Have you set your volunteer training dates for the upcoming months?
One key element that people sometimes overlook is time for some fun games at their training.
Here are 10 games you can use at your upcoming training events. The purpose of these games is two-fold:
1. Get to know each other better.
2. Laugh and have fun together.
Look
Get everyone in circles of 6-8 people. Have them face each other. Have everyone bow their head and close their eyes. When you say, "Look" each person must look up and look at someone else in their circle. If 2 people are looking at each other, they are both out. Keep playing until there is only one person left.
p.s. As groups get smaller, combine them.
Make the point that every week our goal should be to look kids in the eyes and give them personal attention.
Sticker Stalker
Purchase a pack of stickers. Give everyone one sheet of 5 to 10 stickers (or less, depending on the size of the party).
This game works best at a party where everyone is mingling. Each person must discreetly place all their stickers on other party guests; the first to use all their stickers wins.
If they get caught "stickering" someone, they must accept a sticker. At the end of the evening, you can laugh about how sneaky some people are—and wonder how you ended up with stickers all over your back without even noticing.
Camera Hot Potato
Pick a phone to pass around the group. Set it to self-timer mode—10 seconds is best—and use regular photo mode, not selfie mode. Pass the phone around, with each person holding the phone up for a moment, posing for the camera. Pass until the photo is taken, then repeat. At the end, take a look at the (probably undignified) photos.
20 Questions
Pick one person to go first. That person will think of an item, animal, movie, public figure, etc. Everyone else will ask yes-or-no questions about what or who they are; they have 20 chances to guess, or the other person wins. Whoever guesses correctly can win a prize, or be the next to answer questions.
Remind team members of the importance of asking the kids questions so they can get to know them better.
Minute to Win It Games
If you've ever seen the TV game show, these are funny physical or mental challenges that people have to complete in under a minute (great for a lot of laughs). Think picking up Cheerios with a toothpick (and their mouths), reciting the alphabet backwards (without any mistakes!), sorting a big bowl of M&Ms or Skittles by color, or bouncing ping-pong balls into an egg carton.
Name That Tune
Simply turn on a song (nostalgic childhood tunes are always a hit) and see who can guess the name of the song the quickest. Keep score of who guesses the most right and hand out prizes to the top guesser at the end of the night.
Two Truths and a Lie
One person has to give three statements about themselves to the rest of the group. The trick is: all of the statements won’t be true—two of the statements given should be and one should be a lie.
After you’re finished, everyone should guess which statement they think you made up. Once everyone has made their guess, reveal which statement was your lie.
Charades
This is always a fun game to play. Divide everyone up into teams. Each team will send up one person to draw something or act out something. The person's team must guess what they are drawing or acting out in 60 seconds or less to win. Play as many rounds as time allows.
Heads or Tails?
Make one side of the room heads and the other side tails. Tell people to choose which side they want to be on and then go to that side.
Flip a coin. If it lands on tails, those people are out. If it lands on heads, those people are out. Keep going until only one person is left. That person is the winner. People can choose which side they want to get on before you flip the coin each time.
Would You Rather...
Pick one person at a time to play. Ask them two questions. Which would they choose to do? Make up silly, gross stuff for each question. The crazier the better.
I pray God's blessings on your volunteer trainings. Bring the fun factor in and your volunteers will want to come back again.
