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Showing posts with the label parlor games

Festive mini games - Day 24 "Coin Toss"

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Th is year I am sharing 24 mini games over advent, where the rules can be explained on the back of a single business card. Today's game is called "Coin Toss".  Day 24 "Coin Toss" Players:  2-10 players Equipment:  Coins (chocolate recommended)  Concise rules:  Place this card face up in the centre of the table, make sure everyone has an equal number of coins. Everyone takes turns tossing a coin towards the business card. The first player to land a coin touching the words "Merry Christmas" wins all coins previously thrown.  Notes: I loved marbles growing up and I always saw people on TV or in books  playing marbles  but I never really played a competitive games with them. I like collecting and I liked marble runs. As an adult I have been curious about the history of marble games and have learnt a wide variety of ways to play with them. There is so much creativity with how to game with them.  Why am I talking about marbles? because this is...

Festive mini games - Day 23 "Elf's shopping list"

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Th is year I am sharing 24 mini games over advent, where the rules can be explained on the back of a single business card. Today's game is called "Elf's shopping list". I made this card thinking of joyful chaos with people running around a space. Day 22 "Elf's shopping list" Players:  2-20 players Equipment: Stuff at hand Concise rules:  You're the judge for a scavenger hunt, split players into teams and give them the first item to find. When they return it, tell them the next item on the list.  Yes players can interpret items creatively.  Items: 1) 5 gold rings 2) Green ornament  3) Connected mittens 4) Something frozen  5) Nativity scene 6) Cookie 7) Bells  8) Holly leaf 9) Glitter 10) Red Robin  Notes: Scavenger hunt's are nothing new and this is a mainly a Christmas based list to use. In a youth club I love end of term nights where the young people are in the mood for a game. I have played many parlor games in youth clubs but a good scavenger...

Festive mini games - Day 22 "60 Seconds"

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Th is year I am sharing 24 mini games over advent, where the rules can be explained on the back of a single business card. Today's game is called "60 Seconds".  Day 22 "60 Seconds" Players:  3-8 players Equipment:  Timer Concise rules:  Players must speak on a given topic for 60 seconds without hesitation, repetition, or deviation. Challenges are made by other players, and a point is scored for a correct challenges along with the challenger taking over the topic. Players score a point if they are speaking when the timer ends and a bonus point if they speak for the full 60 seconds without a successful challenge. The player with the most points at the end of the game wins. Notes: I find this game a great challenge and I don't think I have ever successfully spoke for the full minute on any topic. Personally I can avoid the hesitation often, it's the repetition that I usually fail on. If you have never played this game you can hear a famous radio game show v...

Festive mini games - Day 21 "Marshmallow Snowmen"

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Th is year I am sharing 24 mini games over advent, where the rules can be explained on the back of a single business card. Today's game is called "Marshmallow Snowmen". Today is a another marshmallow based family focused game. Day 21 "Marshmallow Snowmen"  Players:  2-12 players Equipment:  Dice & a big bag of marshmallows Concise rules:  1 player rolls a dice to set the target number. Then, simultaneously,  all players attempt to build the  rolled number of marshmallow  snowmen by stacking 3  marshmallows on top of each  other. First player to build the  correct number of  snowmen wins. Notes: Again we have a short little family focused game. Designed to be played and enjoyed by families especially with little hands. Of course this kind of marshmallow based sculpture can be extended with adding cocktail sticks, sweets and anything else you can find. At that point this snowman race can become more an art competition. ...

Festive mini games - Day 19 "Categories"

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Th is year I am sharing 24 mini games over advent, where the rules can be explained on the back of a single business card. Today's game is called "Categories". Lovely little word game that keeps people thinking.  Day 19 "Categories" Players:  2-8 players Equipment:  Pens, Paper and Timer Concise rules:  Everyone copies down 10 categories (examples below but you can make your own). Generate a random letter by having a player sing the alphabet in their head, say stop to pick the letter. Everyone then has 3 minutes to list answers that fit the categories and start with the random letter. Score no points if your answer is the same as another players and 2 points if your answer is an alliteration.  Example categories: Animal, City, Vehicle, Celebrity, Drink,  First name, Book, Colour, Clothing, Toy Notes: Playing the commercial version of this game as a child was one of my first introductions to party games. It was only as an adult I learnt that the game was muc...

