Games - Jumonville



Games

Games can be enjoyed by people of all ages. The games in this section relate specifically to the daily themes in some way. Remember that it is always a good idea to stop a game when it is at its peak rather than after everyone is getting tired of it. Also, it is advisable to proactively meet any safety measures appropriate for each game.

Age-level coding

Each game is recommended for use with specific age levels. To find out which games are best suited to your group, look for the letter corresponding to the age level of your group. Feel free to adapt an activity for use with your group. The Bible study writer for each age level has contributed two games for each daily theme. The coding letter in bold type indicates the source of the game.

P = Preschool

L = Lower elementary

U = Upper elementary

J = Junior high

S = Senior high

A = Adult

I = Intergenerational

DAY 1: Abraham

Bible text

Genesis 17:1-8 (Covenant with Abraham)

Star jumping

P L I

Materials: Card stock, scissors

Cut out two large stars from a piece of card stock and place them on the ground about 2 feet apart. Have campers form a line behind the two stars and instruct them to jump from one star to the other. After all campers in the line have gone through, add about 1 to 2 feet of distance between the stars. Have campers jump from one star to the other again. Repeat this process adding more distance with each round.

Count the stars

P L I

Materials: Large rope, index cards, marker, star stickers

Preparation: Create 2 sets of index cards. One set should consist of 10 cards with the numerals 1-10 written on them (one number on each card), then the other set should have star stickers on them (1 star through 10 stars).

Create a play area using a large rope. Scatter the numeral cards on the ground around the playing space, and then line campers up at the entrance of your play area. Give each camper a card with stars, and ask them to count how many stars they have. When it is their turn to enter the play area, they need to go find the card with the matching number written on it, pick up the card, then run with both cards back out of play area. Play this game a few times to give campers practice with different numbers. For older preschool groups, add the extra challenge of timing the group as they all gather their cards.

Optional: Tape the numeral cards to sticks and stick them in the ground. Clip a clothespin to each and have campers clip their cards on to the numeral cards before running out of the circle.

Choosing colors

P L

Materials: Four towels, pieces of construction paper or (baseball) bases in four different colors, a blindfold

Place the four towels so that they are 10 to 20 feet [3 to 6 m] apart. Put one piece of colored paper or a base on each towel. Ask for a volunteer and blindfold her or him. Have the volunteer sit in the middle between all four towels. Explain that the rest of the campers need to go and stand on one of the towels. Once they have done so, have the volunteer call out a color. Anyone who is on that color then goes and sits in the middle with the volunteer. The remaining campers then run around and go to a different towel. When everyone has chosen a spot, tell the volunteer to call out another color. Any campers that have chosen to stand on that color then go and sit in the middle. Continue playing until everyone is sitting in the middle.

Group tag

P L U J S A I

Ask for a volunteer to be “it” in a game of tag. Explain that when they tag someone, they will then hold hands with that person and be “it” together. Play continues in this way, with “it” getting bigger and bigger until everyone is holding hands.

Share the love

P L U J S A I

Materials: Clothespins that clip

Give each camper approximately five clothespins. Tell campers that the goal of the game is to give their clothespins away by clipping them to the clothing of other campers. Campers will run in the designated game area, giving away their clothespins. As campers receive new clothespins, they can also remove these and continue giving them away. Play for a specific amount of time.

When the time limit has ended, have campers count to see how many clothespins they ended with. Have a discussion about how we are called to share God’s love.

Honey, if you love me

U J S A

Have campers stand in a circle. Have one or two campers stand in the middle of the circle. The campers on the inside of the circle approach campers and say the phrase “Honey, if you love me, won’t you please, please smile?” Campers try to respond with the phrase “Honey, I love you, but I just can’t smile,” while refraining from smiling. If the camper is unable to do so, he or she switches places and now must go ask another camper this same question until he or she can get someone to smile. This game does not have a clear “winner,” but will create laughter and encourage participation among the whole group. You may want to tell campers that they can’t tickle or touch one another during this game, keeping personal space in mind. When done, you might have a discussion about love. What different types of love are campers familiar with? How is God’s love similar or different?

All hail the king/queen

L U J S A I

Materials: Playground balls for dodgeball

Set up the game like dodgball with one person acting as the king or queen. Only the king or queen can throw the balls, but make sure there are enough balls for all the campers. Once a camper is hit, they kneel and yell, “All hail the queen (king).” Campers now stand up and help the royalty get everyone else out, but they cannot move once they have the ball in hand.

