It is that time of year.  Time for cultivating a garden, bbq’ing, picnics and warm days. Time for simplicity.  I had the help of my trusty 7 year old while planting our garden this weekend (or starting to anyway).  She was so delighted to dig a hole, squeeze the plants out of the little container and cover it up with the mound of dirt that she so lovingly dug out.  She was beaming, I tell you.  I loved watching it.   My hope is that these moments will instill some deep love for real food, nature, simpicity and getting her hands dirty.

Looking back at my childhood, I remember a lot of outdoor time.  We used to spend summers outside playing.  Some days we wouldn’t even bother to make it back for lunch because we were so busy chasing down garter snakes and sneaking onto other peoples land to hit the creek when it got too hot.  My friends and I would make  yogurt pops and hand out in the back yard (usually hiding from my little sister).  These days life is different.  I don’t see kids roaming around, exploring and adventuring like we used to do.  Oh my… I sound OLD!  AND I walked up hill both ways in the snow.  What am I? 100..

I want that for my kids.  I want long hot days outside getting lost in the world of imagination.  The simplicity of the rotating water sprinkler that causes the lawn to be sloppy wet but provides hours of running and splashing time.  I want to make orange juice from the oranges in our yard and turn that into an icy pop that we can eat while sitting on the back steps.   I want a watermelon to be squishing through their fingers while they chase the seeds and have a spitting contest.  I want my kids to hand out on a rope swing.  Where has the simplicity gone?  These things are fun, simple, your kids will love them (and spending simple time with the family) and best of all – they are free!  I challenge you to come up with some really simple warm weather fun.  Have some outdoor educational game time.  Gather bugs and see if your kids know what they are.  Pick the herbs and show your kids that some plants can be for eating (but make sure they check with you before eating anything).  Plant a seed and let them water it until it sprouts.. then see the amazement.. how did that happen? Perfect time for teaching them how things grow.  I hope you have some happy outdoor summer day education!

I doubt that many would argue with these basic categories of traits that are important to being successful in attaining your goals, whatever they may be. Many other traits that you might think of would probably be similar or would be a sub-category of those listed.

Well, that being said, let’s look at how playing games help us, especially children, develop these traits, hopefully while having a really good time.

No Fear of Failure
Wow! That’s easy for a 2 or 3 year-old, but after children understand social status and social rules, failure becomes a pretty big deal and is often avoided more and more vehemently as a child ages. Failure is not seen as part of a process in our society, it is portrayed akin to death; a final state to be avoided at all costs. What our society doesn’t encourage is learning from failure, which is often the most valuable kind of learning. Understanding that each failure of shortcoming is a unique opportunity to learn how to do or NOT do something is very valuable. This attitude changes every “failure” into an opportunity for learning and success.

Providing a fun atmosphere for playing many kinds of games is a valuable service to your children. Demonstrating what a gracious looser acts like is important, as is carefully assuaging growing egos that want to perform, win, and impress you. Ask children what they think they did wrong in a game and ask what they will do differently next time, and make sure to recognize efforts and progress.

Winners are Doers
Have you ever played a game and gotten to a no-win situation, and just wanted to leave the room? Well, that can be a very difficult place for anyone, and especially children. Admit that sometimes there are no-win situations in life, but that not choosing to do anything just stalls any forward motion or growth. Not finishing a game should not usually be an option.

Self Discipline
I don’t know about you, but I know many adults that are still working on this. Waiting for your turn, following the rules, not cheating, loosing graciously – all of these can take tremendous self-discipline in children. Encourage these behaviors by displaying them, recognizing them, and expressing gratitude for their implementation. Recognize that it can be very difficult and support children as they develop this essential trait of success.

Persistence
This is another quality that you don’t have to encourage in 2 and 3 year-olds. However, when children learn that quitting is OK, they often opt out when things get difficult, boring, or complicated. Persistence is key to success. Think of all those famous inventors, sports pros, and business leaders. They are famous because they were persistent in pursuing their goals, no matter what life threw at them. Help your child weather the rough times without babying them. When they have lost every game in a sports season, or can’t seem to win a chess game with their cousin, or are always last in the neighborhood foot race, they often want to give up, move on, try something else. While finding what you excel at is important, learning to “stick it out” is also key to creating success.

