Games for Kids

1 The Blanket Game

People: Variable
Goal: Co-operation, Fun
Time: 5 - 30 mins
Materials: 1 blanket per team
Method:
1. divide group into 2 teams.
2. Have each team gather on their own blanket.
3. They must, as a team, turn the blanket over without touching the floor.
4. If they touch the floor they must straighten out the blanket and start over.
5. The first team to accomplish this wins.
Additional Details:
- Suitable for older children and youth, the more the merrier.
- Size of blanket depends on size of group.
- More teams can be used if you have larger numbers.
- For more difficulty replace blanket with a beach towel, have smaller groups and pit one group against another.

People: 7 or more (more the merrier)
Goal: Introductions, Fun
Time: 5 - 10 mins
Materials: None
Method:
1. Everyone gets together in a circle as close as possible in the middle of the floor.
2. Each person puts their hands into the middle of the group and grabs hold of 2 hands (not their own).
3. Once everyone is holding 2 hands the idea is to then untangle the circle without breaking any of the links.

People: 3-10
Goal: Creativity, Fun
Time: 15 - 30 mins
Materials: 1 paper (strong & fexible) or light cloth, Crayons, string, small weight (eg Nut or bolt) per person
Method:
1. Optional: Get the players to create their own colourful Parachute. Tie a string to each of the 4 corners and attach the strings to the weight.
2. Create toy targets for players to aim at give each target a number of points to be gained if hit.
3. Each player must launch their parachute into the air and try to land on the target.
4. Winner is the one with the most points.
Additional Details:
- Great combination game, Quiet time and active time.
- If you can this is a great game for outside, watch the wind though. Also suitable to indoors as well.
- Additional difficulty make targets smaller or make players stand further back.

People: 2-8
Goal: Fun
Time: 5 - 15 mins
Materials: 1 pack of cards (do not expect to use them again)
Method:
1. All players sit around a table.
2. The pack of cards is shuffled and the one card is selected from the middle of the pack, the card is shown to everyone and then resuffled into the pack again.
3. The cards are dropped face up into the middle of the table and the players USING THEIR LITTLE FINGER ONLY try to find the card.
4. The winner is the one who gets the card off the table into their lap.
5. If a player uses anything else apart from their little finger they are disqualified.

People: Variable or teams
Goal: Co-operation, Thinking, Remembering
Time: 5 - 10 mins
Materials: 1 Tray, towel or cloth, 20-30 small objects, pen and paper per player/team
Method:
1. This game can be played as individuals or teams.
2. Place all the objects onto the tray, Objects should be small things you can find around the house (sissors, cellotape, biscuit, pin, marble...).
3. Place teatowel or cloth over the objects and place tray in front of everyone.
4. Explain that you will uncover the tray for 1 minute, then the tray will be taken away. It is the players job to remember as many objects as possible in that time and write them all down.
5. The person or team that has the most listed wins the game.
Additional Details:
- Suitable for older children and youth.
- To increase difficulty you could place more objects, or decrease time.

People: 10+
Goal: Energy release, Fun
Time: 10-20 mins
Materials: None
Method:
1. Every body stands in a circle, one person is the mouse and walks around the outside of the circle.
2. The mouse taps one person on the back to indicate that they are the cat.
3. The mouse must then run as fast as possible round the circle and get back to the space left by the cat, The cat chases the mouse and if they tap the mouse on the back then they can return to the circle. If the mouse makes it back to the space without being tapped then the cat becomes the new mouse.
Additional Details:
- To make it more difficult, the players can sit rather than stand.
- Also you could increase difficulty by making them run through an obsticle course of some kind.
- Watch for unfair behaviour when slower ones are picked on, if this is happening you could make a policy of only 3 chases per mouse.

People: 6+
Goal: Fun
Time: 10 - 20 mins
Materials: A collection of clothes of all sizes, 1 bar of chocolate, 1 dice, knife & fork
Method:
1. Everyone gets into a circle.
2. Put the collection of clothes in the middle along with the chocolate knife and fork.
3. The dice goes from player to player until someone gets a 6. As soon as that happens that person jumps up and puts on all the clothes in the middle then picks up the knife and fork to use cutting and eatting the chocolate.
4. The player goes until the next player gets a 6 then as quickly as possible they must take off the clothes and the next person then repeats the process.
Additional Details:
- Here are some ideas for clothes. Sunglasses, a hat, gumboots, a gumboot and a hi heel, gloves, a dress, watch. be creative the idea is that they look very unpractical
- To make it difficult to get into the middle you could use 2 dice and deligate a few numbers.

People: 6-14
Goal: Fun
Time: 5 - 10 mins
Materials: 1 or 2 Paper darts
Method:
1. divide group into 2 teams.
2. There are a couple variations of this game. Choose which way is best.
- Draw a start line each team stands behind it. each team member throws the Paper dart, then the next team member and so forth. The winning team is either the one that gets the farest or the first back to the startline again. Each team member must run out to where the Plane landed before continuing on.
- Draw 2 lines opporsite to each other about 10-15 metres apart, flip a coin to see which team goes first. Starting from the middle one player from the first team throws the dart in the opponents direction. Then the first player from the 2nd team goes to where it landed and throws it in the opporsite direction. The winning team is the one who crosses the other sides line first.
- For best results the wind shouldn't be present

People: 5-10
Goal: Fun
Time: 5 - 10 mins
Materials: 1 bucket, soccer ball, 1 strong stick (hockey stick would be good)
Method:
1. Place the bucket on its side at a fair distance away from the start line you create.
2. Using the stick like a golf club and the soccer ball as a golf ball, each player must try to get a hole in one into the bucket. Those that do progress to the next round.
3. The bucket is then moved back further for the next round.
4. The rounds continue till there is only one player left.
Additional Details:
- To add difficulty you could use a tennis ball and a small pot of some kind

www.redmondfamily.com/Family_resources/Activities/Games_for_Kids