Games For The Whole Gang

“Inter-activities” for large groups

By Jared Knight

Looking for a way to pass the time with a group of campers? Whether it’s a few minutes or more than an hour, these activities will keep kids involved and interested.

Caterpillar
A team of five people form a line directly behind each other. The person that is in the front of the line keeps his or her eyes open while everyone else closes their eyes. As a group, they weave back and forth through a simple obstacle course made of chairs or cones. No one in the line is allowed to talk. This game develops trust and confidence in the leader, who attempts to direct the group safely through the course.

Rapid-Fire Relay
Teams compete with each other for the best time. Each team of six stands in a circle facing each other. One person in each group is selected to start throwing tennis balls to the other players (up to ten balls total). The tennis balls have to be in constant motion from one person to another once the game starts. The objective is to keep as many balls in motion for 10 minutes. Anytime a ball is dropped, it is not retrieved. However, the group will be deducted one minute of the 10-minute timeframe for each dropped ball. The team with the highest time wins the game.

Five
A large group of people compete to be the first five people to get to level five by winning the game Rock Paper Scissors with a different partner each game five times. The “wins” do not have to be consecutive, but each time a participant wins a game, he or she advances to another level. When a participant reaches level five, he or she then has to yell “Five” five different times. The game is over when five people give this yell.

Salt Shaker Relay
Two teams of 10 people sit on opposite sides from each other at a long picnic table. At one end of the table, two people look at a leader, who flips a coin. Everyone else looks at a salt shaker that is sitting on the other end of the table. Participants on each team hold hands with fellow teammates during the game. The first person on each team has the responsibility of squeezing the person’s hand next to him when he sees the coin land on “heads.” If the leader flips the coin and it lands on “tails,” nothing happens. When the coin lands on “heads,” the hand squeezes continue from one person to another person until it reaches the end and the last person in line who attempts to grab the salt shaker before his opponent on the other team does. The person that grabs the salt shaker first now rotates in his team to the front of the line and everyone else slides down the table one position. The team to be first in rotating all of their members to the front of the line wins the game.

Flying Chickens
A group of five people try to get 12 rubber chickens through a hole in the center of a tarp faster than any other team by flinging the tarp up and down.

Broom Hockey
Teams of five people play street hockey using brooms and a lacrosse ball.

Jared R. Knight is the manager of Programs and Human Resources as Aspen Grove Family Camp and Conference Center in Provo, Utah. He is the author of four books published by Healthy Learning –101 Creative Programs for Children, 101 Age-Appropriate Camp Activities, 101 Games and Activities to Strengthen Families and 101 Swimming Pool Games. He can be reached via e-mail at jared_knight@byu.edu.