Calum Henderson

Nothing to use? Try these games...

Over the next few weeks, I’m going to be sharing some of my favourite Youth Group games.

There going to be here in groups of 9, ready to use for your next Youth Group. Read through these games and think about how well they would work for your Youth Group before you use them, then practice playing and explaining them yourself before using them at youth group.

Feel free to modify them or use them with more or less people, these are here for your benefit, to help with games at your Youth Group.

So without further adue, here are 9 Youth Group games to play when you have no resources, nothing at all to use.

1. Stomps
2. Assassins
3. Shoe
4. Body Parts
5. Get in that group
6. Bang
7. Murder Winks
8. Buckerk
9. Secret Dancer

Continue reading below for an explanation of all these games. (and add your favorite game to play when you have no resources in the comments)

UPDATE: View all games at Youth Group Games | Main Page

1. Stomps (5-15 people)

To play stomps, everyone in your group stands in a circle. The aim of the game is to stomp on somebody else’s foot. Once you have stomped on their foot, they are out. The last person in, wins. Simple.

The way this game works, is that you take it in turns to jump up in the air, and try to land on somebody else’s foot. However, while you are in the air, everyone else can jump to avoid you (or get ready to stomp on somebody else’s foot). Once you have had your go, it moves on to the next person.

For this game to work well, you need to remember the order that everyone goes in, as well as demonstrating the use of tactics. Stomps can get really fast and fun!

2. Assassins (5-25 people)

To play assassins you need to mark out a square, and as you don’t have any resources, shoes will do fine. Assassins is like a very structured game of tip.

Somebody is in, and they start going for one person. The person who they are going for then calls out somebody else’s name, and that person is now in. The person who is now in goes for somebody and the cycle continues.

If somebody gets tipped (because they were caught, or couldn’t think of a name to say), then they are out, and the person who was in goes for another person, and the game continues.

Assassins is great for getting to know each others names as well. And please don’t let your kids say “that guy” or “him, him”, names only.

3. Shoe (4-10 people)

Shoe is a hillarious game. The basics of the game involve throwing a shoe in the air, and hoping it doesn’t land on you (thanks to Tom A and Matt H for this one).

Everyone lies down in a circle, with heads facing towards the centre. A leader is standing up outside the circle controlling it.

A shoe is given to one child, and they throw it up in the air, everyone then closes their eyes. When the shoe is about to land, the leader calls out “shoe”, everyone is allowed to then open their eyes, and try to avoid being hit.

The fun is in the suspense of the game, but please be cautious when allowing kids to throw shoes at each other!

4. Body Parts (6+ people)

To play this game, a leader gets everyone else into groups of between 3 and 6 people. The leader then sets challenges to the groups about how many body parts they are allowed on the ground. The groups must then have exactly this many body parts on the ground. No more, no less.

For example, everyone is in groups of 4, and the leader calls out 4 feet, 4 hands. Each group must then have 4 hands and 4 feet only on the ground between them.

If a group can’t, then they’re out.

5. Get in that group (10+ people)

This game goes great just before Body Parts. A leader is controlling this game.

Everyone is walking around, or skipping, or hopping, whatever you choose really. The leader then calls out a number, and everyone must get into a group with exactly that number of people in it. Leftover people are out. That’s the game.

6. Bang (6-15 people)

For this western game, everyone must stand in a circle. A single person is in the centre of the circle. They hold their hands together in a gun. This person then points at somebody and yells bang. The person they point at must duck down, and the two people either side of them must shoot each other and say “Bang”, the person who says bang last is out. You are also out if you say “Bang” when you’re not supposed to, or if you don’t duck quickly enough. The person in the centre gets the final say.

The person in the centre then repeats this process until there are only two people left.

When there are only two people left, they stand back to back, and the person who was in the middle starts counting. With each count the two people take steps away from each other, western style. The person who was in the middle then yells bang, and the two people turn and say “BANG”. The person who is fastest wins, and gets to be in the middle the next round.

7. Murder Winks (7-30 people)

For this game, everyone needs to sit in a circle. There are two main characters in this game, a detective and a murderer. First, choose a detective and send them somewhere where they can not see or hear the group. Then choose a murderer.

The murderer’s aim is to kill everyone, and the detectives aim is to stop him/her.

The detective comes back and the murderer starts killing people, this is done by simply winking (or blinking) at them. When people are winked at, they must die in an overly dramatic way. The detective then gets three guesses at who the murderer is.

This can be great fun for everyone who is involved. Including the people who die!

8. Buckerk! (5-10 people)

The silliest game invented! Everyone sits (or stands) in a circle, and puts their hands on their eyes to look like glasses, like a pair of hand goggles. Everyone will look stupid, but this is ok, as everyone looks stupid.

One person starts by moving their right hand out and saying “buck” (like a chicken), the person to their right then does the same, this continues around the circle until somebody moves both hands away from their face at the same time and says “BUCKERK” (like a crazy chicken). The person to their left then moves their left hand away from their face while saying “buck” and the pattern continues.

One hand in the direction and “buck” to continue along, and two hands and “BUCKERK” to change the direction.

Giggles will follow.

9. Secret Dancer (10-30 people)

An amazing game to finish on. Everyone stands in a circle, and in a similar way to murder winks, a detective is chosen. The detectives job is to find the secret dancer.

Once the detective has left the room, the secret dancer is chosen. They then start dancing their favorite dance move, and everyone copies them. The detective comes back in the room, and they have to try and find the secret dancer.

The secret dancer then needs to change dance move, and everyone needs to change with them. This allows the detective to discover the secret dancer.

This is an amazing game, and I’m sure you will learn something about people in your Youth Group…

Conclusion

So there are 9 Youth Group games to play when you have no resources. What game(s) would you add to the list?

Related posts from calumhenderson.com:

1. Youth Group Games | Main Page
2. 9 Spectacular Youth Group Games To Play In A Gym
3. 9 Not Awkward Youth Group Games To Get To Know Everyone
4. 9 Superb Youth Group Games That Can Be Played With A Ball (or two)