#393: Shiverees

Give a friend the shiverees. Don't know how? Fear not! I have the way...

1) On your friend's back, slowly and gently draw a big 'x' with your finger.
While doing that say: Criss Cross

2) Then slide a hand slowly and gently down their back.
Say: applesauce

3) Walk your fingers up their back, one by one.
Say: Spiders crawling up your back.

4) Tickle their left side, then their right side.
Say: One here, one there.

5) Run your fingers around on their scalp (head).
Say: Spiders crawling through your hair.

6) Give them a little squeeze.
Say: Tight squeeze

7) Blow gently on their neck.
Say: Cool breeze. Now you've got the shiverees.

They might get goosebumps all the way from their toes to their nose!



Make this a family activity: Give everyone the shiverees!

This activity promotes tactile awareness.

#376: Ice Cube Curling

Let's go curling--at the table!


On a smooth surface, mark a circle. (You might want to lay smooth plastic over a table and draw your circle on the plastic.) Then, take ice cubes and slide them across the surface. To get points, you need to make your ice cube stop inside the circle, or touching the circle in some way.

Take turns with the other players.


Make this a family activity: Is there anyone who can make the ice cube stop in the very middle of the circle?

This activity promotes motor skills (and cold fingers!).

#362: Obstacle Game

You will need a ball and some obstacles as well as some space on the floor to play the obstacle game.

The point of this game is to roll your ball (you toss it at the start line) from one end of the 'court' to the other end where the finish line is, missing or hitting different things that are in your ball's way.

This is an easy course with the white rack as the start line, the blue jar lid as 100 point bounce off object and the comb as a knockdown item for 200 points. The horse was a bridge to go under, but is now the audience.

First off, decide where your court will be. Create a start line (can be a ribbon, a pencil, a line drawn into the carpet with your finger, or whatever you have) and a finish line. Between the two lines, make obstacles for your ball to hit, miss, go over, bounce off, under, around--anything!

Some ideas--a toy horse could be a bridge and your ball has to go between the legs. Maybe a propped up comb needs to be knocked over, a toilet paper tube needs to be gone through. Put as much in your court as you want. Mix it up! Is it too hard? Make it easier. Too easy, make it harder!

When playing with a friend, have one person on each end of the court. So your finish line becomes their start line and your start line becomes their finish line.

The obstacle game can also be a 'points' game where you get points for hitting or missing different things in your court.


Make this a family activity: The more people working on the course, the cooler the ideas!

This activity promotes fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination.

#359: Make up Funny Words and Definitions for Them

Time to get wordy and goofy!

Make up words. How about Suchatuft What is it? Make that up too (that's a definition)! I think Suchatuft is the tuft of hair that sticks out around a dog or cat's ear. What do you think? Who can make the craziest word and definition? Use your new words--you never know... people might start saying them too!


Make this a family activity: Make up words that are 'secret' family words.

This activity promotes language development skills.

#358: Make a New Friend

Is there a new student in your class? Is there someone you don't know on the playground, sitting on the bus, or playing at recess who looks like they are having a blast? Join them. You might make a new friend!



Make this a family activity: Join a club or class and make new family friends.

This activity promotes social skills and making connections with others.

#348: Peek-a-boo

Play peek-a-boo with a baby. Babies love to see people disappear and then reappear.


Cover your face with your hands (disappear--the baby can't see your face) and then open your hands to show your face (appear--the baby can see you again) and say, "Peek-a-boo!" The baby will laugh and smile.


Make this a family activity: See who can make the baby laugh the hardest.

This activity promotes empathy and communication skills.

#342: Memory

This memory game is played with playing cards. Take the deck of cards and arrange them face down on a table or the floor. During your turn, flip over two cards, leaving them in their spot. If they are a pair, take them. If they are not a pair, turn them face down again.

It is now the other player’s turn.

Lay the cards out like this,
only face down so nobody sees which cards are where.

If you make a pair, you can keep going until you can’t make anymore pairs. Whoever makes the most number of pairs wins the game.

Hint: This game can also be played alone.


Make this a family game: See who remembers where all those cards are!

This activity promotes memory skills.

#333: Thumb War

One, two, three, four, I declare a thumb war! Thumbs, get in your corners. Ready? Three, two, one, go!

Thumb Wars or Thumb Wrestling:

Two players face each other. The players hold right hands and curl their fingers into each other’s palms so their hands ‘lock’. Both players touch the tips of their thumbs together. See which player can pin down the other player’s thumb under their thumb for three seconds. They are the winner of that round in thumb war.


Make this a family activity: Have a thumb wrestling tournament with your family.

This activity promotes dexterity, strategy making, and fine motor skills.

#323: War (Card Game)

To play the card game 'War,' you will need 2 decks of playing cards and two players.



The rules for War:

Each player gets a deck of cards (make sure you shuffle them well). Players face each other at a table or sitting on the floor. At the same time, each player takes the top card off their deck and places it face up. Whichever player has the highest card wins the other person’s card. (Aces are the highest card. Then kings, queens, and Jacks. So, it goes: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, Jack, Queen, King, Ace.)

