More Quick Games to Play With Kids
7. Catch a Cold
You’ll need:
- ice cubes
- tissues
Form pairs, and have partners stand a few feet away from each other. In each pair, give one partner five ice cubes and the other a tissue. The partner with the ice cubes tosses them while the other partner tries to catch the ice cubes in the tissue. If the tissue breaks, they get a new tissue. Have pairs trade roles and keep tossing until the time is up.
8. Make Your Mark
You’ll need:
- lots of markers that can be linked together end to end
This quick game requires teams of four. Place a pile of markers in the center of the floor or on a flat surface. Designate a spot for each team near the markers. Set a time limit. On go, each team builds a free-standing tower out of markers by connecting the top and bottom of markers together. Teams must each build a tower—without it falling—in five minutes.
9. Stick Up
You’ll need:
- a pack of sticky notes for every two players
Form pairs. In each pair, one person is the Sticker and one is the Stickee. On go, the Sticker places sticky notes on his or her partner, trying to cover the Stickee with sticky notes in two minutes. Play a second round by having pairs work backward to remove the sticky notes from the Stickee’s body to recreate the sticky notepad.
10. Flip Ball
You’ll need:
- a stack of 3×5 cards
- a chair for each player
Have each player carefully turn his or her chair upside down so the chair back rests on the floor and the chair’s legs point up. The back legs of the chair are the goal posts for the game. Have each player kneel about one foot from the back of the chair with a stack of 3 x 5 cards. Demonstrate how to flick a card by holding it vertically between the thumb and middle finger, squeezing the card lightly to form a letter C, and releasing it. On go, players flick cards through the goal posts to score as many touchdowns as possible in three minutes.
11. Crayon Clean-Up
You’ll need:
- two pencils
- a small box of crayons per player
Give each player a box of crayons and two pencils. Before the game begins, have each player empty the box of crayons on the table. On go, players use the pencils like chopsticks to pick up the crayons and place them back in the box. Crayons must be placed in the box with pointed end up. Players race to place as many crayons in the box as they can.
12. Go Fish
You’ll need:
- one cup of Goldfish crackers
- an empty cup for every two players
Form pairs. Partners choose who’ll be the Fisher and who’ll be the Pond. Give each Pond a cup of Goldfish crackers and each Fisher an empty cup. Have partners stand two feet apart and face each other. On go, the Fisher holds the cup on his or head while the Pond tosses the Goldfish crackers into the cup. Afterward, have partners share the crackers.
13. Clip Dips
You’ll need:
- a pile of paper clips
- a paper cup
- a chenille wire for each child
Give each child a chenille wire, a paper cup, and a pile of paper clips. On go, kids will use the chenille wires to pick up paper clips and put them in a cup—no hands allowed. Kids gather as many paper clips as they can in their cup.
Looking for more quick games to play in your ministry? Check out these ideas!
This article about quick games to play originally appeared here.
