Adaptable Games

PASS THE PRESENT

For “Pass the Present,” pre-wrap a prize (like a box of chocolates or iTunes gift card), then add multiple layers of wrapping (up to 20 times), hiding a smaller prize within each layer, along with a challenge card. Challenges should be fairly simple, such as singing a song to the group, telling your most embarrassing moment, doing 20 pushups, etc. The group sits in a circle and “passes the present” around the group with some music playing in the background. When the music stops, whoever is holding the present unwraps one layer and performs the challenge in order to keep the small prize hidden within that layer.

TOILET PAPER BATTLE ROYAL

Rip multiple sheets of toilet paper to the same length (5 squares is typically good). Have everyone in the room partner up in groups of 2. Each team member should hold opposite ends of the toilet paper only. To Win, a team must be the last team with a whole piece of toilet paper. If the paper is ripped in half, dropped, or let go, the team is out. When you get down to the last few teams, you may have to pause the game and reset the boundaries to a smaller area.

HEAD, SHOULDERS, KNEES, AND CUPS

There should be one person as the game host. Make sure it is a person with a louder voice. Have everyone in the room gather in groups of 2, facing each other with a cup on the ground at an equal distance between them. Then, the game host calls out the place you must touch on our own body in any random order (ie Head, Shoulders, Knees). When the game host says “Cup,” both players grab for the cup. The first to grab it wins and the other person takes a seat. Start the next round by pairing up all the people that won and play again. Continue until there is a winner. The winner will win a prize!

Play one practice round just for people to get the hang of it. Make sure to tell the losers to sit down, and the winner to find a new opponent. Continue until there is one winner.

LAND AND WATER

Find or make a clear line on the floor that is long enough for everyone to stand next to and spread out about arm’s length. Designate one side of the line “Land” and the other side “Water”. One person must be designated as the DIRECTOR. The Director calls out “Land” or “Water” and everybody playing needs to hop with both feet to the area directed. If a person crosses into the “Land” or “Water” by mistake or has one foot in the “Land” and one foot in the “Water,” they are out of the game. The game continues until only one person remains. The director should change the tempo, call out the same side more than once in row, use other words, etc. to get people to cross the line.

(For larger groups, stop the game with the last 2-4 people and have them share their name to the crowd and get people to cheer for the favorite to win)

SHADOW BOXING

Every student gets a partner. Students take turns pointing either up, down, left, or right. The other student cannot look the way the student has pointed. If a student looks the direction their partner has pointed, they lose and are out. Have winning players play against each other until you have one winner.

ZIP OR BANG

Form a circle, standing closely together. Pick a player to begin. The first player says “Zip” or “Bang.” If they say “Zip, the turn passes to the player at their left. If they say “Bang” it passes to the player to their right. The next player must respond quickly, within a second, by saying “Zip” or “Bang” to pass the turn. If you don’t respond within a second when it’syour turn, you’re out. Also, if you speak out of turn or laugh, you’re out. Only the player whose turn it is may speak, and they can only say “Zip” or “Bang.”

WHO WROTE IT?

“Who Wrote It?” is a game that has students asking the question… “Who wrote it?” Before your club starts, have your students write what they are thankful for, along with their names, on an index card. When you’re ready to play, just read each quote out loud and see if your students can guess who wrote it!

“BRING ME A…”

This is a classic youth ministry game. Have your students sit down and prepare to run up with whatever appears on the screen! You can do everything from a 1975 Quarter to a white shoelace. Since you get to enter the items into the game’s dashboard, you get to come up with whatever you want!

NAME 3

You have 5 seconds to name 3 things in the category. Alternate turns between teams. You get one point for a turn when you name 3 things in that category within 5 seconds. Time does not start until the category is given. First team to 3 points wins.

Categories:

Name three fast food restaurants • Name three fruits that are red
Name three types of cars
Name three board games
Name three college mascots
Name three Disney princesses
Name three types of candy bars
Name three Starbucks drinks
Name three types of fish

LINE UP

Number the students 1-9 on a team. Call out random numbers. The team to correctly line up in order gets a point.

Examples:

2431
785
4276538
1345678

EVERYONE’S IT!

Get everyone to put their non-prefered hand on their head. Then, everyone has to run around in the specified area and get other people out by touching their elbows.

Last one in wins!

CAPTAIN’S ORDERS

This game is excellent for a competitive group. It tires everyone out really quickly and can provide a good opportunity to award a prize to the winner.

You have one person to be the leader or Captain. He has to call out different actions but is limited to some (or all) of the following actions to call out. Pick and choose the best actions for your group. Or make up your own and share them in the comments.

Man Overboard – Players have to drop to the floor into planking position.

Captain’s Coming – Players must stand at attention and salute the ‘captain’.

Starboard / Port – Players must run to the designated side of the room.

Scrub The Deck – Players must squat on the ground and scrub the deck.

Climb The Rigging – Players must stand up and pretend to climb the rigging.

Man The Lifeboats – Three players have to pair up. They must sit in a row with the two on the end holding their hands out to make a boat shape and the person in the middle rows the boat.

MUSICAL STATUES

I usually call this game dance and stop, because then the rules are even easier to explain.

Play music, stop the music. When the music stops, everyone has to freeze. If you see someone moving – they’re out.

I also like to make sure people get into the dancing, so if they don’t dance enough I eliminate them anyway!

Last one in wins!

FRUIT BASKET TURNOVER

Everyone sits in chairs that are facing in a circle except one player – that one is in the middle. Go around the circle and give everyone 1 of 3 fruit names (or 4 or 5 – depending on how many is playing and don’t forget to give a name to the one in the middle). The youth leader (or the one in middle, if youth leader wants to play) will call out one or two fruits. Those who have that fruit as their “name” must get up and go to another chair, . . . FAST! We have a rule that you can’t go to the chair next to you to make people run everywhere. The one in the middle tries to find an empty chair so someone else will be”it” and not him. Or, call “Fruit Basket Turnover” and EVERYONE must find a new chair.

You could keep playing on and on or someone can be “out” when they have been in the middle more than once – just be sure to put one chair out and place someone else in middle to keep playing.

You do not have to use fruit you can use anything, like biblical names, or numbers, or books of the Bible, just don’t choose too many. Keep it about 3 to 5 different