pre k-1st
Energizers
Animal Kingdom
Type: Active/No Contact
Age: Pre K-1st grade
Group size: 5 or more
Supplies: None
Instruction: Form a circle and stand 6 feet away from each other. Select one player to be the zookeeper, who will stand in the middle of the circle. The zookeeper will close their eyes and instruct other players how to move around the circle (skip, run, jump, etc.). Make sure to keep your distance. When the zookeeper is ready, they will say, "freeze," point to someone (with their eyes still closed), and shout out an animal. Whoever is chosen has to make the sound of the animal that the zookeeper said. Once the camper makes the sound of the animal, the zookeeper will have 3 chances to guess who made the noise (with their eyes still closed!). Whether the zoo keeper guesses correctly or not, the player who made the animal sound switches places with the zookeeper.
Freeze Dance
Type: Active/No Contact
Age: Pre K-1st grades
Group size: 5 or more
Supplies: Speaker and music
Instruction:Gather campers in the same general area but instruct them to give each other plenty of space to move. It's time for a dance party! But it's not an ordinary dance party, it's a FREEZE dance party. The facilitator is the freeze dance leader. When the leader starts dancing, everyone can dance! When the freeze dance leader stops dancing, all players freeze and stop dancing. If players are caught dancing when they should be frozen, they are out! If you have music and a speaker, you can use the music to signify when its time to dance and then when the music stops, everyone freezes.
Clap and Move
Type: Active/No Contact
Age: Pre K-1st grade
Group size: Any
Supplies: Different colored cones (or other distinguishable markers)
Instruction: Players line up and give each other plenty of space. The leader will clap three times, then say a color of one of the cones (or the name of one of the markers) scattered randomly around your location. Players run to the cone of the color that the leader says without touching anyone. You can make this competitive by only allowing one person at a cone at a time, or you can simply use it as a running game to get some energy out for the kids. Add in an extra element by having the instructor try to tag or throw a soft ball at the running campers on their way to the marker. Be creative and have fun!
All My Neighbors
Type: Active/No Contact
Age: Pre K-1st grade
Group size: Any
Supplies: A cone for every person in the group (or other distinguishable markers)
Instruction: Form a standing circle with one person standing in the middle, and with a marker in front of everyone in the circle (except the person in the middle). After set up is complete, the facilitator will stand in the middle of the circle and will be the first caller. The caller shouts “All my neighbors…” and then says a fact about themselves. Example: “All my neighbors are wearing black shoes.” Everyone wearing black shoes must find a new cone in the circle, including the caller. The person left without a cone becomes the caller. Be creative with commands.
Tony Chestnut
Type: Active/No Contact
Age: Pre K-1st grade
Group size: Any
Supplies: None
Instruction: Have all the campers stand in a circle or in a line side by side facing you. Tell them you are going to teach them one of your favorite songs and they are going to move along with it! Teach them each move first and then sing the song with them.
When I say TOE, you reach down and touch your toes, like this. Show touching your toes with both hands and then do the movement all together.
When I say KNEE, you come up from your toes and touch your Knee. Show touching your knees and then do the movement all together.
When I say CHEST, you come up and touch your chest like this. Show touching your chest with two hands and then do the movement together.
Next one is NUT. When I say NUT, I mean your head, so you’ll reach up and touch your head. Show touching your head with two hands and then do the movement together.
Have the campers go through those 4 moves together to make sure they have it. Now go through the last 4 move all together. Have the campers follow along as you call them out.
When I say NOSE, touch your nose like this. Show touching your nose with both pointer fingers.
When I say EYE, touch your eyes like this. Show touching your eyes with both pointer fingers.
When I say LOVE, cross your arms over your chest with one hand on each shoulder, like this. Show crossing your arms over your chest with each hand on the opposite shoulder.
And finally when I say YOU, point both arms and point your two pointer fingers out in front of you. Show pointing both arms out in front of you.
Now that they have all the moves, the challenge is to put it all together. Tell them all you have to do is follow along with you as you sing the song.
Sing the song:
Toe knee chest nut knows I love you,
Toe knee knows,
Toe knee knows,
Toe knee chest nut knows I love you,
Toe knee chest nut knooooows.
