With all our IT Streaming Services and other IT Applications, it’s easy to forget those games that entertained the whole family, before the era of Smart Phones, Tablets and other screen time entertainment.
If you are getting tired of staring at computer screens and TV, and looking for some fun, indoor activities, that require no IT equipment, why not play some of these tried and trusted family games suitable for all ages.
(1) Charades
Divide your group into teams or simply take turns. Player 1 thinks of something to act out without using any words, typically, e.g., a book, film or title of a T.V. programme. They use agreed gestures to indicate whether it’s a book, film or T.V. show and then they try to act out each word until some guesses their title. You can adapt the game by picking different categories and acting out words associated with that category. Example: category = summer and words = sunscreen, swimming, sandcastle, ice cream etc.
(2) Categories.
One player decides on a category and the other players take turns naming things that belong in that category. For younger children it’s best to keep the categories broad, e.g. animals. For older kids and adults, it’s best to keep the categories narrow, e.g., books by Roald Dahl. To keep the responses quick and to keep the pace going, try playing with a clapping rhythm. The game ends and players are ‘out’ if they can’t think of any more things that belong in the category.
(3) Geography.
Each player comes up with a place name (town, county, country) that begins with same letter as the last letter of the place mentioned by the previous player. For example, player 1 says ‘Thurles’, so player 2 says ‘Sligo’ and player 3 says ‘Offaly’. You are out if you can’t think of a place. The winner is the last player left standing.
(4) Ghost.
Player 1 picks and says a letter of the alphabet. Each player takes turns and thinks of a letter that will spell a real word. The aim of the game is to spell a real word but to avoid incorrect spellings or being the player that ends the spelling. If you add a letter that doesn’t spell a word or you can’t think of a letter you are ‘out‘. Every time you end a spelling you get a letter from the word ‘ghost’. Once you have all five letters of ‘ghost’ you are ‘out of the game’. Example: Player 1 starts with the letter c. Player 2 adds a, thinking of the word call. Player 3 is thinking of the word ‘catch‘ and adds t, but ends a word because that spells ‘cat’ and player 4 gets the letter g in ghost.
(5) I Spy
Player 1 looks around and picks an object they can visually see, beginning with a letter and says “I spy with my little eye something beginning with g “, for example. The other players then have to then guess what player 1 saw beginning with the latter ‘g’ in the immediate area.
(6) Twenty Questions.
One player thinks of an animal, vegetable, person or object. They only tell the other players what category it belongs to, i.e., whether it’s an animal, vegetable, person or object. The other players try and guess what it is by asking questions that result in a yes or no answer only, for example, “Is it bigger than a car?” or “Can you eat it?”
(7) I Packed my Suitcase.
Each player starts off with the same sentence: “I packed my suitcase and in it I put _.” The player completes the sentence with a word that begins with the letter A. For instance, “I packed my suitcase and in it I put an apple”. The next player repeats the previous sentence and has to add a B word. “I packed my suitcase and in it I put an apple and a ball“.
Taking turns, each player has to remember what the previous players have said and add an item that starts with the next letter of the alphabet.
If you forget what they have said or can’t think of a word beginning with that letter, you are ‘out’ of the game. You can adapt the game further by picking different categories, e.g., animal words only or fruits.
(8) Pictionary
Divide your group into teams or simply take turns. Decide on a category, for example ‘sports’. Player 1 thinks of a sport and starts drawing it. The first person or team that guesses what he/she is drawing, will scores a point for themselves or their team.
(9) Heads-Up
Players agree on a category, for example, ‘Superhero’s’. Everyone writes down the name of a superhero. One player is on and picks a piece of paper and without looking holds the name of the superhero against their forehead for everyone else to see. The other players take turns giving clues about the superhero to the player who is on. When player 1 guesses their superhero, another player in on.
(10) The Laughing Game
Players sit in a circle and take it in turns to quickly say ‘Ha’, ‘Ho’ or ‘Hee’. Anyone who starts laughing is knocked out of the game. The game continues until everyone is out. The winner is the person who keep a straight face the longest.
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