Youth Workin' It

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10 Water Games For Youth – Youth Group Games

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Water Games For Youth
Image courtesy of Jackson Romie, Flickr

Last week, we gave you a list of 10 activities that you can do for free with your youth group this summer. The first suggestion on that list was to organize a giant water fight.

If you’d prefer to organize some wet games and activities that are a bit more structured than just a free-for-all, here are 10 fun youth group water games.

There are brief descriptions of each of the game ideas below, along with links to posts that give step-by-step instructions and rules for each one.

Enjoy!

10 Water Games For Youth

  1. Waterface – This relay game is a surefire way of making sure that all your young people get soaked – particularly their faces.
  2. Spongehead – The first game involves the students’ heads getting wet while laying down – Spongehead has their heads (and the rest of their body) getting wet while upright and running around.
  3. Water Balloon Relay – Water relay games are one of the best ways of ensuring all your young people have a chance to get wet – this balloon relay is no exception. Make sure you video this game being played as it’ll be hilarious, with youth waddling, shuffling and crawling their way through the relay.
  4. Water Balloon Toss – This idea is similar to The Egg Toss – the youth group game classic that involves young people tossing eggs to each other and trying to catch them without breaking. Same thing here, but using water balloons instead of eggs.
  5. Bowl Hole – This is a fast and frantic water relay, with an option to make it a little like Spongehead to ensure that the youth get really soaked.
  6. Water Balloon Dodgeball – This idea doesn’t have many rules – it’s basically dodgeball with water balloons.
  7. Human Battleship – This one doesn’t necessarily involve water, but it’s fun to throw water over the young people when the battleships (i.e. them!) get hit.
  8. Water Balloon Baseball – You might think it would be impossible to hit a home run when playing baseball with water balloons. You’d be wrong! Check out the post for how this works.
  9. Water Balloon Challenge – The challenge involves teams throwing the balloons and one of their teammates trying to catch them in a bowl on their head. The only question is how many ‘accidental’ wayward throws will there be?!
  10. Water Balloon Hot Potato – This one’s fairly self-explanatory as well – it’s like a wet version of hot potato. I’d encourage playing the Ultimate version of it where you use more than one balloon and allow random passing.

Question: So those are our 10 suggestions of water games for youth. Do you have any other ideas for similar youth group games? We’d love to hear them in the comments below.

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Who Am I? 5 Youth Group Activities About Identity

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Who Am I Activities
Help your youth tackle the meaty question of “Who Am I?”

The teenage years are an extremely formative time in a young person’s life and it can often result in them asking questions about their identity, wondering “Who am I?”

This week’s youth work session plan therefore has ideas for five “Who am I?” activities you can organize to start exploring this subject further.

Activity 1 – Mind Mapping

Give each of your young people several sheets of paper and a pen and have them write “Who am I?” in the center of each of the pages.

Get them to do a series of mind maps where they write down who they perceive themselves to be in various areas of life. Spend a few minutes on each of the following mind map topics:

  • Relationships – List all the different relationship roles that they have, such as brother, son, grandson, nephew, student, employee, boyfriend, etc.
  • Cultural – List cultural aspects of their life like religion / faith, ethnicity, language, nationality, etc.
  • Likes – List their favorite activities, hobbies, music, sports, TV shows, etc.
  • Dislikes – List the activities, music, sports, TV shows, etc. that they don’t care for
  • Hopes – List things that they want to do in the future, such as jobs, how many kids they want, going skydiving, etc.

Your more creative young people will prefer to visualize these rather than simply writing their answers down. Therefore, have colored pens or pencils on hand so that they can draw /sketch / doodle their answers instead.

Activity 2 – Compare & Contrast

With their mind maps in hand, have them go around the room and compare who they are with the other young people. Who do they have most in common with? Are they surprised by what they find?

The similarities will help your young people find common ground, something that’s particularly useful if you’re in the forming stage of a new youth group. If any find that they don’t have much in common with the other youth, celebrate the differences with them too as it means your youth group is more diverse.

Activity 3 – Fan Mail

This activity is good for groups of young people who know each other quite well. Instead of asking “Who am I?”, Fan Mail asks “Who am I in other people’s eyes?” from a positive viewpoint.

