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How to Make a Friendship Game

A friendship game can teach a child the valuable aspects of friendship or celebrate the company of old friends. Some games even promote cultural exchange; for example, the Filipino American Student Association at California State University organizes annual Friendship games to celebrate Filipino culture. The games can take many forms, from a board game to a physical group game. But in either case, the game must have rules that give it structure and some kind of prize or goal to keep it focused.

Instructions

- 1
  Create rules for the game. Make the rules simple, such as the Ha-Ha game in which the one rule is don't laugh or you're out. This game is played by having a group of friends stand in a circle; one person begins the game by putting her hand on the belly of the person next to her and asking him to say "Ha," without actually laughing. The game picks up the pace as it moves around the circle, and a player loses his place in the circle if he lets out a real laugh. This is a simple game designed to connect friends and, ironically, promote laughter.
- 2
  Create an objective. The objective of the game is the ultimate goal. In a friendship game this may be a prize that can be shared with friends, but it can also be an intangible, such as a lesson in friendship. For example, Peg Clemans of Catalina Foothills School in Tucson, Arizona, created a friendship game for first graders that teaches the difference between friendship behavior and friendship blocking through a game of tag.
- 3
  Write down the rules. This will help you organize the structure of the game. Review each rule and remove any that are confusing or unnecessary. A well-written rule will be direct ̵2; for example, run to the center of the field and tag a player before the other team does. If you are planning a game for a large group of adults, write a version of rules you can type up and print as a handout.
- 4
  Practice explaining the game out loud; this will test the simplicity of the game. If the oral explanation is too complicated, then it is time to go back to the rules and simplify.
- 5
  Prepare all your game pieces and prizes before the day of the game.
- 6
  Ask the players to begin the game by defining friendship. This is especially useful when designing a friendship game for children. For example, ask a classroom to tell you what an act of friendship, such as being polite or sharing your things, means. Incorporate the class̵7;s responses into the game by asking each student to perform an act of friendship toward a classmate to start the game, or as part of the objective.

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