YMCA
Kiwanis

Fresh Ideas for Your Teen Groups

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Great Teen activities:

Turkey Bowling

While this is an excellent idea for Thanksgiving, it is still fun year-round. Lay plastic tarps on the floor. Take ten bottles of soda (still full), and lay them out in a bowling pin pattern. Buy one frozen turkey per team (keep the turkeys frozen until service). Then team members take turns using the turkey like a bowling ball to knock down the soda. Be aware that the sodas may "explode" and spray your audience.

Blind Water Balloon Volleyball

Using a van or opaque shower curtain, lay down two bedsheets on each side of whatever his hanging in the center as the "net." You should not be able to see through the "net." Have each team sit on their bedsheets with their water balloons. Each team tries to throw over a water balloon so that it hits the sheet on the other side. Because the teams cannot see the other team, it is harder to be ready to catch the flying water balloons.

This Is a What?

Another game that seems simpler than it is. Have everyone sit in a circle. Pick up an object and tell the person next to you, "This is a marble." He asks, "A what?" "A marble," you answer. "A what?" he asks again. "A marble," you say. "Oh, a marble," he says. The pattern is now established. He then takes the marble and turns to the next person and starts the pattern. As the marble goes around, you start on the next object and the next object. Eventually there will be a lot of these conversations going on at once. The goal is to see how many objects you can pass around the circle.

Living Sculpture

Toilet paper, saran wrap, and tin foil are used to make sculptures out of one person per team. The team with the best sculpture in the time allotted wins. The "sculpture" volunteer stands in a position while the team wraps toilet paper, saran wrap and tin foil around him or her to create a "work of art."

Milk Chug

This is fun, but ultimately disgusting. It is a good idea to get permission from the parents of students competing, as it will likely result in vomiting. So why is it on this list? Well, it really is a fun competition to do during a service. Have four or five students volunteer to compete during a youth service or activity. At the start of service give each student a gallon of milk. Throughout the service the students chug the milk to see who can finish the entire jug first. It is a good idea to have garbage cans on hand.

Back to Back
Two people should pair up that are of equal height and weight. Partners sit back to back on ground. The object is to stand up in unison while communicating. Make sure you don't place your hands on the ground, as injury may occur. Once all groups have accomplished the task, group into fours and eights until the entire group succeeds together.


I Like Everybody, Especially Those....
Everyone is seated in chairs, in circle formation. The leader stands in the middle of the circle. The object is for the leader to call out what they like about people and if this pertains to anybody in the group, they must leave their chair and find another one. The leader also finds an empty chair; therefore there will be a new leader. For example, "I like people, especially those who wear jeans." Everyone wearing jeans must find a new seat.

Amazing Shoe Grab

Everyone removes their shoes and puts them down the back of their pants sticking out of the waist as far as possible.  Then, once the game is explained and you say go, the youth run around trying to grab the shoes from the other youth.  Once both shoes are removed from ones waist, they are out.  The trick is that the shoes must be held the entire time once plucked from another's waistband.  The winner is the last one with shoe or two left in their waistband or the one holding the most shoes when the time ends.  
Play as many times as time allows

Colored Q Tip Wars

Divide the group into 4 teams.  Each team is given a bowl of food coloring (make sure each team has a different color).  Each member of a team is given a whole lot of Q-tips and a McDonald's straw (they work the best).  Have one person, not on any team, wear a white shirt that can be divided into different point sections (draw squares on the shirt and put # of pts.  In the square if the section is hit).  Each team goes separately; they dip their Q-tips in the food coloring then blow the Q-tip out their straws at the human target.  The team with the most points wins.  If you want to mix it up the next time have styrofoam cups set up around the room and have teams try to knock down the other team's cup.  Goggles are always helpful.

CRAFT IDEAS FOR TEENS/TWEENS