Once they’ve completed the song and movement all the way through, see if they can do it again but faster! Increase the speed each time until they can’t do it anymore!
Frantic
Type: Active/Contact
Age: Pre K-1st grade
Group size: Any
Supplies: Balls or Balloons
Instruction: Frantic can be played with balls or balloons. With balls: Begin with as many balls as you have campers. Put the balls in a pile in the center of the group. The object is for the group to keep all the balls in constant motion. Any ball stopped is a rapid nugget. Each time a ball stops the referee yells. The yell is called “berserks.” The group gets 3 berserks per round. Every few seconds roll a ball into the mix. See how long the group lasts and see how many balls they have. At the end of the round count the balls and see what their time was. Using balloons: Each person has a balloon. The group tries to keep the balloons from hitting the floor. Keep adding in a balloon each round and any balloon hitting the floor is a scream.
Balloon Up
Type: Active/Contact
Age: Pre K-1st grade
Group size: Any
Supplies: a balloon
Instruction: Campers and counselors form a circle and hold hands. One facilitator throws a balloon into the circle. The group tries to keep the balloon from touching the ground without letting each other’s hands go for as long as possible. Facilitator can set time or kick goals with the group, or add more balloons. Remember: Do not let go or let the balloon touch the ground. If you do, the whole group starts over!
Sharks and Minnows
Type: Active/No Contact
Age: Pre K-1st grade
Group size: Any
Supplies: A soft ball
Instruction:
Start the game with everyone being a shark except for one camper who is the “minnow”. Only minnows can have the ball and when the minnow has the ball in their hands, they cannot run or take any steps. As the sharks are running around, the minnow throws the ball and whoever is hit becomes a minnow with them. If the minnow misses, they can run to the ball and continue to try and hit the sharks. As the minnows grow in number, any minnow can retrieve the ball to throw (remember the person with the ball cannot run or take any steps with the ball). Minnows can try and work together to get the rest of the sharks! Everyone must stay in the boundaries of the ‘ocean’ that the instructor lays out at the beginning. If you step out of bounds as a shark, you will become a minnow.
Hungry Fox
Type: Active/Contact
Age: Pre K-1st grade
Group size: 3 or more
Supplies: None
Instruction: Can you outfox the fox? This game is for 3 or more players and should be played in an open area. The object of the game is to walk as close to Mrs. (or Mr.) Fox without getting caught. To play, pick someone to be the Fox. Everyone else should line up on the starting line. The Fox will stand about 20 feet away (or more) with her back turned. The rest of the players say, "Hungry Fox! Hungry Fox! What time is it?" If the Hungry Fox answers a time like, "It's five o'clock" players take five steps forward. If they answer, "It's one o'clock" players take one step forward, and so on. The players can take any size step they want. If Hungry Fox responds, "lunch time!" she turns around and chases the other players back to the starting line. If Hungry Fox catches someone, they become the next Fox.
Frog Hop/Relay
Type: Active/No Contact
Age: Pre K-1st grade
Group size: 6 or more
Supplies: None
Instruction: This game is for 6 or more players, and should be played in an open area. To play, form two even teams. The first players from each team get into frog position, squatting with their hands on the ground. While making frog sounds, they then have to "frog hop" to the end of the playing field and back. Then, the next person on each team goes. The first team to finish wins. You can turn this relay into a “zoo relay” by mimicking the movements of different animals each round! Ex: bear crawl, crab walk, seal walk. Alternatively, you could have all the campers be on one team, and see how fast they can complete the relay, and then do it again to see if they can beat their own time! You could even do campers vs. instructors!
Copycat
Type: Restful/No Contact
Age: Pre K-1st grade
Group size: Any
Supplies: None
Instruction: Campers are given a spot to stay in, and the leader emphasizes everyone having personal space, and being aware of not touching others during the activity. Then the leader starts doing different movements, starting with stationary ones (ex: stomping feet, clapping, swinging arms). Once campers have the idea of being aware of their space, the leader starts to do more movement- oriented actions (ex: jumping, moving like a certain animal, etc.) Give campers the chance to be the “cat” if they want to try it. This can be a great activity to do in a line or during any other transition.