Quick line up

L U J S A I

Split your group into four even teams. This might be a good game in which to invite another cabin group to join you. Each team forms a line to make a square of the entire group, with one team forming each side of the square. One person is in the middle. The person in the middle moves around and each time they do, the square needs to be reformed around them. When your whole team is in place, they yell “quick line up” and put their hands on their knees. At this point the person in the middle moves to a new location for the square to follow.

Sign your name

L U J S A

Material: Pen

Tell campers that the group will write a covenant together. Pick up a pen and scribble with it in the air. Then ask, “Who would like to sign the covenant?” Anyone can volunteer. Hand the volunteer camper the pen and tell her or him to sign the covenant. The camper will scribble randomly in the air. Say something like, “Hmm. Your pen doesn’t seem to be working. Let me try.” Take the pen back from the camper and say, “Thank you.” Then ask for a new volunteer.

The trick of the game is for the receiver to say “Thank You” when he or she is handed the pen. If a camper says, “Thank you” when receiving the pen, accept the signature on the imaginary covenant.

If campers aren’t catching on, say, “Thank you” louder and with more emphasis when you are handed the pen back. You can also have any camper that has noticed the trick sign the covenant again (to give another chance for “Thank you” to be heard), by saying something like, “Oh, you forgot to add your last name.”

Blanket drop

L U J S A I

Material: Large blanket

Divide the group into two teams. Have teams stand in a line on opposite sides of a blanket. Hold up the blanket so that the teams cannot see each other. The teams should be in a line perpendicular to the blanket. Drop the blanket. The two campers in the front of one line attempt to say the name of the opposite camper first. If the head of one line successfully says the opponent’s name first, the opponent must join the winner’s team. The goal is to get everyone on your team by being quick at calling out names. Make sure all campers get a chance to be at the front of the line; do this by having the person in front go to the back of the line when his or her turn is done.

Egg-chicken-dinosaur-superhero

A I

Before playing make sure everyone knows how to play “Rock, paper, scissors.” The progression for this game is: Egg/Chicken/Dinosaur/Superhero. Each morph has its own sound effect and action. Have campers come up with an action and sound for each group.

Each participant starts as an Egg and pairs up to play “Rock, Paper, Scissors” (RPS). The person who wins the game will evolve into a Chicken (making the action and sound of a chicken) and the loser must remain an Egg (making the action and sound of the egg).

All Eggs must find another Egg or Superhero to play RPS. All Chickens must find another Chicken to play. If a Chicken loses they must turn back into an Egg! If a Chicken wins, it morphs into a Dinosaur. If a Dinosaur loses, they turn back into a Chicken! If a Chicken wins, it morphs into a Superhero! Only an Egg can challenge a Superhero. If a Superhero loses, it becomes an Egg! If an Egg wins, it morphs into a Chicken.

Everybody is it

L U J S A I

Find a large open area to play, free of tripping hazards. Have campers spread out over the playing area. Count down from three to start the round. A camper who is tagged must sit down. Seated campers are back in the game when the person who tagged them is tagged. If two people tag at the same time, it is considered a tie and neither side sits down.

Day 2: Israel

Bible text

Exodus 17:1-7 (Water in the wilderness)

Wandering, wandering, water!

P L U J S A I

Materials: Cup, water

Have campers sit in a circle and ask for one camper to be Moses. Give Moses a cup that is about half full of water. Have him/her walk around the outside of the circle and sprinkle a few drops on people, saying: “wandering, wandering, wandering, etc.” When Moses is ready, he/she may dump the remaining water in the cup on someone and yell: “WATER!” The person Moses dumped the water on then runs around to chase Moses until Moses sits down again in his/her original spot.

Water race

P L U J S A I

Materials: Large bucket, two smaller buckets, water, cups, bowls, spoons

Set out a large bucket filled with water in addition to two smaller buckets. Give campers a mixture of cups, bowls, and spoons. Tell campers you will time them to see how long it takes them to get all of the water from the big bucket into their two smaller buckets. Challenge them to do this as fast as possible. For an older group, you may want to consider dividing campers in to two teams and letting them race to see whose bucket has more water after a certain amount of time.

