Holiday Camp - Ice Breaker Games

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Frozen T’s

Required: Plastic storage bag, freezer and large size T- shirts Players: Small to large groups

For each team you'll need one T- shirt and one plastic storage bag. Place one nicely folded T-shirt in each bag then pour in about 2 cups of water and freeze all of them overnight. If this wasn't done where the event is taking place bring the T-shirt in a cooler filled with ice to keep them frozen.

Instruct the teams that they'll be playing an Ice Breaker game. Then hand out the bagged T-shirts to each team. On "Go" the teams will have to get their T-shirts thawed out so that one person from their team can put the T-shirt on. Teams will get creative in their attempts to win.

The first team to come back with one person in the T-shirt is the winner.

Cheeky-Cheeky

Required: Lipstick, small washable grease pencil or markers Players: Small to large groups

Depending on the number of participants, you may want to pick a few helpers for this icebreaker game. The helpers will all have a small tube of lipstick in their pocket or hidden in their hands before the game starts.

They can pretend at the last minute that they decide to join in the game; this helps them to find the person that they would like to stand next to. Have all participants line up in a straight line, side by side, instruct them that they have to look forward and they can’t turn their heads.

Tell them that you’re playing the Cheeky-Cheeky game and everyone is to repeat what you do but must not move. Give them an example by lightly pinching the persons cheek on the right of you and say “Cheeky-Cheeky”. You should be at the beginning of the line. Note to them that that person is to do the same and then the next person all the way down the line until it reaches the end.

Once demonstrated start out with Cheeky-Cheeky but this time behind your back you have lipstick that you put on your fingertips. After you’ve done Cheeky-Cheeky and the movement has gone down the line then do nosey, nosey. After that do chiny-chiny, eary-eary, heady-heady and right eary-eary.

Each time add more lipstick to your finger tips without them noticing. In the process the person next to you should end up with lipstick all over their face. Pick a person that is a good sport to stand next to. If you’ve planted helpers in the line, a few other people should end up with lipstick on their faces also.

Dress the Mummy

Required: Rolls of toilet paper

Players: Small to large groups

Set up teams with 2-4 players on each team. One person on each team will be the mummy and each team will be given 2 rolls of toilet paper. They will have 5 minutes to complete the game. The team players are to circle around the mummy and pass the toilet paper to each other while wrapping the mummy in it. The leader of the group will be the judge and decide which team has created the best mummy design.

Gum Game

Required: Clean garden gloves, piece of paper

Players: Small to large groups

Set up teams of five. Each team will receive one pair of new garden gloves and one piece of paper. On go, the first person in each team is to put on the garden gloves, fold the piece of paper once, and then pass the gloves to the next person. The first team to complete the task wins.

Ha Ha

Players: Small to large groups

Teams competing lay down side by side on floor or ground. The first person lays back of hand on next persons stomach and that person lays back of hand on the stomach of the next to him and so on. The first person in line is to laugh one HA. The next person in line is to laugh HA HA (two times). The third person is HA HA HA. And so on. Any person that breaks out into a giggle is out of the game and must get up and the hole is filled in. The last one to giggle, wins.

Ice Cube Hunt

Required: Ice cubes, food coloring and winter weather Players: Small to large groups

Make up several ice cubes trays with food coloring in water. Once you have made ice cubes, distribute into search area. The person to find the most colored ice cubes is the winner.

King Boe Boe’s Ring

Required: Vaseline or mayonnaise (or anything mushy), chair, stool and blindfolds

Players: Small to medium groups

From the group select a number of persons that you would like to play this game. Send them outside. Have some one (preferably a man) that has a very ugly toe, sit on the chair with his foot on the stool.

Put some mayonnaise or Vaseline on his thumb. Let him bend the thumb and you put it on the jointed area. You also put some on the big toe that is on the stool. You then invite one of the persons that have already been blindfolded to come in with his/her hands behind him. It must stay behind him as long as he/she is approaching the king.