Airports
Type: Active/No Contact
Age: Pre K-1st grade
Group size: Any
Supplies: Cones or any other markers
Instruction: Using cones or whatever is available, mark off square sections that are designated “airports.” You can use music as a start/stop signal, but if not available, just say “blast off,” and “ready for landing,” or something along those lines. Campers are to run around like airplanes when the music starts (or blastoff!), and when the music stops they have to ‘fly’ to an airport and ‘land’ by balancing on one foot with their arms out. Each round, choose a kid to pick a new type of flying object- (hawk, jet, helicopter, etc.) and the next time around everyone is to try and “fly” like that object.
Snowflake
Type: Active/No Contact
Age: Pre K-1st grade
Group size: Any
Supplies: None
Instruction: Campers pretend to be snowflakes. Instructor will say, ‘snowflake, snowflake, falling down, snowflake, snowflake, ________ (put in a locomotor move) around.” Students then move around performing the indicated locomotor move. When instructor says “freeze,” students freeze. Then it starts over again. Examples of moves include walk, jump, skip, hop, skate, gallop, run, tip toe, crab walk, roll, slither, walk silly, dance like a monkey, etc. the more creative the better.
Turtles, Dogs, Elephants
Type: Active/Contact
Age: Pre K-1st grade
Group size: 4 or more
Supplies: None
Instruction: In groups of 4-5 (group size can vary), have one camper pretend to be a turtle on the ground. The next camper climbs over the “turtle,” and gets into a position like a dog (downward dog position). The third camper climbs over the turtle, crawls under the dog, and stands in a position like an elephant (tabletop position). The fourth camper goes over the turtle, under the dog, runs around the elephant, and starts it all over again by being a turtle on the ground. So many options- give campers the choice of changing animals, making up their own stances for their animal, trying to travel all the way to a specific destination using this method, even use during transitions!
Switch, Change, Rotate
Type: Active/No Contact
Age: Pre K-1st grade
Group size: 4 or more
Supplies: None
Instruction: Make a line with your group or if you have enough campers break up into 2 lines. Each camper in each group should be behind one another, facing you for directions …. Say the word “Change!” and the group turns 180 degrees so they are facing the opposite direction. To begin, say “change”, and they should be facing away from you. Say “change” again and the group should be facing you. Say the word “Switch!” and the first person in line or the line leader peels off and goes to the end of the line. Try saying “switch” and see what happens. If you say the word “Rotate!” the front player moves to the back, and the last person moves to the front, making a new line leader. Say “rotate” and see what happens. The last command is “Move!” The line leader and the group slowly walk forward. When you say the word “Freeze!” the group stops. Try making the game harder by having the groups “change”, “switch” and/or “rotate” while they are walking. This can be a great game to play on its own and also can be used during transitions. You can teach campers this game on day 1 and use it all week!
Pigs Fly
Type: Active/No Contact
Age: Pre K-1st grade
Group size: 2 or more
Supplies: None
Instruction: The children should stand in a group facing the leader. Each child should have enough room to make full "flapping" movements with their arms. The leader calls out "Ducks Fly," "Owls Fly," "Pigs Fly," and so on. If the animal that is called out really does fly, the children should continue flapping their "wings". If the animal is the type that does not fly, then the children should stop flapping. You can choose to eliminate campers who continue flapping for animals that don’t fly or not depending on how you feel your group will respond to competition.
Alphabet Soup
Type: Active/No Contact
Age: Pre K-1st grade
Group size: 6 or more
Supplies: Paper plates to write letters on (or any other material to write on)
Instruction: Take 26 paper plates and write a letter of the alphabet on each one. Make a circle and randomly place the letters face up. The instructor will assign each camper a letter(s) (randomly so the order of the letters is not the order of the campers in the circle). Starting with “A”, the camper assigned to each letter with go into the circle, grab their letter, and then return to the circle. Only one person can be in the circle at a time. The challenge is to go A-Z as quickly as possible. Each person must go in order of the alphabet and not break the plain of the circle while someone else is in the center of the circle. If you get more than one person in the circle at a time or if someone went out of order/grabbed the wrong letter, the group must start over. This is a race against time.