Learn from Mistakes
See “No Fear of Failure” above. Mistake can be broken down into two words: Miss Take. Think of the movies and how many takes are sometimes needed to “get it right”. So you have to do it over again – great! You now have an opportunity to do it even better. Children often have very high expectations for themselves. Help them understand that learning is of more importance that being right or winning through your example and emphasizing opportunities more than “wins”.

Accept Responsibility
There is a reason the saying “Cheaters never win” developed. Breaking the rules just to get ahead is not OK, both in games and in life. Bending rules to give other people a chance….well, that’s a little different. Show that you can, literally, accept the cards life deals you by making the very best of it. Displaying an accepting attitude for children to observe and emulate is vital if you want them to value and adopt this trait.

Adapt an “I can” Attitude
This is yet another area that most 2 and 3 year olds need no coaching in. Those of you that are raising them understand. Sometimes finding out how you “can” can be a long journey, but it is often worthwhile. Showing your child support in what they want to accomplish can be difficult when you don’t agree with their goal, or you don’t understand why it is important to them. Think about when you really want to do something. Don’t you seek support from those you love and trust? Give the gifts of hope, optimism, confidence, and acceptance regardless of outcome to your child.

All of these traits can be nurtured, encouraged, and developed through playing a large assortment of games; card games, word games, team sports, board games, strategy games, role games – you name it! And remember, it’s called a game because it’s also supposed to be FUN!

The Playground Book
By Harry Sperling,
NEW YORK AND CHICAGO
THE A. S. BARNES COMPANY
1916

If you are interested in this book it is freely available at Google books, as it is now out of copyright.

As well as some great party game ideas for kids the book is punctuated with some insightful advice such as:-

“The playground is essentially a place for play. Play is recreation. Play gives health to the body and joy to the soul. Whoever has not tasted the pleasures of youth’s playgrounds has missed much of the sweetness of life.”

When this book was written teachers would be assigned as ‘playground teachers’ and their function was not just to monitor the kids but to organize those games that the author described as “the sweetness of life”.

As I mainly research vintage games and activities for girls party ideas I am always looking for any quotes, in vintage material, that differentiates between boys and girls games. I found the following (interesting) advice in this book regarding the suitability of certain games and activities for boys:-

“The singing games will be found especially useful with the little folks who range in age from five years to ten. Girls older than this prefer the folk dances, while boys over ten will not play them under any consideration. In fact, a boy over eight should not be obliged any longer to join the girls’ games and dances.”

Anyway, avoiding the nature or nurture discussion (and not withstanding the fact that this book was written before the right of women to vote) I will move right along.

Here are a couple of games that came out of this insightful book and would make good, active, party games for today’s young kids.

The cat and rat game

For younger children (numbers 10 to 30):-

The children form a circle and join hands. One guest is chosen to be the cat and another the rat. The cat has to catch the rat, with the rat running around or in and out of the circle trying to escape. The party guests try to help the rat, by raising their arms to let him or her pass through, and hinder the cat by trying to block his or her path. As the game favors the rat, after a while another ‘cat’ can be introduced.

Balloon game

This game can be played in a classroom or outside. The game is simple and that is to divide the party into two teams and they have to score a goal with a balloon, by hitting it with an open palm of the hand. The goals are two strings stretched (either on poles or from wall to wall) about seven feet off the ground and the balloon has to pass over the string. The length of the goal is around 10 feet and the length of the ‘pitch’ is around the size of a classroom.

I composed a paper some years ago that outlined why stories and storytelling are integral to the healthy growth of children. Stories and storytelling provide children with ways of learning and growing in many important and basic developmental areas: cognitive, social, emotional, and self-identity.

Cognitively, stories ask children to develop language skills, follow lines of logic, learn vocabulary, learn social roles, develop and exercise memory, understand culture, predict outcomes, and have a basis for relating to others. I could go on for paragraphs, or even pages, with all the benefits. In fact, it is proven that the brain is hard-wired to accept and process stories, and this is why we remember a well-crafted story for a very ling time.

Socially, children gain significantly from storytelling. Do you remember sitting in someone’s lap while getting a story read to you? Wasn’t it wonderful to have that person’s attention and to share an intimate story experience together? And do you remember being with siblings or with a class and experiencing the story together? It’s these shared experiences that create relationships and shape future social interactions. And one step further; if you ever re-enacted these stories with others, you were continuing to learn social rules and social roles that you built on and now refer to as an adult.

