Relay Games For Teenagers - Youth Workin' It

Great Balls Of Paper – Youth Group Games

July 29, 2013 By Stephen Pepper Leave a Comment

Newspaper Games If you want to play a fun youth group game that can be used in all kinds of ways, give Great Balls Of Paper a go.

It’s active, versatile and requires no preparation – here’s how to play it:

Resources

Loads of newspaper
Wastepaper baskets or buckets
Masking tape (optional)

Preparation

No preparation is necessary – perfect for when you need to switch from one youth group activity to another without having time in between to set up.

Location

This can be played indoors or outdoors.

Instructions

The basic instructions for this game are that you’ll have some young people holding a wastepaper basket on top of their head.

About 10-15 feet away from each of them, other youth will be standing with some newspaper. Their challenge is to scrunch up the paper and try to throw it into a basket.

Options

As we mentioned, this game is pretty versatile, so here are some different ways it can be played:

Upfront Game

Pick 6 or 8 young people to play this upfront and split them into pairs. One person from each pair will be the basket holder and the other will throw the newspaper

Relay Game

To get your entire youth group playing this, organize it as a relay game. Split them into teams, with the basket holders standing in a line.

Their teammates stand in a line and take it in turns to throw paper.

Rapid Fire

Split the youth into four teams. The teenagers holding the wastepaper baskets need to stand in the center of the playing area with their backs to each other, thereby facing in four different directions.

The rest of the players need to stand in a row in front of their teammate, effectively creating a square/diamond around the players in the center. When you say go, they have to start throwing the paper.

This means there’ll be loads of newspaper flying through the air at the same time. It also means that if they’re not careful, they might miss their team’s basket and fill up an opponent’s instead.

Tip

Use masking tape on the floor to indicate where the basket holders should stand, as well as to mark out a line that the throwers should stand behind.

Winners

There are also a couple of ways to choose a winner:

Time Limit – The winning team is the one who gets the most paper in their basket within a certain time limit
Target – The winners are the ones who are the first to get a set number of newspaper balls in their basket. This version will need volunteers keeping count so that you know who reached the target first.

If you liked this idea, check out all our newspaper games, along with all our other games for youth groups.

Question: What would you suggest to make Great Balls Of Paper even more fun? We’d love to hear your suggestions in the comments below.

You can also connect with us by:

Signing up to receive our posts via email
Following us on Twitter
Liking us on Facebook
Signing up to our RSS feed

Balloon Soccer Relay – Youth Group Games

July 15, 2013 By Stephen Pepper Leave a Comment

If you like to organize fun and competitive youth group games, here’s another one to add to your collection – the Balloon Soccer Relay.

This is a great relay game for teenagers, but can be played with young people and kids of any age. It’s therefore perfect for using even when you have a wide range of ages taking part in youth group activities.

Here’s how to play it:

Resources

Balloons
Cones
Masking tape

Location

This game can be played both indoors and outdoors, providing you have enough space to play. It’s best not to play outside on a windy day though, as otherwise the balloons can blow everywhere.

Preparation

Blow up the balloons – do one for every team and have a few spare just in case any burst during the game.

At one end of the playing area, lay out a line of masking tape – this will be the starting line. Alternatively, you can use a line of cones if you have enough of them.

In a parallel line about 20-30 feet away, make another row of cones. There should be one cone per team and they should be about 5 feet apart.

Teams

Split the youth group into same-sized teams, ideally with at least four people on each team.

If you have a small group and so only have enough players for two or three on each team, have the teams do the relay two or three times round to make the game last a little longer.

Balloon Soccer Relay Rules

Have the teenagers line up behind the masking tape (and with a cone in front of them at the other end) and give the first person in each team a balloon.

Explain that they have to kick the balloon like a soccer ball from the start line, around their cone and then kick it back to the start line. The next person on their team then has to do the same thing and so on.

The only part of the body they’re allowed to use is from their knee down – no hands allowed!

Winner

The winning team is the one that has all their players complete the relay game first.

Difficulty Level

If you want to make the Balloon Soccer Relay harder to play, here are a couple of ways you can do this:

Make players use their right foot to kick the balloon up to the cone and then their left foot to kick it back
Add extra cones along each team’s course that they have to dribble the balloon round, like it’s a soccer drill

If you liked this idea check out all our relay games, as well as all our other games that are great for using with youth groups.

Question: How could you make the Balloon Soccer Relay even more fun – or difficult? We’d love to hear your ideas in the comments below.

You can also connect with us by:

Signing up to receive our posts via email
Following us on Twitter
Liking us on Facebook
Signing up to our RSS feed

Back To Back Balloon Relay – Youth Group Games

July 1, 2013 By Stephen Pepper Leave a Comment

This week’s addition to our youth group games is a fun and challenging relay game for teenagers.

It’s also a great way of encouraging team building between your young people by having them work together towards a common goal, in both pairs and as part of a team.

Here’s how to play the Back To Back Balloon Relay:

Resources

Balloons
Cones / chairs

Location

If you have a large enough room, this can be played indoors. If playing outdoors, it’s best to play this on a grassy area rather than in a parking lot or anywhere else that has a concrete floor.

Preparation

Blow up the balloons – you’ll need one per team, plus a few spares just in case any burst
Mark out a line at one end of the room using some cones or chairs – one for each team. Leave about 5 feet between each one so that players have enough room to move without bumping into each other
At the other end of the room (or 20-30 feet away), lay out a duplicate row of cones or chairs that’s parallel with the other line

Teams

Split the youth group into smaller teams – the same number of teams as you have cone lanes. Ideally, you’ll want to have an even number of players on each team.

Have each team group themselves into pairs – they’ll probably find it easiest if they’re paired by similar height.