Sponge tag

L U J S A I

Materials: Big soft sponge, bucket of water

Choose one camper to be “it.” “It” tries to tag others by throwing the wet sponge. Anyone who gets hit by the sponge is then “it.” Refill the sponge occasionally by putting it in the bucket of water.

How many hoops?

U J S A

Materials: Two hula hoops, tennis balls

Divide your group into two teams and the playing field into two areas. Scatter a large number of tennis balls in the first area. Have the teams stand in the second area. Give each team a hula hoop.

Explain that the goal of the game is to get as many tennis balls as possible into your team’s hula hoop in 30 seconds. They may place the hula hoop any place in the second area. Campers may touch only one tennis ball at a time. Once a ball is picked up, it cannot touch the ground outside of the hoop.

Play a couple rounds and count how many tennis balls each team gets in their hoop at the end of the time limit. Note any comments about winning or being superior to the other team. Note also the strategies used by the teams (for example, placing the hoop as close as possible to the balls, throwing the balls from one team member to another).

After a couple of rounds, suggest that there is something they are missing in accomplishing the goal effectively. Challenge campers to come up with a way to get even more balls into their team’s hoop. If they don’t come up with the solution, suggest that they stack the hoops. Then both teams will be working together and each will have more balls inside the hoop. Give it a try.

Then discuss the following:

What happened when you saw this as a competition?

The instructions were to get as many balls into your team’s hoop as possible. Why do you think you didn’t think of stacking the hoops?

How is this game similar to life?

What are some of the ways we can live in abundance, trusting that we’ll have enough—instead of in scarcity or with a “gimme” attitude?

Living H20

L U J S A I

For this activity, be sure to have campers wear bathing suits or clothing they can get wet! Have all campers sit facing each other in a circle. Have campers pass around a plastic bucket with their hands. Then have campers pass the bucket with their feet. Next have campers turn back to back and pass the bucket with their feet. Then fill the bucket with water and challenge campers to pass the bucket without spilling. (You can choose how you want them to pass the bucket, depending on your group.) This activity can be even more fun if you allow your group to spill whatever water remains on you! After you and your group dry off, discuss the following:

Have you ever been thirsty?

What are people “thirsty” for other than water?

Ask your campers if they are familiar with the slang term “thirsty” (used as a synonym for greedy).

What does Jesus mean when he talks about living water?

Hagoo

L U J S A

Campers make two even lines facing each other, so now there are two teams. One player from each team, standing on opposite ends of the line, shouts, “Hagoo” while bowing and taunting one another. The players then walk toward and past one another without smiling, giggling, or laughing. The teams can try to make the opposite team members burst into laughter. If someone from either side cracks a smile, giggles, or laughs, they join the line of the opposite team. The game ends when there is one team left and everyone has giggled and laughed abundantly.

Everyone’s it

P L U J S A I

Create boundaries for your game. Everyone is it! When tagged on the arm or back, campers kneel and wait until the camper who tagged them is down. Then they may resume playing the game. Play until one person has gotten everyone out, or until it’s time for another activity.

Lost in the wilderness

U J S

Materials: Hula hoop (for group of ten or fewer) or large rope shaped into a circle (for a larger group)

Place a circle on the ground using a rope or hula hoop. Have the campers stand in a circle around it. Hold hands. The goal is to get people out by pulling or pushing them into the circle—a.k.a. “wilderness.” If you touch the hula hoop or rope with your body or step inside it, you’re out. You can jump over the circle. You and the person next to you (who you’re holding hands with) are also out if you let go of hands. Play a few practice rounds before actually enforcing an “out.” Feel free to use a “safe word” that will make everyone stop moving if safety becomes a concern.

Protect God’s people

L U J S A I

Have campers form a circle, leaving out two people who are “it.” Give the circle a minute of whispering (don’t let the “it” people hear) to decide on two people in the circle who will be God’s people (GP’s). Those who are “it” must then try to tag only the GP’s, but they won’t know who they are at first. The circle must stay linked by holding hands and try to protect the GP’s by continually moving and turning the circle. Soon enough, “it” people will be able to tell who the GP’s are. When those who are “it” succeed in tagging the GP’s, play again with new God’s people and “it” people.

Nature’s scavenger hunt

P L U J S A I

Materials: List of open items to collect (see below for ideas), containers to hold the items collected, pencil

Divide the group into teams and give each team a list of items to collect and a container to carry the items. Before they disperse to collect the items, remind campers that all items need to be nonliving. After teams collect the items, they return back to the area to show what each group collected.