Experiencing emotions through storytelling can be safer for children than experiencing them directly. If a child hears of a character that is frightened or depressed, he can experience those emotions with the character in a supportive and healthy context, and even learn how to handle those emotions in a positive way through the story or characters present. The storyteller or other listeners can support the child too, by empathizing and helping the child label feelings that are new – or even scary – to experience. The storyteller can be a guide that facilitates the processing of emotions that the child experiences.

One of the roles of stories is to allow us to understand and “try on” different roles. As we listen of characters that run the gamut of descriptors, we travel from the “evil villain” end of the spectrum to the “delightful princes” or “brave and strong hero”, and back again. Though these can be cause for stereotypes, I believe it allows children to “try on” different roles while listening, but even more so when enacting stories themselves. This sets up children to make decisions about who they will become in the future, and how and why.

Story time should not be overlooked, dismissed, or glossed over. It is a very important part of childhood development. Learning so much during what appears to be a simple activity is what childhood is really all about. So, be it The Paperbag Princess, The Tale of Benjamin Bunny, or Bible Stories, I highly recommend reading to your children at every given opportunity, and to play out these games with them after reading. Make it a special time involving simple, repeated rituals that enhance the experience. I can promise that you and your child will benefit from these wonderful interactions.

Kristi Danz

The party would usually begin with ‘hunt the thimble’ or the kids amusing themselves with ‘hide and seek’ or tag, until all the guests had arrived.

The first organized game would typically be musical chairs, which looking back I surmise that the parents wanted to get out of the way before the kids loaded up with sugar. Even with parental guidance the musical chairs tended to get a little rough although all of the guests were well behaved (the expression ‘wait till your father gets home’ seemed to keep order back then!).

Following musical chairs there would be a game of ‘pass the parcel’ where a gift wrapped in several layers of paper would be passed in a circle (of the seated guests). Each time the music stopped the person holding the parcel would take off a layer of wrapping paper until the final layer revealed the prize which went to the person who took off the last piece of wrapping paper.

A game of “Simon says” would follow, where one of the guests gives commands (such as “stand on one foot”) and only if this command is prefixed with “Simon says”, the guests need to obey. Anyone not following the instruction when “Simon says” or doing the instruction without the pre-fix “Simon says” would drop out of the game.

We would then play a game of London bridge is falling down, where the guests go under an arch made by two other guests. There are variations of this game but the song “London bridge is falling down” is sung and the arches collapse on a guest who is underneath them at a certain time. When this happens the captured guest goes behind one of the guests holding up the arches to make a human chain. When all the guests are on each side of the arches a tug of war finishes the game. Having researched Victorian children’s games I am now aware that this game was played in the late 1800′s all over England.

The reason I can remember these games so vividly is that they were always played and if any of these ‘standards’ was missed the guests would demand it to be played. More often than not these games would be repeated, especially musical chairs and London bridge is falling down.

Lunch would normally follow and if it was not raining the party would go into the garden to run off the remaining energy.

Outside games included “What time is it Mr. Wolf?” which consisted of one person trying to catch the others when that person answered ‘lunch time’ to the question. When caught the person would join the Wolf, catching the others until all were caught. There were many variations of games that involved trying to catch each other. We also played a game that involved trying to stand still, the game was called “statues” which, looking back, was a welcome rest for the hostess.

Other outside games were played until the parents came to collect their children. We dropped off our presents when we arrived and they would be opened after all the guests had gone home, unlike a tradition I see in the US where the presents are opened for all to see during the party.

Alex

All of the games we played, 50 years ago, were without Electronics Chuckie Cheese, Laser Quest or Bouncy castles etc. and my guess is the games we played were played by our Grandparents and their Grandparents before them. Many of these games make up a lot of the girls party ideas that I have researched over the years for my daughter and her friends to enjoy today.

Have your kids play with their food.  I know we like to discourage too much of a disastrous mess but let them get to know their food.  One thing that I used to do with my daughter was put her on one side of the room with a round fruit (avocado, apple, orange.. you get the point) and then I would be on the other side of the room.  She would to push the avocado across the room to me then I would push it back.  Seems easy enough but if your fruit is not perfectly round it can be a challenge and a fun one.  We spent a lot of days on the floor getting to know our fruit.  Once she began to become acquainted, she didn’t mind trying it for a snack. 