For example: Jo has a 9 and Sally has an ace. Sally wins Jo’s 9.

If both players deal the same card, there is a tie and players go to war. Each player then deals four cards, face down and off to the side. At the same time, players show the top card off their deck. The highest card wins the war. The win all the cards from that round (the first deal which was tied, both stacks of four face down cards, plus the last two cards that were dealt).

If you go to war and happen to have a tie again, then deal four more cards face down plus one face up. Whoever has the highest face up card, wins ALL the cards from the two wars.

When players reach the end of their deck, they flip over their ‘dealt’ stack and use the cards they have won as their new deck. When one player runs out of cards completely, the game is over. It can take a really long time!


Make this a family activity: Have a tournament where the winners play against each other to have a champion.

This activity promotes math skills.

#286: Hold a Liar's Club Meeting

You won’t really be a liar in a Liar's Club, you will tell ‘tall tales.’ Tall tales are stories that are based in real life, but grow and grow until they become so tall, they are no longer totally believable. They are lots of fun to listen to!



Get some friends together and see who can make up the biggest, silliest story that is not true. For example, my aunt once made up a story where my dad took a huge jump on his windsurfer and ended up landing in the back of a semi-truck! The crazier the story, the better. And if you can make your crazy story seem believable--you are a pro!


Make this a family activity: Take turns telling tall tales.

This activity promotes creativity, listening skills, story telling skills, and critical thinking skills.

#281: See Who Can be Quietest the Longest

Have a quiet contest. Who can be quiet for the longest. That means no words, no noises.



Make this a family activity: See who forgets and talks first.

This activity promotes peace and quiet, perseverance and determination.

#275: Have a Pillow Fight

Have a pillow fight with your friends. This is a great sleepover activity.




Make this a family activity: Ha! Ha! One big pillow fight!

This activity promotes strategy, coordination and a lot of ducking!

#262: Make a Cheerleading Routine

Get some friends together and make a cheerleading routine.



If you need pompoms, make your own from plastic shopping bags. Smooth out the bag, then grab its bottom. Scrunch a bit of the bottom together in your hand to make a handle for your pompom. Roll tape around your handle. Using scissors, cut the rest of the bag into strips, leading up to the handle, being careful not to cut the strips off the pompom. Coloured bags can make nice pompoms.



Make this a family activity: Show off your routine for your family, or have them join in.

This activity promotes team spirit, teamwork, creativity, physical activity, and coordination.

#256: Marbles

Play marbles with a friend.



Draw a circle about 2-3 feet wide in the dirt, on a sidewalk (with chalk), or on the carpet (with your finger). Each team (two teams) has different coloured marbles. Both teams place their small marbles in the circle, keeping their 'shooter' or big marble for shooting.

Make a fist, thumb up, and place your shooter on top of your curled pointer finger. Flick the shooter off with your thumb. (You may need to kneel down to get close enough to the marbles on the floor.) Try and hit the other team's marbles out of the circle. If you hit it out, you keep that marble and keep going until you don't hit a marble out. The turn goes to the other team when you don't hit a marble out. Keep going until one team no longer has marbles in the circle. If you shot all the other team's marbles out, you are the winner. Sort the marbles, unless you are playing 'keepsies.'

There are other rules for marbles too. You can look them up or make your own. Have fun!


Make this a family activity: Have a marbles tournament.

This activity promotes fine motor coordination and math skills.

#250: Draw a Picture Together

With a friend, draw a picture together. Use one piece of paper and work together to make one drawing.




Make this a family activity: Draw a picture with your whole family helping out.

This activity promotes cooperation and teamwork.

#238: Staring Contest

Have a staring contest. Find a friend and stare at each other. See who blinks first or looks away.


Make this a family activity: See who can stare the longest.

This activity promotes body language awareness.

#227: Rock, Paper, Scissors

Two players make a fist. On the count of three, both players reveals rock, paper or scissors.

Rock beats scissors (smashes it). Scissors beats paper (cuts it). Paper beats rock (covers it).




To make a rock, make a fist. To make paper, lay your hand flat. To make scissors do the peace sign but with your hand pointing sideways (pointer finger and middle finger pointing straight out of a fist).

This is a fun way to decide who goes first when playing a new game.


Make this a family activity: Have a tournament.

This activity promotes the ability to predict the actions of others as well as timing and strategy.

#226: Chess

Play chess! Choose a colour, black or white and play!




Make this a family activity: start a family tournament.

This activity promotes strategy skills, math skills and predictive, action and consequence skills.

#220: Book Swap

Have you read all your books and looking for something new to read?

Trade books with your friends. (Ask your parents if it is okay first.)



Make this a family activity: find a family to swap books with.

This activity promotes literacy skills.

#198: Mirror

Once person moves and makes faces while the other person stands in front of them and pretends they are a mirror. The mirror tries to do the exact same things at the same time as the other person.




Make this a family activity: Play with your family instead of a friend.

This activity promotes prediction and observation skills.