Hobbies And Interests
Silent Guessing Games
Write several animal names, such as pig, snake, lion, cow, zebra and rooster, on small slips of paper. Place the slips of paper in a bowl. Divide the players into two teams. Have one player from one team draw an animal from the bowl. She has one minute to silently act out the animal. If her team guesses the correct animal in one minute, they earn a point. Each team switches taking turns. The first team to score five points, or with the most correct guesses after a set amount of time, wins the game. For another variation, write famous people on the cards instead of animals. Write popular pop stars or well-known famous people who can be readily identified with signature moves, like Michael Jackson (do a Moonwalk, snap kicks, or pretend you're adjusting a glove on your hand), Madonna (vogue for the others), etc.
Scavenger Hunts
Create a list of 25 outdoor nature items, such as a twig, a green leaf, a black rock and a yellow grass blade. Divide the players into teams and give each team a scavenger list. The first team to find 20 of the 25 items and bring them back to the supervising adults wins the game. For another hunt, try a gold coin hunt. Hide several plastic gold coins all over the play area. Give each child a plastic bag and have him hunt for gold coins. The player who finds the most gold coins wins the game.
Messy Games
Freeze two peeled oranges over night. Divide the kids into two teams and have each team stand in a straight line. Hand the first player in each team line a frozen orange. When you say "Pass," the first two players in line must place the orange between their chins and necks. They must pass the frozen orange down the team line using only their necks and chins. The orange will start to melt and become harder to pass. The first team to pass the orange all the way down their team line and back to the first player in line wins the game. For another messy game, divide the players into pairs and give each pair a water balloon. Have each pair stand five feet apart. When you say, "Toss that balloon!" the players must toss the water balloon to their partners. If the partners catch it, they are still in the game and must take a giant step backwards. If they miss or their balloon pops, they are out of the game. The pair who can toss the water balloon the farthest distance wins the game.
Balloon Games
Mark a starting line and have all the kids line up along the line. Give each kid a balloon and have him blow it up. Tell the kids to pinch the balloon at the neck and not to tie it. When you say, "Release," the kids will release the balloon. The kid that releases the balloon that travels the farthest distance from the starting line wins the game. If you have several kids, write their names on the balloons to make sure of the winner. For another balloon game, inflate several balloons and give each kid three balloons. Once the game is started, each must keep the balloon off the ground. If a balloon hits the ground at any time, that player is out of the game. The kid who can keep all three balloons in the air the longest amount of time wins the game.