Which brings me to my next topic – Snack  time.  An easy way to ease kids into eating their food is again.. letting them play with it.  Guacamole can be a simple fun snack for your child.  My daughter loved to get into the kitchen with me.  We would pull up the stool, I would chop and she would stir or squish.  The following is an easy recipe for guacamole that requires little time or effort.

Gator skin Guacamole

2 avocados (organic if possible)

1 tbsp. lemon or lime juice

½ tomato or splash of your favorite salsa

Pinch of salt to taste

Cut the avocados in half and scoop out the inside.  Keep the “alligator skin bowls” for serving (hey, one less dish to wash).  Put all ingredients in a bowl and let your kids squish it together.  I know, gross, but I am pretty sure it will be a good time for them..  Scoop back into the gator skins and serve up with their favorite chip or cracker.  *Tip – to keep avocados from spoiling to quickly before use, put in the fridge.

So, we have played a game and had a snack.  Let’s head into the lunchtime hour with a lesson in what that crazy avocado pit can do (ok, I am being sarcastic about the craziness of the pit BUT a mom/teacher has got to do what we have got to do.. feel me?).  I think that there is a good lesson in showing your children where their food comes from so here it the last avocado tip for today.   Grow an avocado tree.   It is simple but takes patience.  Here is what will need. 

1. Pit
2. Toothpicks
3. Water
4. shallow container
5.  sunny location

Now, clean and dry pit.  Carefully push toothpicks in the widest part of the pit about ½ inch(will look like a stool).  Don’t hurt yourself because the fun goes out the window when you are swearing and bleeding.  The purpose for the toothpicks is to keep the pit half out of the water.   Put pit (legs down) in the container then fill with water until the pits bottom half is submerged and top is sticking out.  Put in sunny window.  Refresh water every two weeks for 6 weeks and make sure that the water doesn’t evaporate.  In 6 weeks the top will split and a stem will sprout.  Transfer to a pot with the pit down stem up leaving the stem above the dirt/potting soil.  Watch your new avocado tree grow!

So there it is, a morning full of avocado fun.  Who knew one little piece of fruit could create hours of entertainment AND beef up the brain cells.  If all else fails just put avocado all over your face.  You’ll get a facial and your kids will get a laugh.

It is up to you whether or not the string loops back or all of the starting points have a separate end point somewhere else.

The idea is simple and you can attach small prizes with ribbon on the string along the route.

Tell the kids it is not a race and all the small prizes need to be collected. You can also place cards with numbers on the string, with the idea being to collect all the numbers. The route could go under coffee tables or through home made tunnels (using chairs and sheets) the idea is to build a small obstacle course that is safe for the kids and your house!

Alex

There is a variation of this game, that used to be sold as a board game. The game was based on jungle hunting and the rules called for various footprints of animals (made of card) to be placed around a house or garden and each guest had to track a certain animal. At the end of the animal tracks was a small prize. For girls party ideas I have also researched other classic “hunt the thimble” style games where clue cards are placed around the house (or garden) that ‘lead’ the guests to the hidden thimble. I will write that one up in due course.

Following basic rules
Going up the ladders and down the snakes

Recognizing numbers
At first they will count the dice spots then recognize the patterns for the numbers

Associating a number (count) with moves on the board
Having recognized the number on the dice spots the number of squares is counted off

Enjoying the competition and company
Often you will notice that the younger child will enjoy playing with a parent more than they enjoy playing with someone their own age.

There are also other lessons learnt including, winning, loosing and good old lady luck. One of the great things about snakes and ladders is that anyone who plays has the same chance of winning, as long as they can follow the rules.

The normal progression, from snakes and ladders, in race board games is to a game like Ludo or Sorry where the player has 4 pieces to move around a board. Even though the skill factor is limited the introduction of choice will encourage some strategic thinking in your child.

There are many other game types that will develop strategic thinking but the simple game of snakes and ladders should be played and played with a young child until they are comfortable with number recognition and following the rules.

If you are interested in buying classic race board games, there are many sold on EBay and are relatively inexpensive. These are a few titles I saw recently and all had incredible graphics and were reasonably priced:-

Fluffy tails race board game (1985)
Candy land (another classic for ages 3-6)
Winnie the Pooh board game (1964)
Peter Pan board game (1953)

These are just some and there are hundreds, many have spinners and beautiful graphics.
Also there are some incredible antique board games, going back to the Victorian times, that are available but these are more for collecting than playing.

