Party games! To me, this is the make-or-break point of a birthday party. We’ve all been there…the kitchen is backed up, pizzas are still about 5-10 minutes out, and you are in a room full of antsy kids staring at you…what do you do? 

A skilled party host will pull out a party game that will entertain any age kid and relieve on-edge parents. Are your party hosts more like servers when they deliver food, or do they genuinely get engaged with the flow of the party they’re hosting? When I opened my first location, my party hosts did not play party games with the kids. I thought it was silly and didn’t realize its impact.

Parties Are Important

As I was trying to grow my business, I brought in an advisor and friend, Sheryl Golf, an author of several excellent books, including one about Birthday Parties. She not only convinced me to play games with the parties (and insisted that my party hosts play at least one game with each party), but she also introduced me to my favorite, #1 party game, which I will tell you about later. 

However, we will begin with my #7 choice and work our way down. Ideas for games come from various sources, including consultants, friends, educational sessions, the internet, and even your staff. Here are just a few of MY favorite ones.   

#7 – Cookie Face

Get some Oreos (my favorite) or another type of cookie. Give each kid one cookie. Tell them to lay their head back, place the cookie on their forehead, and then put their hands behind them. Now, without using their hands, they must move the cookie into their mouth.  

Bonus notes: This is an excellent game for all ages, and you have a built-in prize as they get to eat the cookie. 

It’s also a great game that can be played while sitting down, perfect for waiting on food, cake, or something else.   

#6 – Heads Up

Ellen DeGeneres made this game popular. I didn’t know about it until I saw a family play it while waiting in line at a theme park. The funny thing was that the entire line around them started playing and got involved. 

This is a great app that you can download onto your phone. You pick a category and then place the phone on your forehead. It’s like charades, where your team gives you clues, and you try to guess the word in your head. This game is suitable for all ages.  

#5 – The great wind blows the game

This game takes no supplies. It’s like musical chairs and a great icebreaker for your staff and team meetings. Everyone starts sitting in a chair except one person. This person stands in the middle. The person in the middle will say, “The great wind blows for everyone who…..” and then fill in the blank. If they say, “The great wind blows for everyone who likes chocolate,” then everyone who likes chocolate must get up and find a different chair that is more than two chairs away from them. Whoever is left standing will be the next person to come up with something. As a party host, be ready to help with this game. If guests are unsure what to say, have some ideas ready. 

#4 – Musical Chairs & Hula Hoop Squash

Musical chairs is a fun and straightforward game that everyone knows how to play. Hula Hoop Squash is a fun variation of musical chairs. You will need about five hula hoops set up in a circle. As the music starts, everyone will walk around the hula hoops. When the music stops, everyone has 30 seconds to rush to get into a hula hoop and hold it around their waist. Multiple people can stand in each hula hoop. After each round, remove one round and play again. The winners are everyone who manages to squeeze themselves into the last round at the end of the game.         

#3 – Pie Face

This is a fun game from Hasbro. Most places sell it for around $18, but you can use it for multiple parties once you buy it. This is an entertaining game, akin to Russian Roulette, with a twist: whipped cream. It has a place where you stick your face and a hand to put a dollop of whipped cream on, and then spin the wheel.  

Whatever number you get on the wheel is how many times you must turn the handle. At random intervals, the hand will release and give you a “pie” in the face. It’s an entertaining and inexpensive game that the kids will love.

#2 – Stinky Pig

This is another game you would need to purchase, but the cost is less than $10, and kids love it. It’s a fun variation of the classic game Hot Potato. Once you turn on the pig, he will start singing, “pop goes the weasel.” 

You roll the dice to see which direction to pass the pig. If you are holding the pig when it farts, you are out. It’s great fun for all ages and simple to understand.

#1 – Stuff It

I’m going to set the scene for you. At the end of a party at my center, nine-year-old party kids redeem their tickets at the redemption center. Several kids had already left, the bill was already paid, and their parents stood there with an utterly exhausted look (they just wanted to go home and likely have an adult beverage). I am walking around the center with Sheryl; she had talked to me earlier about playing party games and would show me how Stuff It worked. 

She approached these kids and said, “Wait…you can’t leave yet. We aren’t done yet. We have one more game to play.” At first, the kids rolled their eyes, and the parents tried to resist. You could see in the parents’ body language that they weren’t thrilled about staying another minute. But when it comes to Sheryl, resistance is futile. So, Sheryl broke out two HUGE, oversized bright yellow T-shirts with the words “STUFF IT” printed on the front. She divided the remaining kids into two teams and, due to the group size, recruited nearby staff members to assist. She put one huge shirt on the birthday kid and let him choose his best friend to put the other shirt on. Then she dumped out two large garbage bags full of balloons. 

The game aims to inflate as many balloons as possible up your team’s shirt before the time runs out. 

Adults and teens are the most entertaining to play this game with.  

Some other party tips –

Try to stack the deck. 

It’s better if you can help the birthday kids win since it’s their special day. Have prizes. Everyone likes winning a prize, even if it’s just a tiny piece of candy or a few tickets.  

Play party games out in public, not in a closed-up room. This is excellent advertising. If other parents and kids at your center see kids having a blast and your engaged party hosts, you are more likely to book other parties from that visual than if you play games in the party room.  

Be prepared with multiple game options. I was training a party host for a party I had planned and scheduled to play “Cookie Face.” As soon as the birthday child arrived, we noticed a physical deformity on his face. As a result, we had to change gears and choose a different game quickly. Because we were prepared with several game options, the birthday guests never knew we had to improvise from our original plan.

Get Them Involved

The best way to get kids to play party games with you is not to give them a choice. If you ask any kid, “Do you want to play a party game?” many, especially the older ones, will say “no.” It’s the same automatic reaction you get when you ask a party mom if she needs help carrying presents to her car. 9 out of 10 will say “no” IF you give them a choice. The trick is to word it in a way that doesn’t allow them to communicate “no.” If you go up to a bunch of kids and say with excitement, “come on…follow me…I have a surprise for you!” You are more likely to get participation than if you give them an option.

There are numerous game and activity options available online. You want to find simple and fun games for a wide age range. You don’t want to take too long. You usually use the game stall to entertain kids. This helps while waiting for their main attraction or food. Do an online search for Minute to Win It games. These are typically short, fun games that won’t require many supplies or preparation. Test out the games on your staff.  

Playing games with your guests will increase your guest satisfaction and employee satisfaction (and tips) and result in additional booked parties, increasing revenue.   

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