Jump the Creek
Type: Active/No Contact
Age: Pre K-1st grade
Group size: Any
Supplies: 2 sticks
Instruction: Place two sticks or rows of cones on the ground about a foot away from one another (or more depending on the age/ability of your group). This is the “creek”. Instruct campers to form a line on one side of the “creek”. One at a time, campers must jump and try to land on the other side without putting their foot down between the sticks. After each jump, players go to the end of the line. After each round, the gap between the two sticks gets wider. See how wide of a “creek” the campers can jump!
Scream Race
Type: Active/No Contact
Age: Any
Group size: Any
Supplies: None
Instruction: Set a starting line, and when the instructor says go, campers (and the instructor if they’d like) will take a deep breath and run as far as they can while yelling with that one breath. Once campers have lost that one breath, they stop there. See who can get the furthest on one scream! This is a great way to use up energy.
Riverbank
Type: Active/No Contact
Age: Any
Group size: 4 or more
Supplies: Chalk, sticks, tape, or anything else to make a line
Instruction: Establish a line with tape, chalk, sticks, or anything else. Instruct students to put their toes on the line and face the facilitator (you). The facilitator will call out "river," "bank," or "riverbank." Players hop forward (over the line) when they hear "river" and backward (behind the line) when they hear "bank."
When the facilitator calls out, "riverbank," players hop sideways with one foot in the river and one foot in the bank. Increase the speed and rhythm on how you’re calling out each command to make it harder on the campers! If a player makes a mistake, they are out!
Kitty Cat Careers
Type: Restful/No Contact
Age: Any
Group size: 6 or more
Supplies: None
Instruction: Players form a standing circle. The facilitator will stand in the middle of the circle and will be the first kitty cat. The first kitty cat acts out a career without talking but plenty of meowing! For example, They will act out cutting someone’s hair (while meowing). Players shout out their guesses of what career it is. When the kitty cat hears the correct (in this case, barber/hairstylist), they’ll shout out “Yes!” and everyone sings (to the tune of the “Meow Mix” song)
“Meow, meow, meow, meow
Meow, meow, meow, meow
Meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, Kitty Cat Careers! (clap, clap) Kitty Cat Careers!”
The person who guessed correctly moves to the middle of the circle and becomes the next kitty cat.
Desert Island
Type: Active/Contact
Age: Any
Group size: Any
Supplies: rope, chalk or anything else to make an “island”
Instruction: Designate an area with tiles, rope, chalk (maybe 1 yard square or smaller). The group has to see how many people they can fit on the island. You can increase the difficulty of the island with each round. Alternatively, you can use the command “Desert Island” to point to a particular surface (A park bench, sidewalk square, a log, etc.) and the campers have to rush to the location you point to and try to all fit onto the surface as fast as they can. You can bring this command out at any time during the week. Mix this command in with “flying squirrel” (the campers have to all drop to the ground any time you say “flying squirrel”) and “the floor is lava” (campers have to quickly try and not touch the ground when you yell “the floor is lava”) for a fun reoccurring game to bring up randomly throughout the week!
Lion Tamer
Type: Restful/No Contact
Age: Any
Group size: 4 or more
Supplies: None
Instruction: One person is chosen as the “Lion Tamer,” and everyone else lies on the ground as sleeping lions. The objective of the lion hunter is to awaken all of the lions. This is done by getting the lions to laugh. The tamer may not touch the lions, and the lions may not bury their face or close their eyes. Once a lion is “awakened” by a tamer, then they also transform into a lion tamer.
People to People
Type: Active/Contact
Age: Any
Group size: 5 or more
Supplies: None
Instruction: The group forms a large circle and everyone partners up. One person in the center of the circle calls out commands round by round for the partners to connect body part to body part (Ex: Elbow to elbow, toe to toe, hip to hip, etc.). Each pair must follow each command until the caller says “People to People!” at which point everyone shouts and runs to the center of the circle grabbing a new partner. Whoever is left without a partner is the new caller. Have the caller experiment with the speed of their calls and their combination of body parts (elbow to toe, shoulder to knee, etc.) to get people moving and make it silly!