They are asked to bow before the king in respect (keeping hands behind). Take them very close to the king where they can actually kneel right in front of the toe that has the mayonnaise or Vaseline on it. They bow as to kiss the king ring and the king puts his finger out so that the person kisses the finger instead of the toe.

The king then puts his hand behind him leaving the toe as the visible object that has been kissed. The blindfold is now taken off and the person sees the toe and thinks that he/she has kissed this ugly toe. (Make sure that you keep adding more Vaseline to the finger as it will be kissed off, also make sure that enough is on the toe) Continue with the next person until all have come in.

Do not tell the person what has happened but encourage the person to watch and see what has happened. He/she will laugh at himself. The other players must be locked away so that they have no clue as to what is happening, they will hear the laughs and will be curious and anxious to come in.

No one in the room is to tell them anything. The last person usually does not know what is happening. You may tell him or her if you choose to.

Memory Game

Required: Subjects for memory, tray, paper and pencil Players: Small groups

Pick a subject like foods you would eat or crave. Lay them all in a tray for viewers to see and have participants pass tray around. Remove tray from sight and have participant’s list what was on tray. The person that lists the most objects is the winner. You can give extra points or break ties by asking specific questions like what flavor sucker and so on

Messy Twist

Required: Paper or plastic plates, oatmeal, whip cream, chocolate, vanilla and other flavored puddings, paper, pencil, two small containers and clothes to get dirty in.

Players: Small to medium groups

What you need for this game is warm weather, so it can be played outside with no shoes on. It's a game mainly for those youths that like to get messy and enjoy having fun. (It is played like the game of Twister but with a BIG twist.)

Fill up 6-10 plates with the same items like oatmeal and then 6-10 plates of another item, try to have at least 5 different items that would give you 30 to 50 plates. If you have a large crowd have them play in shifts.

On a sheet of paper make tags, which will be pulled out of two separate containers. One set of tags will name the items in the plates, like chocolate pudding, vanilla pudding, whip cream, applesauce, mashed bananas, oatmeal or other items possibly non-staining items.

The other set of tags with will go into another container that will be what they will use, right hand, left hand, right or left foot, head or even bottom. Lay out the plates in rows and have one person draw out a tag from each container. Players are to do what the tags state, example is Vanilla Pudding, Right Foot.

The players are to put their right foot in the vanilla pudding and then another tag is pulled. If any player falls or fails to get a plate before some else gets it, they're out of the game. The last standing player is the winner and you can give him rights to hose off other players if necessary.

Messy Twist is a great game for the wild Youth Groups, party game or picnic game if you have a lake to wash off in.

Moo Game

Required: Just people

Players: Small to medium groups

Pick three people to stand outside while the rest of the group gets ready. Form a circle large enough for someone to stand inside. Tell the group that They are going to pick someone from outside to come in and stand inside the circle and when you count to three everyone has to “MOO” as loud as they can.

Then tell them on the last time, when the third person comes in to fake a “MOO”. Everyone should look like they are going to “MOO” but don’t. Pick someone from outside and tell them that they are to listen for the person who “MOOed” the loudest. Count to three and everyone “MOOs”.

The person in the middle will then pick who “MOOed” the loudest and whomever they pick will be correct. Then tell that person that they have to “MOO” as loud as they can on the next round but to not “MOO” at all on the third round. Now the 2nd person comes in and you "MOO" and they pick who was the loudest and they are of course correct.

But don't tell the 2nd person to not “MOO” on the last round. Now the third person comes in and you tell them to pick the loudest “MOO”. You count to three and everyone pretends like they are going to “MOO” except the 2nd person that came in who “MOOs” really loud all by him or herself.

It’s really funny. You may have to explain the joke to the third person though.

Puzzle Piece Search

Required: Precut puzzle pieces and open table

Players: Small to medium groups

You can do this with a pre-made puzzle or use a large unwanted poster and cut into several pieces depending on the number of players. Hide pieces throughout play area while players are out of the room.