Alex

One of the more popular kids party ideas I use is to create a race board game that your guests can actually walk on. This involves placing newspaper sheets all around your house (you can tape them to the floor, or use card stock for more stability). Your guests, each have their own dice (you have to trust them to keep things moving). The guests then take turns and shout their name when it is their turn and then throw the dice and move. The ‘trail’ can go into the garden and the kids end up all over the house shouting their name and the number they have just thrown. You can also create a kind of maze, with paths but this is more complicated. The sheets usually get ripped, so mats, hoops, or squares made of wrapping tape should be tried but this game is definitely worth the effort at your next kids party.

The first activity or puzzle that I would suggest is to place a well known story in the correct order (sequence). This is best done, with younger children, by giving each of them a picture from a story they all know well (such as little red riding hood), and having them arrange themselves in the correct order for the story to be told. The rules of this game are that the party guests can only speak and show their picture to one other party guest at a time and then decide if they need to stand next to the person they have just spoken to or continue to look for their correct neighbors. For younger children this rule can be relaxed and a free for all can break out as the kids try to line up in the right sequence. Also, if appropriate, the story can be told ahead of time using the actual pictures that are subsequently given out. In this way all of the guests know the story and have seen the order and content of the pictures ahead of time.

Variations of this game, for older children, include having the guests describe (not show) the pictures and lining up based on the verbal descriptions given. Also, again for older children, a lesser known story can be given out including a story that is not known to the group so both the order and story itself needs to be deduced from the pictures.

Pictures of well known stories can be printed from the internet or cut out from an inexpensive story coloring book. If a coloring picture story book is to be used then the kids can color their picture just prior to the game, as an additional party activity.

This party game also lends itself to a themed party, as an appropriate story (to match the theme) can be selected.

The second activity (puzzle) that I would suggest is to give each party guest a piece of a jigsaw puzzle and have them arrange themselves in the correct position around a large room. This is relatively easy for a standard small square jigsaw as the corners and edges are a huge clue. The game can be varied by creating your own jigsaw puzzles, which could be circular, i.e. pizza shaped pieces. The guests can also be restricted to not showing, only describing their pieces, to make the game more challenging. The rules can also be relaxed, as per the first game, in that a free for all can break out.

The second activity is similar to having a group complete a jigsaw but they become the piece and need to place them self in the correct position, relative to the other pieces (guests).

Given the quality of printers, today, it is relatively easy to create a suitable jigsaw puzzle for any number of guests on card stock.

Alex

The human jigsaw puzzle and the “arrange a story” game are some girls party ideas that I have used in the past to add some extra interaction and collaboration to organized party events that I have hosted for my daughter.

The golden age of jigsaw puzzles was around 1920 to 1930. This period was also the time of the great depression and it is said that constructing a jigsaw puzzle relieved stress during those troubled times. The low cost of these puzzles and their ability to be reused or exchanged could also be a reason why they were so popular in the depression era.

Today, my experience is that every child enjoys doing a jigsaw puzzle and adults are split into people that really enjoy doing them or people that never (or hardly ever) do them. 

I have recently noticed, in break rooms, three or four very large jigsaw puzzles being completed at work. The jigsaw puzzle may well be making a come back, as people are looking for inexpensive ways to relieve stress and to socialize.

For group activities and as an educational game the jigsaw puzzle should be considered as a great way to develop a young child. Indeed for the very young, basic hand eye co-ordination skills can be developed as the large pieces of a jigsaw are fitted together.

I can still remember, some 50 years ago, the picture of a zoo on a jigsaw puzzle that I did with my grandmother when I was around 4 years old. She would keep about 6 puzzles for my brothers and I to complete when we visited her and we would spend hours putting them together and taking them apart to redo.

The next time you have a party for younger children, around 4 to 8 years of age, consider having the group complete a large jigsaw puzzle as a party activity.

There are so many jigsaw puzzles available today, that the theme of the party (if there is one) can be easily matched with the picture on the jigsaw, from princesses to pirates. Also I would highly recommend, for all children, going back to the original idea of jigsaw puzzles (to teach geography) and purchase a large map of the world jigsaw puzzle for you own children, or as a group party activity, to complete. I have done this with my own children and it is a great way for them to understand where the main countries and cities of the world are located. 

Alex

Jigsaw puzzles are just one of the many subjects I have researched for girls party ideas  that encourage “in person” collaboration that is as enlightening as it is entertaining.