Sample items for the list: (add more as you get creative ideas!)

Collect an item that is fuzzy.

Collect an item that shows God’s love.

Find a sticky item.

Get signatures of four people not in your group.

Find something shiny.

Collect a wooden item.

Draw a picture of the cook.

Find an item that God created to help others.

Help someone in need.

Pick up ten pieces of trash.

Fainted goat

A I

Pick one camper to be the farmer. Have the rest of the group lay down, facing up, with eyes open.

They are the “fainted goats.” The farmer’s job is to revive the goats by making them laugh without touching them. As the goats laugh, they become farmers and must revive other goats. The last unrevived goat becomes the farmer for the next round.

DAY 3: Ruth

Bible text

Ruth 1:1-18 (Ruth and Naomi)

Find my family

P L U I

Material: Parachute

Evenly distribute campers around a large parachute. Choose one camper to crawl on top of the parachute and close her/his eyes, then have two to three other campers volunteer to pretend to be the first camper’s family and instruct them to crawl under the parachute. Immediately after they are under, instruct the rest of the campers who are lined up around the parachute to begin to make medium sized waves. After waves have begun, the campers who are under the parachute are to crawl around, while the camper who is on top of the parachute is to crawl around until she/he has touched all of the family members who were sent under the parachute. Give campers the chance to be in multiple roles throughout your play session.

Gather them, sort them

P L I

Materials: Four hula hoops, bucket or basket, four different colored balls

Lay out four hula hoops in the four corners of your play area. Place a bucket or basket containing sets of four different colored balls in the center of the play area (you’ll want about 20 balls total).

For round 1 of the game, campers need to work together to sort all of the balls by color. Each hula hoop in the corner should hold a different color.

For round 2 of the game, campers should work together to gather all of the balls in the center bucket again.

Round 3: Place a numeral card from Monday’s “Count the Stars” game in each hoop and have campers work together to put the correct number of balls in each hoop.

Round 4: Gather the balls again.

Round 5: Place a star card from Monday’s “Count the Stars” game in each hoop and have campers work together to put the correct number of balls in each hoop.

Round 6: Gather the balls.

Helping heart hunt

P L U I

Materials: Construction paper in three different colors, scissors

Optional: markers or crayons

Preparation: Cut hearts out of construction paper so that you have at least one heart of each color for each camper. Hide the hearts without campers knowing.

Optional: Write Bible verses about friendship on each heart and have campers look up the verses after they have found the hearts.

Tell campers that you are going to have a heart hunt, and give the boundaries of where they can go to look for the hearts. Explain that there are three different colors of hearts, and each person is supposed to end up with three hearts, one of each color. Before campers start looking, tell them that they must help one another by finding hearts for each other. When camper finds a heart, they are supposed to find someone else who needs that color. The hunt will be over when each person has a heart of each color.

Blanket volleyball

L U J S A I

Materials: Volleyball net or rope tied between two trees, a large playground ball, two blankets of equal size

Divide the group into two teams and give each team a blanket. Explain that each team is supposed to work together to toss the ball over the net or rope, using the blanket. When the ball reaches the other side, the other team must work together to catch it and toss it over again. If campers are having a difficult time, stop play and talk about how they might work together in order to be more successful. Mix up the teams every few minutes so all campers get a chance to work together.

Where’s Sam?

U J S A I

When the good Samaritan saw the man on the road, he stopped and helped him. Others just walked by or didn’t take the time to stop, but the good Samaritan was different.

This game will challenge campers to be observant of the people and things around them. Have a staff member be “Good Sam.” You might consider having this individual wear a hat and black rimmed glasses like Waldo of “Where’s Waldo?” Campers will try and find “Good Sam,” who is hiding somewhere at camp. When campers find “Good Sam,” they will receive a signature. “Good Sam” can relocate at any time. The campers with the most signatures at the end of the game win. Another twist on this game would be to have “Good Sam” look-alikes. If you don’t have extra staff to hide, consider having “Good Sam” be a picture(s). Campers could find the picture(s) and then bring it/them to an “innkeeper.”

Good Sam relay

P L U I

Have campers complete each of the steps found in the good Samaritan story. How you lay these events out may depend on your group size, resources, and site. Some possibilities are offered below:

Bind wounds

Wrap a bandana around a teammate’s head.