Have a card table or work area where the puzzle can be reassembled. When a player finds a piece they are to bring it to the table to fit it together with the other pieces. Once they have found where that piece goes they are off searching for another piece of the puzzle.

At the end, have the players think about all those pieces, each one a different shape, size and color but they all come together to become one big picture.

Rumor

Required: Blackboard & chalk (paper & pencil will do)

Players: Small to large groups

The first person from each team is to go out and make up a message together. This message will be used by all teams. Once signaled to start, the first person on each team is to whisper the Rumor to the next person on their team. They will whisper the Rumor to the next - and so on.

The last person to receive the Rumor will run to the black board and write the message. The team that is the closest to the correct Rumor wins.

String Toss

Required: Ball of string or yarn

Players: Small to medium groups

Set up small groups of 8–12 players and have them sit in a circle for this icebreaker. One person is given the ball of yarn and finds the end of it. They will toss the ball of yarn to anyone within the circle while they are still holding the end of the ball of yarn.

Now ask the person that caught it one or two questions. If this is a new group that doesn't’ know everyone they are to introduce themselves first before answering the questions at the beginning of the game. Here are some ideas as to what questions to ask; What is your favorite color, music group, the person that has influenced you the most, what are you afraid of, your favorite food, time of the year, or any other question to might pertain to this event.

That person then holds part of the yarn and then tosses the ball of yarn to anyone that hasn't’t received the ball yet. You repeat this until everyone has had the ball of yarn and you will notice that you have created a unique web that has connected all the players together in one way. You can pass the ball again to ask one – two more questions from each player.

Talking Behind Your Back

Required: Piece of paper, washable markers, tape, pencils Players: Small to large groups

Each person writes his/her name on a piece of paper lightly in pencil; then help one another tape the piece of paper on each persons back (NAME NOT SHOWING). Using (washable) markers, each person must go around the room and write something about that person on their back.

(Children need to be instructed that the comment must be positive - funny is OK, too) Leader removes all the papers and lays them out for everyone to view. How well do you think you know yourself or what others think about you? What would they say behind YOUR back?

After reading them, participants may predict which one they think may have been on their back. Then, everyone can turn them over and find their own, and hopefully keep it, feeling great about what others had to say about them “behind their back”.

Un-cola Pop Off

Required: 8-10 clear types of sodas, small paper cups (bathroom size), paper & pencil and large cups

Players: Small to medium groups

Purchase several different brands for clear sodas and here’s a list of ideas. 7-UP, Sprite, Squirt, Slice, Lemon Lime, Mountain Dew, Club Soda, Ginger Ale, Surge, Fresca, and others that you might find. One can of each type soda should be enough for a group of 8-15 players.

Pour each soda into separate large cups, number the cups and make a master list with the number and corresponding name of the soda. You do this before participants arrive or in another room out of view of everyone. Players will be given one sheet of paper and they will number that sheet with the number of selections that they will be tasting.

They will also be given one small paper bathroom cup. One at a time, introduce one of the large numbered cups of soda to the participants and pour ½ to one ounce of soda into their cups. You would start out with soda #1 and everyone will list down on their sheet what they think that soda is, without telling anyone else.

You will repeat with other sodas until all have been tasted. The person with the most correct answers is the winner and you could give them a 2 litter of soda. You can display on a table the empty cans of the sodas that they are tasting, to help them guess which one they might have, but for a very smart group it wouldn't be advised.

Who Am I?

Required: Name tags

Players: Small to large groups

Pre-make tags with each tag having one famous person on it, mainly divas that everyone would know. These tags will be placed on the back of each guest as they arrive.

This is done without them knowing who they are. They are to go around the room asking questions as to who they might be. Questions like “am I a singer?”

They can only ask one question and make only one guess as to Who they are with each person that they talk to, then they have to move on to another person. They can come visit previous players once they've visited another player.

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