Games Ideas for a Cowboy's Theme

Memory Games

• Print several pictures of cowboy-themed items, two of each picture, on small slips of paper. Tape the pictures to index cards and place them face down on a table. Some picture ideas include cowboy hats, boots, lasso, horse and a cowboy. Each child must take a turn by turning over two pictures. If they match, he keeps the pictures and draws again. If not, he puts them back and the next player goes. The player who finds the most matches wins the game.

  Alternatively, scatter one of each picture on a board and tell the children to look closely at the pictures. Have them close their eyes and remove one picture. The first child to tell you what picture is missing wins the game.

Hunt Games

• Hide pennies in a small plastic swimming pool full of sand or in a large bucket. Tell the children they must hunt for gold. Each child has one minute to dig through the sand and find as many pennies as he can. The child who finds the most pennies in one minute wins the game.

  Another idea is to hide plastic cowboys and cowgirls in the sand for them to hunt. Alternatively, hide the plastic toys outside, in the classroom or around the party area for the children to hunt.

Shooting Games

• Play a water gun shooting game outside. Place three empty cans in a pyramid shape, standing up on a table. Kids must take turns shooting the three cans down using a water gun. Award a small prize, like cowboy-themed stickers, to each child who knocks down all three cans. You can also place 20 cans in a row on a ledge and have the children try to shoot the cans down. The child who knocks down the most cans wins the game and a small prize.

Rope Games

• Have a rope-tying contest by giving each child a piece of rope the same length. See who can tie the most knots on the rope in two minutes. Award a prize to the children who can tie the most knots. Instead of real ropes, you can allow the children to use a licorice string. Make a lasso using a rope and have the children try to lasso a large plush horse or cow. Each child who lassos the plush animal wins a small prize. Have a contest to see who can lasso the animal the most times out of 10 tosses.