Use a rag or towel to create a tourniquet of sorts.

Roll a bandage.

Get an animal

Campers “bear walk” from one location to another.

Campers “crab walk” from one location to another.

Have campers sing “Mary Had a Little Lamb.”

Go to an inn

Have campers create a lean-to or fort.

Have campers travel to a specific location at camp.

Give the innkeeper money

Have campers think of a skill they can barter for “money”: sing a song, make up a cheer, etc. and perform it for an “innkeeper.”

Campers must find an envelope with fake money that is hidden somewhere in your playing area.

Tanks

U J S

Materials: Balls of various sizes, blindfolds

Scatter many balls of various sizes on the ground throughout the designated playing area. Make sure they are soft enough to throw at others. Have campers find a partner and choose one to be blindfolded. The blindfolded partner is the only one who can touch a ball and throw it. The non-blindfolded partner must guide and direct their partner to balls and tell them where to aim and throw, as well when to duck and avoid being hit by a thrown ball. If the blindfolded partner is hit with a ball, the pair is out of the round. Play several rounds and give both campers a chance to try both roles.

Mingle

U J S

Version 1: With and without. Campers will dance and walk around in a designated area while singing “Mingle, mingle, min-gle!” or any song you decide on. Yell, “Stop” at random, then call out two opposite categories, such as “With glasses and without glasses” or “With socks and without socks.” Campers quickly pair up with someone in the opposite category—a person with glasses pairs up with a person without glasses. Any campers left without a partner join the leader and help think of things to call out. Play until there are four people left in the game.

Version 2: Same or different. Play this much in the same way as Version 1, except call out a single category and challenge campers to get into a group with others who fit the same category. Examples could be hometown, eye color, brand of shoes, etc. Campers need to communicate to find the people that have the category in common with them. The smallest group is then out.

Cross the line

L U J S

Material: Rope or tape or something else to make a boundary line

Many boundaries separate us from one another, but we must learn to view each other with God’s love, a love that crosses lines. Divide the group into two even teams—one on each side of the line. The goal is to “include” as many people as you can—to get as many people on your side of the line as possible. Campers hover on their side of the line and try to pull members of the other team across the line onto their side. Play for a determined amount of time and then see which side has more people. If you wish, re-divide the campers and play again.

Hook tag

A I

In a large open area, have pairs interlock arms. Pick one pair, split them and designate one of the pair to be “it.” Give the other camper time to move away. The person who is “it” tries to tag the person who is not connected to someone (the former partner). The person being chased is safe only when he or she hooks an arm with a camper in a pair. The person who is on the opposite side of the person who just joined needs to unhook and must hook to a new group or be tagged. A tagged person becomes “it” and the game continues.

Tank

A I

Materials: Blindfolds (one for each pair), rope, soft squishy balls

Have the group form pairs. Show the groups the play area marked by ropes. One person puts on the blindfold. They are now the “tank.” The other person stands behind the tank and is the “driver” in the center of the play area. The leader then places the balls around the play area. When the leader says, “Go,” the driver must direct their tank to a ball. Once they have a ball they are to throw it at one of the other pairs. If either person of the pair is hit, they are both out for the rest of the game and should sit. The last team standing is the winner.

Only the person blindfolded is allowed to touch the balls. No more than two balls at a time may be collected.

DAY 4: Jonah

Bible text

Jonah 4:1-11 (Jonah and God)

Jonah toss

P L

Materials: Hula hoop, beanbags

Lay a hula hoop on the ground and tell campers to form a line about 4 feet [1.3 meters] away from the hoop. Tell them the hoop is the belly of the big fish and it is up to them to get Jonah into the belly.

Give campers 2-3 beanbags to represent Jonah and have them throw the beanbags into the hoop.

Once the entire line has gone through, move the hoop back 1-2 feet [.3-.6 meters] and have the campers each try again. Keep moving the hoop back after each round to challenge campers to make it into the hoop.

The swim to Nineveh

P L U J S A I

Set up an obstacle course for campers that will require them to jump, crawl, roll, run, walk, and go over, under, and around. If you have a sprinkler, try to incorporate it into your obstacle course. Explain to them that they are the big fish that is carrying Jonah to Nineveh. Give them a beanbag or a ball that can represent Jonah. Their job is to safely carry Jonah through the obstacle course and in to Nineveh. Allow campers to do the obstacle course once by themselves, and then match them up with a partner. Remember that you will likely have to run alongside campers to remind them what they are supposed to do at each challenge. Each pair has to work as a team to safely get Jonah to Nineveh. While they are going through the course they both need to be touching Jonah. For an added challenge, you may want to time each pair as they go through, being sure to celebrate with campers no matter what their time ends up being.

