Luther Point Games & Activities
Indoor Games
Frogger
Sit in a circle. Pick someone to be the detective and then have them go far enough away that they cannot see or hear the group. Then have everyone in the circle close their eyes. 1 person goes around the circle and taps one person on the head. This person is the frogger. Call the detective back and have them stand in the middle of the circle. The frogger then starts to stick out their tongue at people in the circle.. When a player sees the frogger's tongue, they have to make noises and fall back and lay down as if they have been eaten. The detective has three chances to guess who the frogger is. The frogger then becomes the detective, and the old detective gets to choose the next frogger.
Ships and Sailors
This is a glorified version of Simon Says. There is one caller who yells a combination of the following commands:
Ships: Everyone walks to the left
Sailors: Everyone walks to the right
Captain's Coming: Everyone stands at attention while saluting.
At Ease: Everyone must wait to hear this command before they can stop saluting for Captain's Coming.
Captain's Daughter: Everyone twirls their hair and say's "Oooooo!"
Captain's Son: Everyone flexes their muscles says "arrrrrrrrr."
Hit the Deck: Everyone lays down flat on their stomachs.
Mermaid: Sit down, move your feet like you have a tail and wave (optional: sing Ariel's song from The Little Mermaid").
Man Overboard: Everyone finds a partner, one person kneels down and the other person one leg on their partners back and pretends to look through a telescope.
Three Person Lifeboat: Three people stand in a line and sing "Row, row, row your boat."
Four Person Dinner: Four people stand together and pretend to eat.
Blue Whale: Spread arms out and down, swing them right and left, and say in a deep "whale" voice, "I'm a blue whale!"
Jellyfish: Lay down on backs while wiggling both arms and legs in the air and making a funny underwater sound.
Starfish: Form a group of 5 and have them connect their feet together to make a star.
Crows Nest: One person becomes a mast (stands tall with both arms over head) while two others become cawing crows that circle the mast.
Titanic: Yell "Iceberg! Right ahead!" in a funny accent (Australian is always fun)
Seasick: Everyone runs to the back and pretends to "toss their cookies."
Swab the Poop Deck: One person squats half way while the other pretends to mop behind them.
People are eliminated when they are unable to perform the command, stop saluting before they are commanded to, or if they do the wrong action. The caller can try to trick everyone by following the "Captain is Coming" command with something other than "At Ease." If anyone does the next action, they are out. Even though this is an elimination game, those who get out early usually find it funny to watch the others. You can also begin the game by playing a practice round, and using only a few of the commands. As the game goes on, you can add more and more of the commands.
Fastball
This is a kind of like a grand scale game of monkey in the middle. Have the group create a circle with chairs, with four less than you have people. Four people then stand in the middle of the circle, and everyone else sits in the chairs. There are four soft balls that will be thrown around the circle. The four people in the middle are trying to get one of those balls, and they get out of the middle by catching one, picking one up, etc. The last person to have touched the ball goes into the middle, and the person in the middle sits down. If a ball leaves the circle, anyone can try and get it - either the people in the middle or the people in the circle.
Ichee Meenie Oy!
Rock, Paper, Scissors with a twist! Divide your group of no more than 30 people (any more and there will be a lot of people standing around) into two. Form a playing area that's in the shape of a large square with approx. 15' sides. Have the two groups line up behind the square at two adjacent corners. On "GO!", the first person in line for each team begins to make his or her way around the perimeter of the square in opposite directions of each other with the goal of reaching his or her opponent's starting point. When going around the square, players must walk heal-to-toe (no exceptions!), elbows must be tucked into their sides, and their hands out (almost like a "kung fu" pose). When the two opponents meet each other on their path, they begin a game of rock paper scissor (RPS). Here's the catch: when they play, they have to slam their fists in their hands while yelling as LOUD as they can "OY! ICHEE MEENIE OY!" in sync with each other. On the last "oy," they reveal their RPS choice. The winner continues on his or her path. The moment one player loses a game of RPS, they go back to the end of their line and immediately the next person on their team starts. Once a player has reached their opponent's starting point, they score a point for their team (usually they need to beat 3-4 opponents to make it all the way). Play continues until one team has had every player cross their opponent's starting point OR when time is up (you choose playing time; for larger groups this game could go on for a long time).
Sit in a circle. Pick someone to be the detective and then have them go far enough away that they cannot see or hear the group. Then have everyone in the circle close their eyes. 1 person goes around the circle and taps one person on the head. This person is the frogger. Call the detective back and have them stand in the middle of the circle. The frogger then starts to stick out their tongue at people in the circle.. When a player sees the frogger's tongue, they have to make noises and fall back and lay down as if they have been eaten. The detective has three chances to guess who the frogger is. The frogger then becomes the detective, and the old detective gets to choose the next frogger.
