Archives by: Allan Hayley

This game is a spin off from the classic Dodge Ball. You will need the following items.

1. Around 40 soft rubber balls of various sizes. don’t make them larger than a size 3 soccer ball. Make sure they are soft because the kids will be throwing them at each other during the game.
2. 50 shipping boxes each around 12″ by 18″ by 12″. These will be the bricks for the castle wall.
3. Four 8′ folding tables.

Game set up:
Set two tables lengthwise next to each other leaving 5 feet between them. This will give you a 16 foot base for your castle wall. Place the remaining 2 tables around 20 feet from the others in the same manner, this is the base for the other castle.
On each table set up the boxes to resemble a castle wall. Leave some space between the boxes to allow the kids to have a place to throw the balls. The space between the tables will be the only entrance to the castle.

Each team starts with equal amount of ammunition (balls) for each team.

The objective of the game is to destroy the opposing team’s castle by knocking the boxes off the tables by throwing the balls at them.
Any balls that end up in the area between the castles can only be retrieved by any member of each team leaving the castle entrance and making it back without being hit with a ball thrown by the opposing team. If a player is hit by a ball he is considered wounded and can only be rescued (tagged) by a team mate. Once tagged the player can return to the castle. If he is hit again before he reaches the castle he is again considered wounded.

Players cannot enter the opposing teams castle and balls can only be thrown from behind the castle walls.

The game is over when all the boxes of one of the teams have been knocked off the tables.

Fall is here and games start to move inside and this one brings the outdoors inside.

Equipment needed:
– 4 Pumpkins that are about the size of a 16″ softball(I’m from Chicago). These are easy for the kids to hold and will hold up to the abuse.
– 12 White Squash, that can stand on end.

The Pumpkins are the balls and the Squash are the pins. Set up 2 lanes, each lane gets 2 Pumpkins and 6 Squash, set up the Squash with 3 in the back row, then 2 and then the head pin. If you have a large group just add more lanes.
Make a score sheet on an overhead transparency, so the kids can see how they’re doing as the frames go by.
For additional fun bring some permanent markers and let the teams decorate the pumpkins and pins as they like.

I assume that each church has rolls of plastic tablecloths that are used for potlucks and dinners.
Make a maze on the floor using the tablecloths, tape the cloths together, have 3 entrances to the maze. Blindfold the 3 contestants and place each kid on their hands and knees at one of the entrances. Each one must crawl to one of the other entrances using their hands to feel where the tablecloth leads or ends or turns. All 3 contestants are in the maze at the same time and the first one to find their way out is the winner.

This game can be played in various rooms in the church, each room being a different hole. You will need area rugs, golf balls and clubs and some paper plates. Place an area rug in each room and give the kids various pillows, books, wood blocks to place under the area rugs and form the putting greens. Assign a few kids to each room and let them come up with their own green design. Take the paper plates and cut out the bottom and then turn the plate upside down, this becomes the hole on the green. FORE!!!

Equipment needed:
54 pieces of 2 by 4, each cut to a length of 10.5 inches. Make sure they are pretty smooth, you may sand them down to smooth them out a bit. You could also put some baby powder on each board to make it slide better.
Set them up like the Jenga game and have all the kids have a go at the game. I added a hammer to the game and gave each kid only one chance to use the hammer to help move a board if they needed to.