Get it to the other side!

L U I

Materials: Playground balls of various sizes (at least one for each camper), rope

Preparation: Make a line (use rope if needed) on a field or grassy area and place half of the balls on each side of the line.

Divide campers into two teams and have each team stand on one side of the line. Explain that when you say, “Go!” they are to try to get all of the balls onto the other side of the line. Both teams will be doing this at the same time. Campers can throw, roll, or kick the balls, but must not hit the other team. See if either team can get all of the balls over on the other side.

Squirt ball

L U J S A I

Materials: Squirt bottles (one each camper), beach ball, rope

Preparations: Make a line (using rope if needed) that is about 20 feet [6 m] long. Fill each squirt bottle with water.

Divide the group into two teams. Explain that when you say, “Go!” each team must try to keep the beach ball on the other team’s side by squirting it with water.

Forgiven and free

P L U J S A I

Have campers play a game of “Freeze tag.” Define a playing area for the game and have several campers volunteer to be “it.” Campers will run around and if they get tagged, they must stay still. Campers can become unfrozen if another camper comes up to them and makes the sign of the cross on his or her forehead or palm. A variation on this might be to have campers sing the line “Let it go” from the movie Frozen when they are freed. They might shout something like, “Let it go; let it go; I will be forgiven and go.” After a couple rounds of the game discuss the following:

What role did you play in this game?

How does this game remind you of God’s forgiveness?

How are we both forgiven and invited to forgive others? Do you think one is possible without the other?

Life size sorry

P L U J S A I

Materials: Bandanas or face paint, 8-12 Frisbee plastic discs in four colors, hula hoop

This is a spin on the board game Sorry. Split your group into four teams. Give each camper something to indicate which team they are on, such as bandanas or face paint in the following four colors: red, blue, yellow, and green. Mark a square playing area. Each team will start in their team’s “home base” or particular corner of the playing area. Each team will select one person to be a tagger in the middle of the field. In the middle of the playing area, have a hula hoop with plastic discs in each team’s color. The goal is for campers to retrieve all of their team’s discs without getting tagged by another team’s tagger. If tagged, the tagger must say, “I’m sorry.” The tagged camper must return the disc to the center and go back to the home base. Teams can choose to send one or multiple teammates from home base at a time to try and retrieve a disc. The game ends once one of the teams has successfully retrieved all of their discs.

Dominator

U J S

Campers will mingle around and play “Rock, paper, scissors” with various people in the group. If they win, they keep playing. If they lose, then they begin (or join) a train of cheerleaders behind the person still playing “Rock, paper, scissors.” Losers must forget they were “wronged,” or beat, and instead become the winners’ biggest (and loudest) fans!

Forgiveness tags

P L U J S A I

Freeze tag. Choose one camper to be “it.” All other campers run away from “it” until they are tagged, at which point they freeze. They have to wait for another person to come un-tag them before they can play again.

The message: Not forgiving someone freezes us in our tracks. Only when we forgive are we able to fully play the game again.

Blob tag. Start with 1 or 2 pairs holding hands. Campers run away from the “blobs” (pairs). Each person tagged links onto the blob and holds hands. (Don’t link arms!) At the discretion of the leader, combine or split blobs to keep the game going and safe.

The message: On the flipside, if we don’t forgive others, it just grows and grows in our hearts, making a big blob that needs forgiveness to go away!

Rock, paper, scissors, whale

P L U J S A I

Have campers play “Rock, paper, scissors” with each other. The loser is “swallowed by the whale” and must attach him- or herself to the winner by putting his or her hands on the winner’s shoulders. The winner then finds a new person to play with. After a few minutes, several “whales” (lines of players) will have formed. Eventually, two whales will face off for the ultimate victory.

Jonah, run!

L U J S A I

Stand in a circle with one person in the middle. The person in the middle (representing God) takes the hand of someone who joins “God” wandering around inside the circle. The second person takes the hand of another person in the circle. This process of wandering and adding people to the line continues until “God” calls out “Jonah!” At this point, all the players (those attached to God and those still in the circle) must run away from “God” to a pre-designated goal—like a tree or a rock. The last person to touch the goal is the new “God.”