Ships and Sailors
This is a glorified version of Simon Says. There is one caller who yells a combination of the following commands:
Ships: Everyone walks to the left
Sailors: Everyone walks to the right
Captain's Coming: Everyone stands at attention while saluting.
At Ease: Everyone must wait to hear this command before they can stop saluting for Captain's Coming.
Captain's Daughter: Everyone twirls their hair and say's "Oooooo!"
Captain's Son: Everyone flexes their muscles says "arrrrrrrrr."
Hit the Deck: Everyone lays down flat on their stomachs.
Mermaid: Sit down, move your feet like you have a tail and wave (optional: sing Ariel's song from The Little Mermaid").
Man Overboard: Everyone finds a partner, one person kneels down and the other person one leg on their partners back and pretends to look through a telescope.
Three Person Lifeboat: Three people stand in a line and sing "Row, row, row your boat."
Four Person Dinner: Four people stand together and pretend to eat.
Blue Whale: Spread arms out and down, swing them right and left, and say in a deep "whale" voice, "I'm a blue whale!"
Jellyfish: Lay down on backs while wiggling both arms and legs in the air and making a funny underwater sound.
Starfish: Form a group of 5 and have them connect their feet together to make a star.
Crows Nest: One person becomes a mast (stands tall with both arms over head) while two others become cawing crows that circle the mast.
Titanic: Yell "Iceberg! Right ahead!" in a funny accent (Australian is always fun)
Seasick: Everyone runs to the back and pretends to "toss their cookies."
Swab the Poop Deck: One person squats half way while the other pretends to mop behind them.
People are eliminated when they are unable to perform the command, stop saluting before they are commanded to, or if they do the wrong action. The caller can try to trick everyone by following the "Captain is Coming" command with something other than "At Ease." If anyone does the next action, they are out. Even though this is an elimination game, those who get out early usually find it funny to watch the others. You can also begin the game by playing a practice round, and using only a few of the commands. As the game goes on, you can add more and more of the commands.
Fastball
This is a kind of like a grand scale game of monkey in the middle. Have the group create a circle with chairs, with four less than you have people. Four people then stand in the middle of the circle, and everyone else sits in the chairs. There are four soft balls that will be thrown around the circle. The four people in the middle are trying to get one of those balls, and they get out of the middle by catching one, picking one up, etc. The last person to have touched the ball goes into the middle, and the person in the middle sits down. If a ball leaves the circle, anyone can try and get it - either the people in the middle or the people in the circle.
Ichee Meenie Oy!
Rock, Paper, Scissors with a twist! Divide your group of no more than 30 people (any more and there will be a lot of people standing around) into two. Form a playing area that's in the shape of a large square with approx. 15' sides. Have the two groups line up behind the square at two adjacent corners. On "GO!", the first person in line for each team begins to make his or her way around the perimeter of the square in opposite directions of each other with the goal of reaching his or her opponent's starting point. When going around the square, players must walk heal-to-toe (no exceptions!), elbows must be tucked into their sides, and their hands out (almost like a "kung fu" pose). When the two opponents meet each other on their path, they begin a game of rock paper scissor (RPS). Here's the catch: when they play, they have to slam their fists in their hands while yelling as LOUD as they can "OY! ICHEE MEENIE OY!" in sync with each other. On the last "oy," they reveal their RPS choice. The winner continues on his or her path. The moment one player loses a game of RPS, they go back to the end of their line and immediately the next person on their team starts. Once a player has reached their opponent's starting point, they score a point for their team (usually they need to beat 3-4 opponents to make it all the way). Play continues until one team has had every player cross their opponent's starting point OR when time is up (you choose playing time; for larger groups this game could go on for a long time).
Outdoor Games
Bash
Color a large number of clothes pins with three or four colors (at least 30 clothespins per color). Divide the group into teams of three or four and assign one color to each team. Put one clothes pin on the back of each team members shirt. The members then try and take the pins off of other people's shirts, and bring them back to their home base. (Where one person holds extra pins for their team color.) If someone on the team loses their pin, they also return to the home base and receive a new pin of their color. The end of the game happens when one team runs out of extra pins. The team with the most pins wins!
Gladiator
Grab a partner and be the last team standing! Form a large square playing area. In the center of the playing area, cluster a bunch of foam balls together. Outside the square have the players pair up. The partners will link their hands (one hand should hold the others, while each has one hand free). One partner will become the shield and the other will become the gladiator. The shield's job is block all all attacks from opposing gladiators so that his or her own gladiator does not get hit. The shield is also responsible for picking up balls and handing them to the gladiator. The Gladiator's job is to get balls from his or her shield and then throw them at opposing gladiators. When a gladiator is hit, the pair is out and they stand on the outside of the square, becoming spectators (and stray ball retrievers). Play continues until one Gladiator and Shield is left. Play again with new partners!