Festive mini games - Day 18 "Who's most likely to..."

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Th is year I am sharing 24 mini games over advent, where the rules can be explained on the back of a single business card. Today's game is called "Who's most likely to...". This is a perfect discussion starting game with friends or people you want to get to know better.  Day 18 "Who's most likely to..." Players:  4-12 players Equipment:  -none- Concise rules:  You ask a "Who's most likely to..." question, and on the count of 3 everyone points at who they think fits the description. The player with the most suggestions wins the round and comes up with the next question.  Example questions “Who’s most likely to...”:         ...retire to a Mediterranean island.         ...be on the front page of a newspaper         ...accidentally set their kitchen on fire Notes: It can't be described as an ice breaker or a get to know you game. It requires the players to have some ideas about each othe...

Festive mini games - Day 14 "Phone charades"

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Th is year I am sharing 24 mini games over advent, where the rules can be explained on the back of a single business card. Today's game is called "Phone charades". This game can be played across any distance and can be played asynchronously.  Day 14 "Phone charades" Players:  4-12 players Equipment:  1 phone per player Concise rules:  Without speaking think of a book, film, song or TV show. In a group chat with everyone playing,  send a sequence of emojis to represent the thing.  Other players try to guess what the clues represent. The first player to guess correctly wins the round and becomes the clue giver. Notes: I know some people hate it when everyone is sitting in the same place but is on their phone. This game is based upon not fighting this tendency but finding a way to leverage the phone into a game where people use their phone to play. You don't need any special app or anything, just a shared group message. Of course you don't have to play in s...

Festive mini games - Day 10 "Sorry I'm late but..."

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Th is year I am sharing 24 mini games over advent, where the rules can be explained on the back of a single business card. Today's game is called "Sorry I'm late but..." and it great for playing when sitting round a table or on the sofa's when digesting.  Day 10 "Sorry I'm late but..." Players:  2-12 players Equipment:  -none- Concise rules:  Think of a film, now say to the group "Sorry I'm  late, but..." and then badly/opaquely/weirdly  describe the plot of the film. Other players try  and guess the film. The players who correctly  guesses the film then gives their own excuse.  For example: ... I was getting rid of an unwanted bit of jewellery (Lord of the Rings) or ...I was stealing my sister's chance to be on a national TV competition (Hunger Games) Notes: This is a twist on an old parlor game that aims to get people thinking and talking about the films they have enjoyed. It can be a relaxed way to get to know people when the con...

Festive mini games - Day 8 "Marshmallow mountain"

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Th is year I am sharing 24 mini games over advent, where the rules can be explained on the back of a single business card. Today's game is called "Marshmallow mountain" and it great for playing with children.  I love little games, that take moments to explain and can be played in 2-15 minutes. So, I set myself a challenge to collect and create as many  business card games  as possible. Day 8 "Marshmallow mountain"  Players:  2-12 players Equipment:  Small plate & a big bag of marshmallows Concise rules:  Take turns placing a marshmallow on the plate, slowly building a mountainous pile. If a player causes any marshmallows to fall off the plate they are out. Continue until you have a winner. Notes: You want a small plate for this or it takes too long. A saucer is brilliant. If you want to make it harder you can even flip the saucer over or use the bottom of a mug. This game is in the great tradition of Jenga, buckaroo and so many other dexterity game...

Festive mini games - Day 7 "Paper atlas"

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T his year I am sharing 24 mini games over advent, where the rules can be explained on the back of a single business card. Today's game is called "Paper atlas".  I love little games, that take moments to explain and can be played in 2-15 minutes. So, I set myself a challenge to collect and create as many  business card games  as possible. Day 7 "Paper atlas"  Players:  4-12 players Equipment:  1 napkin per player Concise rules:  Think of a country, now fold and rip your napkin to represent the country, this could be the outline of the borders or symbolic. Hold it up, the first player to  correctly guess the country becomes  the napkin crafter. Repeat the action  with a new country, no country can  be repeated, continue until one  player has had 3 napkin countries  correctly guessed. Notes: Sitting around a dinner table (in a home or restaurant) can be the best time of Christmas but sometimes I find myself with people I don...

