Birthday Party Games

Limbo Dancing

You will need: broom handle or long smooth stick and music to play this game.

Two players hold the stick at a quit high height for a start.

Turn up some upbeat music and ask everyone who want to play to form a line. Players start limbo dancing under the stick.

Players may not touch the stick. Another rule is that players should lead with feet and knees, while walking head first is forbidden. Only feet can touch the ground.

When all the players had a go, the stick is lowered a little. Players, who touch the stick or fall, are out of the game.

Repeat the process until you have a winner.

Limbo Game Variations

Funny Limbo – Funny variation of this game: all game rules are the same, just give players 2 pillows and ask to attach them from the front and from the back side with ropes or belts, and then put large-sized t-shirt to hide pillows. Now you can play, have dozens of fun!

You can also try Flashlight limbo, if you are having a late night party, when it‘s dark outside. All you need is a flashlight instead of a stick. If some body part comes into contact with light, the player is eliminated.

In hot summer days it’s really fun to play Water limbo, when you use a water hose instead of a stick. Tip: the ground will become wet, so expect lots of slips and slides!

Backwards limbo – in this variation the players have to walk under the limbo stick not forwards, but backwards. This creates some extra challenge. Lower the stick after each round. Each player, who cannot walk backwards under the stick, is eliminated. The last player is the winner.

Limbo with hats – for this game you need to prepare several large hats. In the first round the players walk under the limbo stick as usual, but in the second round all the players have to go under the limbo stick with hats on their heads.

Wacky waiter

You will need: a large plastic dinner plate and a ping pong ball for each team.
Split players into two teams. Then put a ping pong ball on each plate and give one to the leader of each team. Teams should line up at the start line and on the “Go“ the first player of each team begins to run as fast as he can, holding the plate waiter-style, to the turnaround point, then runs back and gives his plate to the next player of his team, who does the same. The fastest team is the winner.
If any player drops the ball, he picks it, puts back on his plate, and begins from the spot, where the ball was dropped.

Three-Legged Race

For this game you will need scarves or fabric strips that will be used for tying children’s legs together.
Divide children into pairs. It would be perfect, if children have similar height and build.
Players of each couple should stay close to each other, so that leader of the game could tie their inside legs (right leg of player in the left and left leg of player in the right).
Then couples stand before start line and on the command “go” start walking or running as fast as they can. The couple that reach finish line first becomes the winner.

Little crocodiles

All players divide into teams of 3, 4 or 5 players. Players of each team should form up a line, and between each player there should be one balloon, which is hold by backs and chests.
The aim of this game is to run a certain distance. The fastest team is the winner.
If any balloon is dropped, player should replace it and start moving from the spot where balloon was dropped.
If the balloon had burst, the team is disqualified from the game.

Fun party games with food

Longest peel competition

The aim of this competition is to see who can make the longest apple peel during a certain period of time.

Doughnuts-on-a-string

For this game you will need: a rope, ribbons, doughnuts (one per player).
Get two people to hold a long rope (or tie it between trees if you play outside).
Then tie a piece of ribbon to doughnut and hang them on a rope. Doughnuts should hang at the height that is slightly above mouth level.
Players must eat their doughnuts without using hands and without letting it fall!
Let‘s start, who will eat his doughnut first?!

Chopstick chase

For this fun team game you will need: pair of chopsticks per player, 2 bowls per team, 2 chairs per team, marshmallows or similar.

The aim of this game is to put all marshmallows from one bowl to another bowl using chopsticks.
Separate chairs at an equal distance from each other. Put a bowl on each chair. For every team there are two bowls, one is with marshmallows, and the other is empty. Put equal number of marshmallows for every team.

Give chopsticks to kids, divide them into teams and line up behind chairs with empty bowls. On go, the first kid runs to the bowl with marshmallows and tries to carry a marshmallow to the empty bowl. If marshmallow is dropped, a new marshmallow is put in the bowl and the player has to run from the start line.

The team, which carried all marshmallows from one bowl to the other bowl faster than other, is the winner.

Bobbing for Apples

You will need buckets of water, some apples.
The aim of this game is to remove apples from the bucket without using hands.
Tip: have a bucket with 3 apples for each child, so that it would be a race to see who will get all the apples of the bucket first.

Variation of this game:
Hang apples with some string at child height. Aim of this game is the same – to grab the apple without using hands.

Kangaroo Hop Racing

Each player put a balloon between the knees. Players should line up at the start line and after the command “Go!” everyone begins to jump like kangaroos, seeking to reach the finish as fast as they can.

If any player drops his balloon, he should place it between the knees again, and start jumping from the spot where balloon was dropped.

If balloon had burst, the player is disqualified from the game.

Water relay

To prepare for this fun outdoor game you will need:
A bucket and a large bowl per team, one cup per team, water.

The goal of this game is to fill a bowl with water from a bucket using a cup as fast as possible.

Separate bowls and buckets at an equal distance from each other. For every team there is a bucket filled with water and a large empty bowl. Divide kids into teams, line them up at a start line (behind empty bowls) and give a cup to each team. On “go” the first kid runs to his bucket with water and tries to carry as much water in a cup as possible and as fast as he can.

The team, which will manage to fill the empty bowl with water faster than other becomes the winner.

Cakewalk

You will need: paper or cardboard squares with numbers, entertaining music, small prizes, a small bowl with numbered paper pieces.

Squares with numbers (make one per child) are arranged in a circle. Then write numbers on small pieces of paper (numbers should correspond with the numbers of squares) and put in a bowl.

Ask each player to stand on a square and turn up the music. Children walk around or march and when the music stops, everyone should freeze on the closest square.

Leader of the game picks one numbered piece of paper from the bowl. The player, standing on that number gets a small gift. The game continues until each kid has won a prize.

Johnny tells

The leader stands in a middle of a circle and says: „Johnny tells… (to jump, etc.)“ and does the move.

Other players repeat the moves of the leader until it is said „Johnny tells not… (to jump, etc.)“ but the leader continues to make the moves as before.

After several moves the player in the middle skips the words „Johnny tells…“, but tells to do different moves.

Those players who repeat the new moves after the leader are out of the game.