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How to Play Sleeping Lions

Sleeping lions is a very simple game for small children that gets their imaginations working. A perfect game for just before nap time, sleeping lions is an only moderately physical game and is a great way to get little minds settled down and ready for a rest.

Things You'll Need

Small pieces of paper
Pen or pencil
Hat

Instructions

- 1
  Cut up small pieces of paper, making one square for each child. Write an "H" on one piece of paper, and an "L" on the remaining pieces of paper. If there are more than 10 children, you may want to have 2 hunters, or "H" pieces to help the game move along a bit faster.
- 2
  Have the children pull the pieces of paper out of the hat. Those who pull "L"s will be sleeping lions, and those who pull "H"s will be hunters. The sleeping lions should find a place on the floor to lay down and remain perfectly still.
- 3
  Send the hunters out into the wild amongst the sleeping lions to begin game play. The hunters cannot touch the lions, but should tell jokes, make faces or do other funny things to try to get the lions to laugh or move. There should be an adult watching at all times for sneaky lions or touchy-feely hunters.
- 4
  Turn the sleeping lions into hunters one by one as they wake up and smile, giggle, speak or move in any way. Once a lion is awake, she gets up and joins the hunters, trying to rouse the other sleeping lions. The last lion sleeping is the winner of the game.

Kids Games