Hot Potato (Indoors or Outdoors)
Players form a circle. A medium size, round object such as a bean bag, potato
or small ball is passed from player to player while music is played. When the
music stops, the player who has the small object is out and sits outside the
circle. The last player out is the winner. The music should be stopped
frequently so the game moves quickly, especially for younger children!
Duck, Duck, Goose (Indoors or
Outdoors)
All of the children sit in a circle facing each other. They are now the "ducks".
Pick one child to be "it". The child who is "it" walks around the
outside of the circle, gently tapping the other players heads while saying
"duck" each time he/she taps. After a few times around the circle,
the child selects a "goose" by tapping a player's head and calling "goose!". The
goose quickly jumps up and chases the child who is "it" around
the circle, trying to tag him before he can get to the spot where the goose was
just sitting. If the child who is "it" succeeds in taking the goose's
place, he is now safe and the goose is "it". If however the child who is "it" is
tagged while running from the goose, he has to sit in the center of
the circle. Then the goose becomes it for the next round. The person in the
middle can't leave until another person is tagged and they are
replaced.
Ten Questions (Indoors or Outdoors)
Have the children sit in a circle. One player is "it" and leaves the group while
the other players choose an object in the room. The child who is
"it" returns and tries to guess the object. She can ask a maximum of 10
questions of the group members, all of which must be answered by yes
or no. Have the "it" child go around the circle and ask one question of each
person until she has asked 10 questions. Depending on your group
size, the "it" child may ask more than one question of some members. If your
group is comprised of more than 10 children, you may increase the
number of yes/no questions so each child has a chance to answer a question. The
"it" child may take a guess at any point, but after 10
questions, the "it" child must take a guess. Whether she is right or wrong,
another child takes a turn at guessing. Go around the circle until all
the children have had a turn.
Who Am I? (Indoor or Outdoor)
The children sit in a circle. The player designated as "it" leaves the room.
While he is away, the others decide what he should be when he
returns. If they decide on an Astronaut, for example, they call him back, and he
has to ask each child in the circle what he has to buy for
himself to be the character the group has decided on. One child may say a
rocket ship, another a helmet, another some oxygen and so on. If
the "it" child goes all the way around the circle without guessing what he is,
then the group tells him and another child takes a turn. If you only
have a few children playing, then you can do many rounds. Another option is to
have the "it" child continue to be "it" until he finally makes a
correct guess. This can lengthen the game quite a bit if you have lots of
children playing.
Red Rover (Outdoor)
Players are divided into two teams. Line up facing each other, about 30 to 50
feet apart (or less depending on your space). Each side takes
turns calling "Red Rover, Red Rover, send (name) come over." At that signal, the
player called runs from her line and tries to break through the
line of opponents, who have joined hands. If she breaks through, she can take
one opponent back with her to her team. If she does not break
through, she must join the other team. The team to add the other players on its
side first, or which has the most players at the end of a
designated time period, wins.
The Egg/Water balloon Toss (Outdoor)
Players are paired up, 2 to a team. The pairs of children stand across from
each other, about 1 foot apart. You will have 2 lines of children
facing each other. Give all the children in one line an egg or water balloon. Have
the child with the egg/balloon toss it to his partner. Have the
partner then toss it back. At this point, both lines of children take one step
back (about a foot back). The line of children then tosses the
egg/balloon again to their partners. The partners toss it back. They both take
another step back. The game goes on this way. The winning
team is the last one left with their egg or unbroken egg or water balloon.
How Many? (indoors or Outdoors)
Fill a jar or see through container with candy. Have children write their name
on a small piece of paper and their guess as to how many candies are in the jar. The child who guesses the right number, or comes closest, is the
winner. The candy in the jar is then divided among the children.
Charades (Indoors or Outdoors)
You can tailor your charades game any way you want. You may have the children
act out names of animals, popular cartoon characters, TV shows, etc. Have one child come up to the front of the group and whisper
their charades idea to the adult present. They then act out
their idea while the rest of the kids try to guess. Have the kids each take a
turn at acting out in front of the group.
Musical Chairs (Indoors or Outdoors)
Place some chairs in a line in the center of the room. Put out one less chair
than the number of children. For example, if there are 7 children,
put out six chairs. The adult present needs to be in charge of the music. You
can use the radio or a CD for a music source. When the music
turns on, the children need to walk around the chairs. When the music stops, the
everyone needs to try and sit in a chair as quickly as they can.
The person who doesn't have a chair to sit in is out of the game. A chair is
taken away, and then the music starts again. This keeps happening
until there is only one person left - they are the winner!
Freeze (Indoors or Outdoors)
Begin by playing music. Everyone moves or dances while the music is playing.
When the music stops, the children must "freeze" in whatever
position they happen to be in. Any child who is still moving when the music
stops is out. Turn the music on and do the same thing. Keep turning
the music on and off until there is only one child left standing. That child is
the winner!
Dinner Menu (Indoors or Outdoors)
Players sit in a circle. The first player starts by saying, "At dinner I like to
eat ....(name a food such as hamburgers)". The next player must repeat
"At dinner I like to eat hamburger and ..." (add another food). This continues
all the way around the circle with each player reciting the foods in
the exact order they have been given and then adding a new one. If a player
makes a mistake they slide out of the circle and the game
continues. The person left who can perfectly recite the dinner menu wins.