Clean Up the Yard!
Type: Active/No Contact
Age: Any
Group size: 4 or more
Supplies: 15+ rolled up socks/bandanas/crumpled pieces of paper/etc.
Instruction: Sock it to the other team! This game is for 4 or more players and should be played in an open area. To play, you need lots of balled up socks (or any combination of other soft balled up material. Bandanas, pieces of paper, etc.). You'll also need a way to divide the playing field in half. Divide into two teams, A and B. One side of the playing field is Team A's backyard; the other side is Team B's backyard. Players all get down on their hands and knees. Split the rolled up socks evenly between both sides. On the word "go," the teams have one minute to throw as many socks as they can into the other team's yard. The team with the fewest socks in their backyard after one minute is the winner.
Dance Master
Type: Active/No Contact
Age: Any
Group size: 3 or more
Supplies: None
Instruction: Time to dance! This is a game for 3 or more players. But the more players you have, the more fun it is to play! To play, one player is the guesser, one is the dance master, and the rest are the followers. Decide which player will be the guesser. That player leaves the circle. While the guesser is away, the rest of the players then decide who will be the dance master. The other players have to do whatever dance moves the dance master does. If the dance master does a disco dance, the rest of the players have to disco dance. If the dance master changes their dance to the ‘floss’ dance, the rest of the campers need to change and do the ‘floss’ dance. When the players have decided who the dance master is, invite the guesser back to the circle and have them stand in the middle. The guesser will then try to figure out who the dance master is while the group is copying whatever movement they are doing. The dance master should try and change up the movement whenever they can and try not to get caught changing the action. If the dance master gets caught, then they become the next guesser. The dance master should feel free to incorporate any movement they want (even if it's not technically a dance). Be silly and creative!
Zoo Keeper
Type: Active/Contact
Age: Any
Group size: 6 or more
Supplies: None
Instruction: The instructor will lay our boundaries for a large running field (adjust to the size of the group) with a starting line and finishing line on each side. A “Zoo Keeper” will be selected from the group and will stand in the middle of the field. The rest of the campers will line up on one side of the field behind the line. Each camper will then be instructed to think of an animal that they’d like to be (ex: parrot) for the length of the game (but don’t tell anyone your animal!). When all the campers are ready, the “Zoo Keeper” will call out one attribute of an animal (ex: feathers) and anyone who chose an animal with that attribute will have to run across the field to the other line and try not to get tagged by the Zoo Keeper. If a camper gets tagged while running across, they join the Zoo Keeper in trying to tag the rest of the campers. No matter what side campers are on, if an attribute is called out that their animal has, they have to run to the other side. With enough campers, this can be super chaotic and fun!
Variation: Color Master! Have the person in the middle (the Color Master) call out a color each round and if the camper is wearing that color, then they have to run across the field and try not to get tagged!
Everybody's It Tag
Type: Active/Contact
Age: Any
Group size: 4 or more
Supplies: None
Instruction: Everyone in the group is “It” and everyone is against each other. Campers run around and try to tag the other campers without being tagged themselves. If a camper is tagged, they must sit down, and can only get back up if the person who tagged them gets tagged and has to sit down. If campers tag each other at the same time, they must play 1 round of rock/paper/scissors to see who wins. The camper who wins gets to continue tagging, while the camper who loses has to sit down. The instructor can re-energize the game by yelling “jail break!” and letting everyone who was sitting down back up to keep playing!
Hospital Tag
Type: Active/Contact
Age: Any
Group size: 4 or more
Supplies: None
Instruction: Everyone in the group is given three lives. Each time a person is tagged they have a “wound” where they were tagged that they must cover with a band aid. The 2 band aids are their hands. Once someone is tagged twice, then the person has to tag carefully with the elbows. By the time someone gets to this point, someone will tag them just to take them out of their misery. Once you get tagged 3 times you are out.
