Kid's Party
Party Ideas • Party Games • Adult
Gone Fishin
You will need a helper for this children's activity. Tie a string across the room and lay a sheet over it so no one can see what is on the other side. Use an old fishing pole, or tie a string around a stick or broom handle. Tie a clothespin on the end of the fishing pole's string. Let each guest take a turn "casting" their line over the sheet. Have your helper stand on the other side and attach small gifts, favors, or treats to the clothespin. When they're done, the helper gives a slight tug on the line. When the kids "reel" in their lines, they'll be delighted to see what they've caught!

Pass The Box
This is really fun, Take a small gift or toy that all kids would enjoy, then gift wrap it, but keep wrapping it with different layers of giftwrap. Play some music while passing the present around, when the music stops, the guest left holding it unwraps the first layer of wrapping paper, then the music starts again and the box is passed, then every time the music stops, another layer is removed until someone finally unwraps the very last layer,,,,, and that is the winner. It is kind of like Hot Potato, but this is an item that everyone wants to hold on to!


Statues

Played to music, all the players move round while the music is playing, when the music stops the players have to stand like statues, anyone who moves is out, start the music again and repeat as many times as you want.

Hats and Shoes
This can be played with just hats and shoes or an assortment of different clothes.

Put an equal number of different items into a bag a shirt, a hat , pants, socks, shoes. Each player will receive a bag. On the word Go they have to put on the items in the bag, the one to put all the items on first is the winner.

(Adult or larger clothes than the children work best so they can be put on over their own clothes)

Tied in Knots Game
Instruct your guests to stand in a circle facing inward. To begin, everyone extends his or her right-hand into the ring and takes a hold of someone else's hand. Then, they do the same with their left-hands. The object of the game is to see if they can untangle the "knot" by ducking under people, stepping over them or turning around. No matter what happens, they can't let go of hands!

Treasure Hunt
Can be played indoors or out. Can be tailored to a party theme.

Hide different things or objects, the players have to either collect a set number or find a list of things, the first to complete is the winner. Objects can range from pieces of silver foil, chocolate coins, potatoes, pieces of a picture, hats, gloves, socks.

This game can be played individually or in teams of players, but make sure that you have more than enough treasure so everyone can find something. It can be just a fun game or the team to find everything first wins.

Musical Chairs
Line up alternate facing chairs, one less than the number of children playing. The players move round the chairs while the music is playing. When the music stops they have to sit down on a free chair, the player without a chair is out, take away one chair each time, repeat until you have 2 players and 1 chair the one to sit down first is the winner.

Advanced Musical Chairs
This fun variation of musical chairs is set up just like normal musical chairs but with additional fun thrown in. Start the music and have the children walk in a circle around the chairs, until you stop the music. When the music stops, each participant tries to sit in one of the chairs. The player left standing must pull the name of an animal, written on a piece of paper, out of a hat. Then, they must act it out while the other guests try to guess what the animal is. Start the music again and repeat the game until all the animals in the hat have been acted out.

Upset the Fruit Basket - Musical Chairs variation
It's a variation of musical chairs and works well with large groups 10 or more. Get a group of people to put their chairs in a ring. Just like musical chairs. Give each person is placed into a fruit group, for example you could have 4 apples, 4 oranges and 4 bananas (you can add more types of fruit if you have quite a few people). Each group of fruit should be 4 or 5 people is good, add more fruit names if needed. Then everyone sits in their chair and you call out apples and only the apples have to stand up and walk around the circle. While they are walking you remove one chair and at some point you call out apples again and all the apples scramble for a chair. The fruit left standing
is out of the game. Then next you call out either a banana or orange. But if you say "upset the fruit basket" then everyone has to get up and walk around the circle. The winner of course is the last fruit in the basket.
Thanks - Christina

Name That Bug
Pair up your party guests in teams of 2-3 people and put a sticker or a picture of a bug on each child's back. Have the guests try to guess what the bug is by asking questions that can be answered with only "yes" or "no." For example, "Do I have legs?," "Can I fly?" and "Am I Green?" Note: You can use stickers of animals for variety.

Freeze Tag
Best played outside where there is plenty of room. The birthday child can be selected to be it (the person who has to tag other people) first. The tagger tries to tag all the other guests. If a player is tagged, he or she must freeze.. Players who are not frozen can "unfreeze" frozen players by touching them. The first player to be frozen three times becomes it (the tagger) next.

Message Mix-Up
Seat your guests in a circle. Help the birthday child think of a message related to your party's theme. The birthday child then whispers the message to the person on their left, and so on. When the message has traveled all the way around the circle, the person on the birthday child's right tells the message out loud. Then the birthday child tells the original message.

Expect the unexpected when you learn the original vs. the final mixed-up message. Try again with another player starting the message and continue until your guests are ready for a new activity.

Red Light, Green Light
Before the game, lay two lengths of rope, or crepe paper, about 25 feet apart in your play area to make start and finish lines. The birthday child stands in front of the finish line (they're the Police Officer), while the others stand behind the start line. The game begins when the Police Officer turns his/her back on the other players and shouts, "Green Light!" He/she then turns around and counts to five.

While the Police Officer is counting, the other players try to run or walk quickly toward the finish line. When the Police Officer has finished counting to five he/she shouts, "Red Light!" and turns around quickly. The other players must freeze instantly. If the Police Officer catches anyone moving, that player must return to the starting line. Play continues until one of the participants crosses the line while the Police Officer's back is turned. That player then becomes the Police Officer.

Egg and Spoon race
If you are indoors, you may want to use hard boiled eggs, small potatoes or ping pong balls, if outside you can use regular eggs. You'll need to decide on a starting point and a finish line or a second line for a relay race.

You can be this game with each guest being a contestant or you can play is as a team (as a relay). Place an egg on the spoon, the child must walk from the starting line to the finish line without dropping the egg or ball. The first one to cross the line with the egg still on the spoon wins.

If you play teams, divide the guests into 2 teams. Then split the teams so that half of the team is at the starting point and the other is at the finish line, if needed one child can go twice. To start each team has one spoon and egg/ball, other play from each team starts the race by walking the course (or to where a the finish line is) and giving the spoon to the next team member who goes back to the starting point this continues until all the players have completed the race. The team to complete the process first, wins.

Note: During the relay race, if the egg or ball is dropped then the team member can pick it up but must go back to their starting point. Make more complex by making contestant walk around obstacles.