Human kick the can

A I

Have one camper stand in the center of the playing area, close his or her eyes, yell “Go!” and begin to count to ten very loudly. The rest of the group runs and hides.

When the counter reaches ten, he or she opens his or her eyes. The counter can turn 360 degrees but cannot step in any direction. As the counter spots people hiding, he or she points at the camper, calls out the name of the camper seen and what color the camper is wearing.

As people are found they move off to the side of the playing area to watch the rest of the round.

After the counter is done looking, she or he will yell “counting” again,” but this time they count only to five again very loudly. While the count is in progress, the people still in the game must move closer to the counter. If the counter is tagged before getting to five, the game is over. If no one tags the counter, the counter will again try to spot people. This continues until the counter is tagged or the counter finds everyone.

Finger tag

A I

Show campers the playing area boundaries and then have campers pair up. Each pair picks an “it.” “It” can only tag his or her partner. When the leader says, “Go!” the person who is “it” spins around three times while the partner walks away. The person who is “it” walks after their partner and tries to tag him or her with a finger. When a camper is tagged, he or she becomes “it,” spins 3 times, and walks after the partner. If someone is caught running, they must spin 3 times and roles are switched!

DAY 5: Jeremiah

Bible text

Jeremiah 1:4-10 (Jeremiah’s call)

God’s love is for everyone!

P L U I

Create a large, square-shaped space for campers to run in. Have everyone stand on one end of the space, and then choose three campers to go to the middle of the square. Tell the campers who are in the middle of the square that they are there to share God’s love. It is up to them to share it with the other campers so God’s love can grow. When God’s love is “ready,” campers in the middle will call out to the other campers by yelling, “God’s love is for everyone!” The campers who are standing at the edge of the space will run directly across to the other side of the space. As they are doing this, the campers in the middle will try to “share” God’s love by tagging the campers who are running across. If a camper is tagged, they are to join in the middle to share God’s love. Play until everyone has been tagged by God’s love.

Around the world

P L U I

Materials: Poly-vinyl spots or bandanas, balls

Place 10-15 poly-vinyl spots or bandanas around a large outdoor area. Explain to campers that these are all places in the world where they’ll need to share God’s love. To do that, they need to kick a ball so that it touches each of the poly-vinyl spots. Match each camper up with a partner and have each pair kick the ball back and forth to one another until God’s love has been shared with all of the places. You may choose to have just one pair of campers working at a time, or you may add the challenge of having multiple pairs kicking the ball at the same time. Allow campers to try this multiple times.

Everyone is called

P L U J S A I

Material: Parachute that is large enough for the entire group to fit under

Gather campers around the parachute so that each person is holding on to a part of it. Give campers a few minutes to play by shaking and moving the parachute. See what happens when you try to lift it up and down as a group. Explain that you will call out a certain group of people—for example, “everyone who is wearing a blue shirt”—and those that have a blue shirt on must run under the parachute and trade places before the parachute goes down. Try this several times while calling out different colors of hair, different colors of clothing or shoes, or favorite foods. Make sure that each camper gets called at least one time. At the end call out, “We are all called to love others!” The entire group should run under the parachute. Pull down on the parachute from the inside so that the group can sit on the inside together.

One, two, three—go!

P L U J S A I

Materials: Small pieces of paper or index cards (one per camper), pens or pencils

Give each camper a small piece of paper or an index card. Invite campers to write their name on the card. (Make sure that you help anyone who is having difficulty writing her or his name.) Collect all of the cards and shuffle them. Give each camper a card, and make sure that they do not receive their own name. Explain to the group that they need to keep the name on their card a secret. Tell the group that when you say, “Go!” they are all supposed to call the name on their card. Everyone will be calling at the same time, so it may be difficult to hear! When a camper hears someone calling their name, they should go and stand next to that person. When you are done, everyone should be standing in a circle.