You can find a description of how to do the Fan Mail activity here, along with several other self esteem youth group activities.

Activity 4 – Christian Identity

If you’re a Christian youth group, this fourth activity asks the “Who am I?” question from the perspective of who the Bible says we are.

Give your young people the list of 10 Bible verses below (minus the answers in red!) Have them look in their Bibles to find out their true identity. n.b. all of these verses are taken from the NIV translation, so you may need to amend if using a different translation.

  1. Ephesians 2:10 – For we are ____________________, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. God’s handiwork
  2. 2 Corinthians 5:17 – Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the ____________________ has come – the old has gone, the new is here! New creation
  3. Romans 8: 37 – No, in all these things we are ____________________ through him who loved us. More than conquerors
  4. 1 John 3:1 – See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called ____________________. Children of God
  5. Philippians 3:20 – But our ____________________ is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ. Citizenship
  6. 1 John 4:4 – You, dear children, are ____________________ and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. From God
  7. Romans 8:1 – Therefore, there is now ____________________ for those who are in Christ Jesus. No condemnation (i.e. they’re not condemned)
  8. John 15:15 – I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you ____________________, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. Friends
  9. 2 Corinthians 5:20 – We are therefore ____________________, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. Christ’s ambassadors
  10. Romans 8:17 – Now if we are children, then we are ____________________ — ____________________ of God and co-____________________ with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. Heirs

Activity 5 – Who Are You?

The final activity will need a little preparation as you need photos of all your young people. If you have a fairly consistent turnout of the same young people, take their photos a week or two before and get them printed in the meantime.

If you’re less sure about who’ll be there the week when you’re running these “Who am I?” activities, see if you can get your hands on a photo printer and photo paper so that you can print them off there and then. Alternatively, recruit an errand person just for this session – take photos of your young people and then send them off to the local Target or Walmart (or whatever you have in your country) to get 1 hour photos printed and returned in time to finish this off.

On the back of the photos, write “Who are you?” at the top, then write “You are……” and list several positive statements and character traits about each young person. This will therefore be similar to the Fan Mail activity listed above, only this time it’s you rather than their peers who’s giving them the feedback. If possible, include your volunteers by having them write something positive about each young person too.

The back of the photo may therefore read something like:

Who Are You?

You are……

  • Generous
  • Kind
  • Always helping to tidy up
  • An encourager
  • A great singer

At the end of the session, give them each their photo to take home with them. They’ll be sure to treasure both this and the sheet of fan mail.

Question: What “Who am I?” youth group activities have you organized? Please share your ideas and experiences in the comments below.

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Judging People By Their Appearance – Youth Work Session Idea

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Judging people by their appearanceA problem that affects all of us, no matter how hard we try, is judging people by their appearance. For young people, the desire to fit in at school and in social groups can sometimes lead them to make fun of people based on their looks.

This week’s youth work session plan idea addresses this issue by using a music video to challenge youth in their perceptions of others. We’ve then provided a number of discussion questions to get your young people thinking more deeply about how they judge people and how to change their behavior accordingly.

Some of the questions also have your youth self-reflecting about their own appearance and how they’ve been treated by others. They may therefore feel uncomfortable talking about this in front of their peers, so consider having them write down their answers. These don’t even have to be shared with you, as simply reflecting on this and writing their thoughts down could be beneficial for them. If they’re happy for you to read their answers though, this will help give you some insight into where they’re at.

Warning regarding content on the video:

  • One case of bad language at the beginning about 15 seconds in
  • Someone who sticks two fingers up (the UK equivalent of giving someone the middle finger) about 35 seconds in
  • Short fight scene

You may therefore not feel that this video is suitable for your youth group, particularly if you work with middle school students.