Save the Tree Tag
Type: Active/Contact
Age: Any
Group size: 8 or more
Supplies: None
Instruction: Kids get in a circle linking hands with no more than 10 kids, becoming one big tree. One person stands in the middle of the circle, “the cambium.” One person stands on the outside of the circle, “bark beetle,” trying to tag the inside person. All of the kids linked in the circle must protect the middle person by blocking the outside person “bark beetle” out. The bark beetle must try and get in-between two of the campers with linked hands (they cannot climb over or under anyone) to reach into the middle and the middle person is not allowed to move. Be sure to discuss safety with the campers beforehand as body control is an important component of this game. Make it more challenging by adding more “bark beetles” to the game!
Dragon's Tail
Type: Active/Contact
Age: Any
Group size: 6 or more
Supplies: None
Instruction: Divide the group into 2 equal teams (or more depending on # of campers). Have them make a line holding on to the person’s shoulders in front of them. You place a cloth in the back pocket of the last person in line (or somehow fastened to the tail in a way that it can be removed). This line is now a dragon. The head of the line is the dragon’s head and the rear the tail. For the 1st round, have the head of each dragon chase its own tail to get the cloth. If the line breaks then stop the group and reset the line. The head can move either direction, same thing for the tail. Have them try that first. For the 2nd round, have the dragons go against one another to try and pull the cloth from the other dragons tail. Once a dragon’s tail is pulled, the game is over.
Flinch
Type: Active/No Contact
Age: Any
Group size: 6 or more
Supplies: A soft, throwable object, ideally a ball
Instruction: Form a large circle with the group. One person from the group stands in the middle of the circle with the ball. They are the “Flinch Master”. Their goal is to get as many people from the group ‘out’ as possible. To get someone out, the Flinch Master pretends to throw the ball at someone. If they flinch in response, that person is out and sits down in the circle. If the “Flinch Master” decides to really throw the ball (underhand and catchable), the receiving person must catch it without letting it touch the ground. If they catch it successfully, they stay in, if not, they are out. The last person standing at the end becomes the next Flinch Master.
Oh Captain, My Captain
Type: Active/No Contact (Optional)
Age: Any
Group size: 2 or more
Supplies: None
Instruction: One player is chosen as the captain. The Captain call out orders to the rest of the players who are the crew. If a player does not follow an order correctly, they are out (This decision is made by the Captain or Instructor. This is optional. To make it less competitive you can just have the last person to perform the task site out for 20 seconds before re-entering the game, or remove someone needing to be out all together). Create boundaries and designate these boundaries at the “boat”. This is a fun game you can play on land and is also a great game to play on SUP day or Canoe day.
Orders to choose from (can use as many or as few as you want):
Bow: Run forward (to the front of the boat)
Stern: Run backwards (to the back of the boat)
Port: Run to the left (left side of the boat)
Starboard: Run to the right (right side of the boat)
Hit the deck: lay down on your stomach (or if players don't want to get dirty, they can crouch down)
Attention on deck: salute and yell, "Aye, aye captain!" -- players may not move now until the captain gives the order of, "At ease!" (even if the captain gives a different order such as "to the ship" the crew must continue to remain at attention until told "at ease")
Three in a boat: the crew must form groups of three and sing "Row, row, row your boat" Anybody who is not in a group of three is out.
Clear the deck: everyone must have their feet up off the floor
Scrub the deck: everyone on their knees scrubbing
Captain's Quarters: everyone runs towards the captain.
Man-over-board: Players must find a partner as quickly as possible. One partner must lay on their stomach while the other places their foot on their partner's back. Children without a partner or pairs that are too slow are eliminated.
Peg Leg: Every player falls on their back and sticks one leg in the air. The last ones are eliminated.
SHARK!!!!: Everyone must run to a designated base (multiple bases can be used). The last player to the base is eliminated.
Crow's nest: All players must find a partner. The lightest player rides on their partner's back. Those without partners or who assemble the crow's nest too slowly are eliminated.
Sick turtle: Everyone falls onto their backs and waves hands and feet in the air.
Row the Boat: Each player finds a partner, sits face to face, holds hands, and pretends to row a boat. Players who can't find partners or who are too slow are eliminated.