Festive mini games - Day 6 "Coin hunt"

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This year I am sharing 24 mini games over advent, where the rules can be explained on the back of a single business card. Today's game is called "Coin hunt".  I love little games, that take moments to explain and can be played in 2-15 minutes. So, I set myself a challenge to collect and create as many  business card games  as possible. Day 6 "Coin hunt" Players:  3-12 players Equipment:  -none- Concise rules:  While the other players have their eyes closed or leave the room. Hide this card somewhere in the room with the coin illustration visible (without the need for players to move anything). Players then compete to try and spot the coin. Notes: This is a great game to play with children and when they get into it, they can end up playing it for ages. I first learnt this game as "hunt the thimble" and played it as a kid. But in recent years I have found it a great game to bring into youth clubs. Loads of teenagers have never played it and depending on ...

Festive mini games - Day 4 "Burning Secrets"

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This year I am sharing 24 mini games, where the rules can be explained on the back of a single business card. For the 24 days of advent I will be sharing one a day on my blog. Today's game is called "Burning Secrets".  I love little games, that take moments to explain and fill between 2-15 minutes. So, I set myself a challenge to collect and create as many as possible. I have had them printed on business cards with a festive Gold emboss and I am slipping them into all my Christmas cards this year.  Day 4 "Burning Secrets" Players:  2-6 players Equipment:  Fire and things to burn (cards, kindling etc)  Concise rules:  Wait until the fire has burnt down  to hot coals with few flames.  Everyone writes a secret on their  burnable item. Simultaneously  toss the items into the hot coals.  Watch your item. The player  whose item is the last to burst  into flames must tell their secret. Notes: Having a log burner is so cosy at thi...

Festive mini games - Day 3 "I'm hosting a party..."

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  This year I am sharing 24 mini games, where the rules can be explained on the back of a single business card. For the 24 days of advent I will be sharing one a day on my blog. Today's game is called "I'm hosting a party".  I love little games, that take moments to explain and fill between 2-15 minutes. So, I set myself a challenge to collect and create as many as possible. I have had them printed on business cards with a festive gold emboss and I am slipping them into all my Christmas cards this year.  Day 3 "I'm hosting a party..." Players:  3-20 players Equipment:  -none- Concise rules:  You’re the party host. Secretly decide a rule for who can come to your party. The other players will take turns suggesting items to bring. You'll approve or reject each suggestion based on your hidden rule. The other players try to guess the secret rule.  Secret rule examples: “The item must begin with the  same letter as the guests name” i.e. Bob brings a bot...

Festive mini games - Day 2 "Chocolate Mittens

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This year I am sharing 24 mini games, where the rules can be explained on the back of a single business card. For the 24 days of advent I will be sharing one a day on my blog. Today's game is called "Chocolate Mittens".  I love little games, that take moments to explain and fill between 2-15 minutes. So, I set myself a challenge to collect and create as many as possible. I have had them printed on business cards with a festive gold emboss and I am slipping them into all my Christmas cards this year.  Day 2 "Chocolate Mittens" Players:  3-10 players Equipment:  Big bar of chocolate, dice,  knife & fork, mittens, hat & scarf Concise rules:  Take turns rolling the dice. If you roll a 6, you must put on the mittens, hat & scarf. Then use the knife & fork to cut off a square of chocolate, and eat it as quickly as possible. The next person to roll a 6 will take your place. The player who finishes  the bar of chocolate wins.  Notes: ...

Festive mini games - Day 1 "Coin Tales"

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This year I am sharing 24 mini games, where the rules can be explained on the back of a single business card. For the 24 days of advent I will be sharing one a day on my blog. Today's game is called "Coin Tales".  I love little games, that take moments to explain and fill between 2-15 minutes. So, I set myself a challenge to collect and create as many as possible. I have had them printed on business cards with a festive Gold emboss and I am slipping them into all my Christmas cards this year.  Day 1 "Coin Tales" Players: 2-12 players Equipment: 1 coin per player Concise rules:  Everyone grabs a random coin, check the year it was minted. You need to think of a short story from your life that happened that year. Flip the coin to decide if  your story is true (heads) or a lie (tails). Everyone tells their story and players guess if it is true or a lie.  Alternatively, the stories can be general knowledge and you can use your phone for research.  Notes: Many ...