Mini Mighty Mighty
At camp, we play mighty mighty with all of the campers in camp. In order for you to play with youth in your congregation, we have downscaled to game to fit in your church yard!
Use a big grassy space to create a field that you split down the middle. On the far end of each side, place 4-6 objects. These can be footballs, frisbees, softballs, hula-hoops, etc. You want two of each object, one on each side of the field. Split your group into two teams. One team on each side. The goal of the game is to collect all 8 to 12 objects on one side of the field.
When someone crosses the middle line onto the other side to take an object, they must avoid being tagged. If tagged, they sit down and wait to be rescued by someone else from their team. If they make it back to the line of objects, they have a safe zone around the objects and cannot be tagged as long as they don't touch the objects. If they touch the object, they are free to be tagged again. If they are tagged before returning to their side with the object, the object returns to the back of the field and the person sits down. If they make it across, the object goes to the back of their side. Objects can be thrown, passed or run across the line.
The game ends when all objects are on one side.
Mushroom Ball
You will need 4 or more large balls and 15-20 people. Similar to dodgeball, the balls are strewn about the playing area, and the players pick them up to throw at people to get them out. If they catch the ball, the person who threw it is out and they need to sit down. People sitting down can pick up a ball and throw it at someone standing up. If they hit someone standing, the thrower stands up, and the person hit sits down.
There is also something called a mushroom chain, where the people sitting down can work together to stand up. The people sitting can throw a ball to each other, creating a chain and if the last person throws the ball and hits someone standing, everyone in the chain can stand up. If the ball is dropped during the chain, they must start over.
Color a large number of clothes pins with three or four colors (at least 30 clothespins per color). Divide the group into teams of three or four and assign one color to each team. Put one clothes pin on the back of each team members shirt. The members then try and take the pins off of other people's shirts, and bring them back to their home base. (Where one person holds extra pins for their team color.) If someone on the team loses their pin, they also return to the home base and receive a new pin of their color. The end of the game happens when one team runs out of extra pins. The team with the most pins wins!
Gladiator
Grab a partner and be the last team standing! Form a large square playing area. In the center of the playing area, cluster a bunch of foam balls together. Outside the square have the players pair up. The partners will link their hands (one hand should hold the others, while each has one hand free). One partner will become the shield and the other will become the gladiator. The shield's job is block all all attacks from opposing gladiators so that his or her own gladiator does not get hit. The shield is also responsible for picking up balls and handing them to the gladiator. The Gladiator's job is to get balls from his or her shield and then throw them at opposing gladiators. When a gladiator is hit, the pair is out and they stand on the outside of the square, becoming spectators (and stray ball retrievers). Play continues until one Gladiator and Shield is left. Play again with new partners!
Mini Mighty Mighty
At camp, we play mighty mighty with all of the campers in camp. In order for you to play with youth in your congregation, we have downscaled to game to fit in your church yard!
Use a big grassy space to create a field that you split down the middle. On the far end of each side, place 4-6 objects. These can be footballs, frisbees, softballs, hula-hoops, etc. You want two of each object, one on each side of the field. Split your group into two teams. One team on each side. The goal of the game is to collect all 8 to 12 objects on one side of the field.
When someone crosses the middle line onto the other side to take an object, they must avoid being tagged. If tagged, they sit down and wait to be rescued by someone else from their team. If they make it back to the line of objects, they have a safe zone around the objects and cannot be tagged as long as they don't touch the objects. If they touch the object, they are free to be tagged again. If they are tagged before returning to their side with the object, the object returns to the back of the field and the person sits down. If they make it across, the object goes to the back of their side. Objects can be thrown, passed or run across the line.
The game ends when all objects are on one side.
Mushroom Ball
You will need 4 or more large balls and 15-20 people. Similar to dodgeball, the balls are strewn about the playing area, and the players pick them up to throw at people to get them out. If they catch the ball, the person who threw it is out and they need to sit down. People sitting down can pick up a ball and throw it at someone standing up. If they hit someone standing, the thrower stands up, and the person hit sits down.
There is also something called a mushroom chain, where the people sitting down can work together to stand up. The people sitting can throw a ball to each other, creating a chain and if the last person throws the ball and hits someone standing, everyone in the chain can stand up. If the ball is dropped during the chain, they must start over.
Meal Prayers
Coming Soon - Find a video of your favorite camp meal prayer so you can use it wherever you are!