Send it

P L U J S A I

This game works best for a group of 12-20. Split campers into two teams, and have each team sit in a row facing the same direction. Have one person stand in front and hold a piece of cloth in between the two teams. Have another person stand in back of the two teams. All campers should face forward except the two campers in the back. They will watch as the individual standing in the back flips a coin. If the coin is flipped to heads, the campers in the back will squeeze the hand of the person in front of them. This squeeze will continue until it reaches the front of the team’s line. As soon as the camper in the front receives the squeeze, he or she will attempt to grab a piece of cloth that the person in the front is dangling between the two teams. The first team to grab the cloth earns a point for their team and goes to the back of the line. The goal is for teams to go through their whole line. If a squeeze is sent to the front when tails is flipped rather than heads, the team(s) must send the person in the back of the line back up to the front.

Message mania

P L U J S A I

This game works best as an “all-camp” or large group game. Have several staff members stationed throughout camp or your game area. Each staff member needs to have a writing utensil and several pieces of paper. Campers need to find a staff member. A staff member will then write a message and tell campers to bring it to a specified staff member. If you are going to use this game as a teaching tool or to enhance the Bible study, then some messages might reflect something like “God loves you,” rather than “It’s so hot out.” Campers will then try and deliver the message without getting caught by an interceptor. Interceptors attempt to tag campers and if they do so, campers must give the interceptor the message they are carrying and return back to where they came from to get another message to deliver. Campers’ goal is to successfully deliver the most messages without getting caught by an interceptor.

Marco Polo with a twist

L U J S A I

Materials: Blindfolds

Split your group into pairs. Have pairs choose one partner to be blindfolded. Have the partners decide on a noise (not words) that will be their call and response. Have one partner stay while the other moves to a different location. Once they land on a spot away from their partner, they cannot move from it. Spin each blindfolded person and say, “Go.” Have the blindfolded partners find the non-blindfolded partner by only making their call and response noises. Make sure you have clear paths and spotters for blindfolded partners. Give both partners the chance to be blindfolded.

Triangle tag

L U J S A I

Split your group into smaller groups of four. Choose one person to be “it” from the group of four. The other three should hold hands. Then they choose one of the three to be chased. When the leader says, “Go,” the two of the triangle work to protect the third person of the triangle from being tagged. Switch groups and take turns being it and/or chased.

Love bucket

L U J S A I

Materials: Two balls, large container

Sit in a circle around a large bucket, tub, or trashcan. Put two balls, representing love, in the container. Number campers off so that there are two campers assigned to the same number (if ten people are playing, there will be two 1’s, 2’s, 3’s, 4’s, and 5’s). Number them so that those with the same number are across the circle from each other. Call out a number. The two people with that number must then run to the middle of the circle, each pick up “love” (a ball), run to the outside of the circle (through the open spots they just vacated), run once around the circle (either direction) to “share the love with the world,” run back through their previous open spots, and toss the ball back into the bucket. Whoever finishes first and gets back to her or his seat is the winner and gets to call out the next number.

Love songs

U J S A I

Materials: Paper, pens

Split campers into even teams. Hand out a paper and pen to each team. Give campers 5-10 minutes to think of every song and company slogan that they can that has the word love in it. It can be any tense of the word love, so: loving, loved, loves, etc. When the time is up, have teams sit in a circle.

Have teams take turns (moving from one to the next clockwise), sharing one song or slogan on their list. For an extra level of fun, have teams sing the line of the song with the word love in it. If any other team has the same song or slogan written down they should cross it off their list and so should the team that shared it. At the end of sharing all the songs and slogans, whichever team has the most left on their list that is not crossed off wins.

Telephone

A I

Have campers sit in a circle. The first person thinks of a sentence and whispers it to the next person. The next person in line whispers to the next person, and so on, to the last person, who should say out loud what they heard. Change who is first and come up with a new sentence.

Option: Fax machine. The group sits in a straight line with their backs to each other. The first person draws on the back of the person in front of them (start with something simple like a circle with a horizontal line through the middle). The next person draws on the person’s back in front of them and so on, until the end of the line.

When the last person receives the message, they draw it out on a piece of paper. See what happened to the drawing as it was passed down the line.

Build up and tear down

A I

Materials: Playground balls, rope

Divide the group into two teams. Divide the playing area in half with the rope. Give an equal number of balls to each side. When the leader says “Go,” the game of dodgeball is on. When someone is hit, they must sit down on the spot until someone comes to help them up. Once up, they are free to continue to play. If someone is helping get someone up, they are free from getting hit until they let go of their teammate. If a thrown ball is caught, the person who threw it must sit down.

“A love that never ends” Outdoor ministries curriculum, © 2014 Lutheran Outdoor Ministries. May be reproduced for local use.

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