Instructions

Give the first pair in each team a balloon. Have them stand back to back and put the balloon between their backs – they may need a teammate to help with this.

When you say ‘Go’, they have to walk to the other end, around the cone or chair and then back to their team, with the balloon staying between their backs the entire time.

Once they’ve made it back to their teammates, the next pair has to do the same thing, and so on.

Back To Back Balloon Relay Rules

If the balloon drops to the ground, they have to stop where they are, place it between their backs again and only then can they continue.

If the balloon bursts, they have to return to the start line and get another balloon from you.

Too Easy?

If the youth group finds this game a little too easy, play it again but set an additional rule that if the balloon drops to the floor, that pair has to return to the start line and try again.

Too Difficult?

If you think your young people may struggle with coordinating with their partner, give them a couple of minutes before you start playing to come up with a strategy.

(n.b. The best way to make sure they walk with the same rhythm is to have one person in each pair say ‘Step, step, step’ as they’re walking along, so that they keep sidestepping at the same pace.)

Safety

Your youth will be trying to complete this game as quickly as possible, while potentially being off balance while doing it.

If you’re playing inside, it’s therefore best to move anything that could cause an injury if they lost their balance and fell onto it. This is why it’s also best played on grass if you’re going to be doing it outdoors, rather than in a parking lot.

Winner

The team that has all their pairs complete the course first.

If you liked this youth group game idea, check out all our other relay games for teenagers.

Question: Can you think of any ways to make this balloon relay even more fun? We’d love to hear your suggestions in the comments below.

You can also connect with us by:

Signing up to receive our posts via email
Following us on Twitter
Liking us on Facebook
Signing up to our RSS feed

Water Balloon Challenge – Youth Group Games

June 3, 2013 By Stephen Pepper Leave a Comment

This week we have another water game for youth groups – one that’s designed to make a big splash! Here’s how to play this water balloon challenge:

Resources

Water balloons
Buckets – one per team
Colanders – one per team
Cones or ropes
Towels

Location

This is definitely one of those youth group games that you’ll want to play outside due to how wet it’s going to get.

Preparation

Fill up all of the water balloons and put them in buckets of water to prevent them from bursting early. Provide at least 20 balloons per team (more for larger teams).

Make a line using cones or a piece of rope and put the buckets of water balloons along the line, evenly spaced out. Make a parallel line about 20 feet away with some more cones or rope and put the colanders along the line. The colanders should be directly opposite the buckets of balloons at the other end of the playing area.

Teams

Split the teenagers into teams, ideally ones that are the same size.

Water Balloon Challenge Rules

Have each team designate one of their members as catcher – this is the person who’ll be getting soaked, so you might want to give them the heads up about that before they decide!

Each catcher should go and stand next to one of the colanders. Have the rest of the players stand behind the other line, with each team next to one of the water balloon buckets and facing the catchers.

The catchers should then hold the colander on top of their head, while their teammates take it in turns to throw the water balloons in the air towards them. Their challenge is to try to catch the balloon in the colander without stepping over their line.

It doesn’t matter that the balloons will burst in the colander, just so long as they landed in there.

Winners

The team that manages to catch the most balloons – it’s therefore worth allocating one volunteer per team to count how many get caught.

Alternative

If you want to make sure that everyone has an opportunity to get wet, play this as a water relay instead.

You can do this by having one person from each team start as catcher and getting one of their teammates to throw a balloon at them. The catcher then runs to the back of his team’s line, while the thrower becomes the catcher.

Keep rotating like this so that everyone has a few opportunities to be both the thrower and catcher.

Question: Have you ever played this Water Balloon Challenge or something like it? Do you have any ideas for how to make it even more fun? We’d love to hear your ideas in the comments below.

You can also connect with us by:

Signing up to receive our posts via email
Following us on Twitter
Liking us on Facebook
Signing up to our RSS feed

Marshmallow Toss – Youth Group Games

April 8, 2013 By Stephen Pepper Leave a Comment

This week’s addition to our series of youth group games is the Marshmallow Toss. It’s a fun and flexible relay game that can be used with just a handful of youth or with a larger group.

Here’s how to play the Marshmallow Toss:

Resources

Marshmallows
Buckets
Masking tape

Preparation

Stick a line of masking tape on the floor. About 15 feet away, place the buckets on the floor in a line that’s parallel to the tape, with about 2-3 feet of space between the buckets.

Teams

Split the youth into similar sized teams, with the same number of teams that you have buckets. If you only have a small youth group, have them play individually instead.

For extremely large groups, having all the young people participating may not be feasible. Instead, play this game up front – with either just a few youth playing against each other or with two teams of five players playing it as a relay.

Marshmallow Toss Rules

Get the teams to line up behind the tape with a bucket in front of them and give the first person on each team a pack of marshmallows.

Their task is to toss the marshmallows in to the bucket. They should to this by taking it in turns by playing it as a relay game, thereby ensuring everyone gets a go.

Winner

The winning team is the one that successfully tosses the most marshmallows into their bucket.

Alternatives

If your group would find the above version too easy, here are a couple of more difficult ways of playing the Marshmallow Toss:

Use mini marshmallows and small plastic cups instead of regular sized marshmallows and buckets. Place a small stone in the bottom of each cup to weigh them down so that they don’t get knocked over
Place the buckets farther away if you have enough space in your group’s room

If you liked this idea, check out all our other games for youth groups, including a number of marshmallow games.

Question: What other alternative ways of playing the Marshmallow Toss can you think of? Let us know in the comments below.

You can also connect with us by:

Signing up to receive our posts via email
Following us on Twitter
Liking us on Facebook
Signing up to our RSS feed