Here are some fun activities to try with your family members this summer! This post is updated each week. If you have any suggestions for things to do at home, please email office@campdewolfe.org and we will share them too:
Mallow Blow: Items needed: Bags of large marshmallows, bowls and an equal-ish sized receptacle for each player. Each player stands at a “start line” and is given a bowl of large-sized marshmallows that are placed on the floor. About six feet away from the where they are standing is the receptacle also on the floor. At go, players have to bend down and grab a marshmallow with their mouth, stand up, and then attempt to blow the marshmallow into the bucket. Play for 60 seconds and players get one point for each mallow in their receptacle. Variations – Adjust size and or distance of receptacle to even out for age/ability difference in players; Add challenges to getting the marshmallows such as players have to stay on only one leg while getting mallows, players can’t touch the bowl or floor, etc. Adapted from https://thesource4ym.com/mallow-blow/
Things: Taken from “The Game of Things” but make up your own questions. One person is “it” and will say a statement that will have a thing as the answer. Example: “Things you shouldn’t do while at work.” Everyone then writes on a piece of paper something that shouldn’t be done at work, such as sleep. The person who is “it” then collects all the answers and reads them out loud. Then, go around the room letting each player guess a single matchup of a person and an answer. If they are correct, that person gets a point and the person whose answer was guessed is out. Continue going around the room until one person is left. That person gets three points. From https://www.moneycrashers.com/family-game-night-ideas-board-games/
Yoga: Check out the Cosmic Kids Yoga channel on YouTube. There are a whole bunch of kid friendly yoga sessions to try, as well as, guided meditation and mindfulness videos. Yoga works to build strength and balance and Cosmic Kids Yoga incorporates some really fun themes. https://www.youtube.com/user/CosmicKidsYoga
Caterpillar Race: Contestants are wrapped tightly from shoulders to ankles in a bed sheet, with their arms tucked inside the sheet. Players race to the finish line by moving like a caterpillar. From: https://oureverydaylife.com/game-ideas-for-a-small-teen-church-group-12083279.html
Shut the Box: A game that can be played with just a pair of dice, pencil, and paper. See how to play here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shut_the_Box
Quick Draw: Have two challengers face each other with their hands behind their back. On “Go!” they are to whip both hands out in front of them with a random amount of fingers sticking out. The first one to yell out the total number of fingers their opponent is sticking out, is the winner. Variations: The first person to call out the sum of both players fingers; The first person to call out “odd” or “even” for sum of both players fingers. From https://www.anglicanyouth.org.nz/resources/games/up-front-games/quick-draw
Clap: This game is a variation of the old faithful “Hot/Cold” game. One person is chosen to be “it” and asked to leave the room so they can’t hear or see what is going on in the room. Take about 1 minute and pick an action as a group for “it” to do when he/she returns. (A Jumping Jack, Pick Their Own Nose, etc). When “it” is given the signal to come back in the room he/she has to guess what he/she is supposed to do by walking around, touching things in the room or performing random actions. The group will clap louder and faster the closer “it” gets to completing the task. Remember there is no talking or other clues, but there will be a considerable amount of laughter, and you will be shocked at the detailed and complicated things you can get a person to do simply by clapping. From: https://thesource4ym.com/clap/
Caterpillar Race: Contestants are wrapped tightly from shoulders to ankles in a bed sheet, with their arms tucked inside the sheet. Players race to the finish line by moving like a caterpillar. From: https://oureverydaylife.com/game-ideas-for-a-small-teen-church-group-12083279.html
Straw Race: Items needed: One straw per person. To play each person puts one end of an ordinary drinking straw in their mouth. Their challenge is to try to get their mouth from one end of the straw to the other without using their hands… only mouth and tongues allowed. From: https://www.anglicanyouth.org.nz/resources/games/up-front-games/straw-race
Origami Boat Race: Items Needed: Blank paper, Straws (one per person), large tub of water, markers. Each person makes an origami boat – instructions can be found here: http://www.dltk-bible.com/crafts/mboat.htm After everyone has made their boat, they can name and decorate them. Players race their boats two at a time by using their straws to blow their boats from one side of the tub to the other. From https://www.greatgroupgames.com/origami-boat-race.htm
Rice Model Competition: Cook rice for about 40 minutes, until it’s really gluggy and sticky. Then let it cool. Give each person a portion fo the rice to mold something. You can have a free design (whatever they want) or give them a specific item (Eiffel tower or replica of a statue, etc.). Can be a solo challenge or team up family members. (challenge friends or extended family to do at their house and compare photos or over zoom. Adapted from https://youthgroupgames.com.au/games/rice-model-competition/
Household Hockey: This game is played just like floor hockey except using everyday household objects for equipment. Divide into two teams. Create two goals by using, large pots or just tape lines on the floor and have each team pick a goalie. The goalie is equipped with a large spatula (their stick) and an oven mitt (their glove). Each player is equipped with a wooden spoon. The puck can be whatever you can find around the house/kitchen (balled up aluminum foil works great). From https://thesource4ym.com/kitchen-hockey/
Picture This: Give everyone a paper plate and a marker or pen. Have each person put their plate on their head. Give them 60 seconds to write their name and draw one thing they are interested in or their favorite Bible story on the plate. After 60 seconds, each player shares their picture, and everyone else tries to guess what the drawing is. From https://www.signupgenius.com/church/youth-group-games.cfm
Obstacle Course: Here is a game from Camp DeWolfe Friend Irene Ross (Thanks!): “Make your own obstacle course. Very often parents can find things in their own garage, such as tires or low benches to jump through and over. Things can be added like jump ropes or empty detergent bottles to use as weights, or you can add a relay race. If you want, you can make it a competition – whoever reaches the finish line first.”