Beast Master
Type: Active/No Contact
Age: Any
Group size: 5 or more
Supplies: None
Instruction: Together, the group decides on three animals, and corresponding body poses. For example, you might have elephant (create a trunk with your arms), eagle (flap your arms like you’re flying), and frog (crouch down like you’re about to hop). One person starts as the Beast Master and goes up to the front of the group where they can be seen by everyone else. The Beast Master counts “1, 2, 3” and then strikes the pose of either the elephant, eagle, or frog on “3” at the same time that everyone else in the group also strikes a pose. If anyone chose to be the same animal as the Beast Master, they are out and sit down. The game continues until only one person is left; they become the next Beast Master.
Poison Dart Frog
Type: Active/No Contact
Age: Any
Group size: 5 or more
Supplies: None
Instruction: Have the group sit or stand in a circle. Select one person to be the Detective who goes out of the room or someplace where they cannot see the group. Have the participants put their heads down and close their eyes. Walk around the circle and when you are sure that no one is peeking tap someone on the head to be the Poison Frog. Have everyone lift their head and open their eyes and invite the Detective back in. Tell the participants that if they felt you tap them on the head they are now the Poison Frog. Once the Detective is in the middle of the circle announce that the game has started. Have all the campers begin flapping their arms and buzzing like flies (even the Poison Frog. They are in disguise!). The job of the Poison Frog is to poison as many people as possible before the Detective guesses their identity. They do this by making eye contact and sticking their tongue out at other players in the circle. If you are a player in the circle and another player sticks their tongue out at you, you assume that they are the Poison Frog and you die (dramatically or quietly) by lying down. The Detective only gets three guesses. Try to encourage them to space out their guesses and don't let them wait too long to guess. The game ends when the Detective guesses who is the Poison Frog or when they use all their guesses (feel free to give them extra guesses after they use their first three).
Variation: Make it alien themed! The facilitator will pick one or more aliens and 1 detective. Have everyone in the circle make UFO noises/movement and the aliens will zap others by winking at them. Players who are zapped must sit down/lie down.
Sneaky Statues
Type: Active/No Contact
Age: Any
Group size: 5 or more
Supplies: None
Instruction: This game is usually played in a line during a transition, but can be played on its own with additional formatting. Select a camper to be the line leader (or the instructor can be the leader) and the rest of the campers are the “statues”. When the leader has their back to the “statues”, they follow the leader normally in the line. When the line leader turns around to face the statues, they must freeze in their position and hold their pose for as long as the line leader is gazing at them. When the line leader turns around again and continues walking forward, the statutes can begin moving again. If a statue is caught moving by the line leader when they turn around, that statue goes to the end of the line.
Variation: As a field game, the “leader” will stand a good distance away from the “statues” across a field (say 30 yards or so). When the leader has their back turned, the statues will run, walk, crawl, or however they want to move to get closer to the leader and be the first to tag them. BUT when the leader turns around, they must freeze in place. The leader can approach and investigate the statues, but they must be careful; when their back is turned to any statues, they may move toward the leader. If a statue is caught moving while the leader faces them, the statue must return to the starting line (or be eliminated).
Slow Motion
Type: Active/No Contact
Age: Any
Group size: 5 or more
Supplies: None
Instruction:Campers are all going to be racing one another...slowly! Each camper stands on the starting line. The finish line is the opposite end of the play space. The instructor will be the starter and the judge. They will give campers a motion to do (run, crawl, somersault, bear crawl, crabwalk, etc.), and campers will attempt to do it as slowly as possible while moving to the finish line. Campers keep moving but not too quickly! If a camper moves too quickly for the judge, stops moving, or loses balance, he or she will be asked to freeze and do an activity in place for 5 seconds. The first camper to cross the finish line is the winner!
Shake It Out!
Type: Active/No Contact
Age: Any
Group size: 3 or more
Supplies: None
Instruction:Instructor will demonstrate and then play along with campers shaking each arm and leg a certain amount of times as fast as possible one at a time. Starting with the right arm 8 times, then the left arm 8 times, then the right leg 8 times, then the left leg 8 times (counting down from 8 out loud with each arm and leg) . Then count to 7 times, then 6 - all the way down to 1! A fun way to get some energy out with a quick energizer!