 

Kodaline – All I Want

Discussion Questions

  1. At the beginning of the video, the girl screams when she sees him. Do you think this would have been the first time this happened to him?
  2. How do you think he would have felt by her initial reaction?
  3. Just after that, why do you think the other guy pretended to be a monster?
  4. All his work colleagues keep staring at him. What do you think it would feel like to have this happen to you?
  5. At other times, he seems to be invisible. Have you ever felt ignored by people you know?
  6. If so, how did that feel?
  7. He looks unhappy when he sees his reflection in the window. Do you ever feel that way when looking in the mirror?
  8. Later in the video, he holds the door of the elevator for her but she pretends she’s forgotten something. Why do you think she does this?
  9. Do you think she’s thinking about how her actions will make him feel?
  10. Does his dog judge him by his appearance?
  11. He has great artistic ability. Would you know that by looking at him?
  12. He has a photo of his mother looking at him as a baby, with a happy smile on her face. How do you think she felt about him?
  13. How do you think he felt when someone wrote that he was the “World’s greatest freak” on his coffee mug?
  14. Have you or any of your friends ever made fun of someone’s appearance?
  15. If so, how do you think it made them feel?
  16. Why do you think the girl’s perception of him changed?
  17. What do you think she realized?
  18. At the end of the video, she gives him her phone number and kisses him on the cheek. Do you think this is why he’s so happy, or could it be because someone’s looked past his appearance and seen who he is inside?
  19. Other than what his face looks like, does he seem to be different to anyone else in the office?
  20. Being honest, if you knew somebody who looked like this, how do you think you would treat them?

Church Youth Groups

If you’re showing this video with a church youth group, here are some Bible passages that relate to not judging people by their appearance:

  • 1 Samuel 16: 7 – But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.’
  • Galatians 5: 22-23 – But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (n.b. Although not about judging others by their appearance, this passage links to the passage from 1 Samuel about the Lord looking at the heart, focusing on what’s important) 
  • Matthew 7: 1-2 – Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way as you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
  • James 2: 1-4 – My brothers, as believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, don’t show favoritism. Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in shabby clothes also comes in. If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, “Here’s a good seat for you,” but say to the poor man, “You stand there” or “Sit on the floor by my feet,” have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?
  • James 2: 12-13 – Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment!

For a different take on judging people by their appearance, check out this post on Turning Point’s blog.

Question: Have you ever run a session about judging people by their appearance? How did you address the issue? We’d love it if you’d share your experience in the comments below to help other youth workers in the future.

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Good Team Building Activities For Teenagers

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Team building activities for teenagersQ: I’m working with a new group of youth – what are some good team building activities for teenagers?

A: Often, at the start of a new group or after major changes (graduation, new youth worker coming in or a significant rift/trauma within the group, etc), it can be beneficial to spend significant time, energy and resources doing team building activities before moving on to or back to ‘regularly scheduled programming.’

There are three ways you can build team cohesion and help develop your youth group further. Some require little or no money and very little time; some require a bit more time and money while others require a significant contribution of time and money.

Option 1 – Limited Time and Resources

You can just add some team building games into your regular programming. Take a few minutes at the start of every session to play a game and take the time to reflect together.

Most of the following games require little or no preparation and utilize items that are readily available in most organizations or at your home:

Take it a step further

You can combine a few activities and icebreakers to create an entire session of team building activities that work well with teenagers and can dovetail into your regular programming.

Option 2 – Some Time and Resources

Through fundraising, or having the youth contribute small amounts of money, you could plan an overnight lock-in focused on team building and group bonding. Watch films, play games, do team building activities and create memories.

Take it a step further

Hold a team building youth retreat that takes place over an entire 2-3 day weekend. Organize team building activities, do all the fun activities you could provide at a lock-in and include small group sessions that allow teens to explore social and emotional issues – this will allow them to get to know one another better. You may even want to include a community service project to help the students create camaraderie while helping others.

Option 3 – More Time and Resources

Go on a residential or week long overnight team building camp. You can go to activity centers where you choose and lead your own activities or there are others that have programs led by the center staff based on the types of skills you’re working to build. These can be pricey and require more time, so consider fundraising efforts, grants and scholarships.

Take it a step further

With the help of fundraising and/or youth contributions, take your teenagers on a week-long mission trip or service project overseas. This will take some time, but the planning stages also help with team building.

Activities that you do there can help youth learn more about themselves, about other cultures and about each other. They may also learn a new skill in the process!

Other Ideas

For even more great activities, check out our other site for some great team building scavenger hunt ideas.

Question: What team building activities for teenagers do you use? Give your thoughts in the comments below.

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