them stands in the middle, throws a handkerchief up into the air, and starts laughing. Everyone in the circle laughs, too, until the handkerchief hits the floor. At that moment there is complete silence. Anyone who laughs is out.
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Poor Pussy    up

Players:	6 or more
Equipment:	A handkerchief
Preparation:	None

This famous game has been popular for generations! The players sit in a circle, except for one person who is "Poor Pussy."
"Poor Pussy" - let's call this unfortunate PP - kneels in front of any player and meows. The person must stroke or pat PP's head and say, "Poor Pussy. Poor Pussy. Poor Pussy," without smiling.
If the person who is petting PP smiles, he or she becomes the next PR and PP gets to sit in the circle.
It's almost impossible to keep a straight face when you're patting someone's head and saying "Poor Pussy," and to make it even tougher, PP is permitted to do ANYTHING to crack you up, including making weird purring sounds or ridiculous faces or other silly cat-ish moves. Other people in the circle are permitted to laugh, hoot, whistle, and do whatever they can to make it more difficult to keep your cool.
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Laughing Ball    up

Players:	8-20
Equipment:	Bouncing ball - any size
Preparation:	None

This game is similar to Hilarious Handkerchief, but trickier. The Leader instructs everyone in the circle to start laughing the instant he or she throws the ball into the air. And everyone must keep laughing until someone catches it. At that moment, they have to be absolutely quiet. The one who catches it becomes the Leader for the next round. If anyone doesn't laugh when the ball is in the air, or is caught laughing after the ball is caught, that person must drop out of the circle. To get people out, the Leader can try making some false starts - not quite throwing the ball after making all the motions - not quite catching it after seeming to. If the leader is devious enough, there will soon be a winner!
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I Took a Trip    up

Players:	4 or more
Equipment:	None
Preparation:	None

Everyone sits in a circle. One player, the leader, goes around saying to each player, "I took a trip. What did I take along?" The players name any object they please. One may say, "a suitcase," another says, "a pickle." Other answers might be "a lunch box," "an alarm clock," a peanut butter sandwich," "your poodle."
After each player has named an object, the leader goes around and asks a different question, any kind of question that will be funny, because the players are not supposed to laugh. The leader asks the same question of Bach player and they each must give the same answer they gave before.
For example, the leader asks something like, "What paid I travel on?" The answers would come out, "a suitcase," "a pickle," "a lunch box," and so on. Since anyone who laughs is out of the game, the leader purposely tries to think of questions that will make their answers seem funny and silly.
After everyone has a chance to answer the first question, the leader asks another, such as "What did I wear around my neck?" and then another, trying to get everyone to laugh. The player who laughs last wins.
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Monkey See Monkey Do    up

Players:	4 or more
Equipment:	None
Preparation:	None

In this very funny game, none of the players is allowed to laugh. Here's how it goes:
All the players sit close together in a circle. One of them starts the game by turning to the right-hand neighbor and doing something: The player may squeeze the neighbor's arm, muss up hair, straighten clothes, make a face, etc. Whatever that player does, the neighbor must do it to the next player to the right, and that player must do the same thing to the next neighbor.
This goes on alt around the circle until it gets back to the first player.
Anyone who laughs is out of the game. Or if you prefer, that person can pay a forfeit to stay in the game. (See Forfeits from the Classic Games.)
The player to the right of the first person then has a chance to do something different with the next person, and the game goes on.
This game is more fun if the circle is small. If you're in a large group, try forming a number of circles - 10 is a good number for one circle.
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Rumor    up

Players:	8-30
Equipment:	Several sheets of paper and pencils
Preparation:	None

One of the all-time favorite games, this is a classic. Divide the group into two equal lines or teams. The first players of each team are the captains. They get together and make up a message for both teams. It might be a proverb such as "A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush," or it may be a line from a song, or an original sentence. The original sentence works best.
They write two copies of the message, fold the papers and give one to the last player on each team, who can't look at it. Then the captains go back to the head of their teams.
At a signal, each captain whispers the message to the next player in line - who whispers it to the third player. The message passes from player to player until the last person in line gets the message.
When both teams are finished, the last player of each team says aloud the message he or she has heard. Then they open up the slips of paper and read what the original message was. They are usually quite different. The team that gets the correct message (or the more correct one) wins.
Now the last player becomes the captain and the two new captains decide on another message. The game is played over and over again until everyone has had a chance to make up a message, and to prove that its not safe to believe any rumor without tracing it back to the source!
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Hot Potato Spuds    up

Players:	6 or more
Equipment:	Potato, ball, stone or piece of wood - anything grabbable or passable
Preparation:	None

This terrific game is played just like "Hot Potato" in the Classic Games, but in this version you are not eliminated when you're caught with the potato. Instead, the next time you get the potato, you have to pass it in a "fancy" way. The leader sets the order.
Here are a few fancy ways to pass potatoes:

1. Over your head
2. Standing
3. Standing and turning around and sitting down
4. Under your left leg
5. Under your right leg
6. Around your neck
7. Behind your back
8. Shaking hands with the next player
9. Winking at the next player
10. Whistling or singing
11. Holding your nose
12. Bouncing up and down

Of course, if you're caught again and again, you gather up your penalties. You have to do the fancy thing you did the first time and then add a new one along with it! When you've been caught several times, it takes you longer to pass the potato than anyone else, naturally, so you're more likely to be caught again! The person who is running the music or the clapping may or may not want to take advantage of you!
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Ummm!    up

Players:	10 or more
Equipment:	A chair for each player except one; A blindfold
Preparation:	Arrange the chairs in a close circle, so people are sitting with their knees tight together and close to the person on either side

This great game is actually a grown-up version of "Blind-man's Buff."
Blindfold one player, who is "It." After the blindfold is in place, all the other players take seats in the circle.
"It" walks around the circle and sits down on the lap of one of the seated players - without touching the seated player in any other way at all.
"Tt" says "Ummm."
The seated player says "Ummm" (in a disguised voice, of course).
"It" has to try to guess the identity of the seated player. If "It" isn't sure and wants to say "Ummm" again, the seated player must reply with "Ummm" a second time.
"It" gets one more "Ummm" and a reply, and then a third guess. If the guess is correct, the seated player is "It," gets blindfolded, and then everyone changes seats for the next round. If the guess is wrong, "It" goes back into the middle and the game starts again.
Note: Warn the players to disguise their laughter, too.