Indoor Child Party GamesThere are many indoor child party games to choose from. I put together a list of the most popular games that your party guests will want to play over and over again. These games don't have a common theme. They are great add-ons to a themed birthday party. If you're looking for games with a specific birthday theme, you can find them here: Surprise Package: This is one of the party games that requires some preparation. But it's fun and well worth the effort. 
For the game, you'll need boxes of various sizes. Before the activity, place a grand prize in the smallest box. Then wrap it with gold gift wrap. Label it "The Grand Prize." Place the gold box inside a larger one. Then repeat the process until all the boxes have a gift inside, are wrapped and set inside one another. For gifts, it's a good idea to choose generic items that either boys or girls will enjoy. (You can give out small toys, candy, and so on.) You're going to end up with a large box containing smaller boxes (with prizes) inside of it. The game starts as the kids sit in a circle and pass (or push) the box around while you play music in the background. When you stop the music, the person holding the box opens it and leaves the circle with the gift. (Don't tell the children that there are gifts inside the box.) The game continues in this manner: you start and stop the music and players leave the circle with their gifts. Soon there will be only 2 children left. The player who opens second-to-last box, takes the gift, and passes the gold box to the remaining child. That kid is the winner, and he or she gets to keep the grand prize! "Surprise Package" Variations: Snatch!: I like this child party game because it allows the kids to be sneaky without getting into trouble. And it's non-competitive -- so everyone wins! While the players wait in another room, put several small items on the table. Make sure that the kids don't see the items prior to game's start. (You can arrange the items any way you wish.) Invite the kids to gather around the table. Have them take a look and remember the items. Next, a chosen player closes her eyes and turns away from the table. Meanwhile, point to another player to snatch one item from the table and hide it from view. Then the first player opens her eyes. She gets several tries to guess which item was taken and who snatched it. If she doesn't get it right, the culprit confesses and reveals the stolen item. Put the item back on the table prior to the next round. The player who snatched the item last time closes his eyes and faces away from the group. Pick another person to get the item off the table. Keep playing until everyone had a chance to snatch and guess. "Snatch!" Variation: Ha Ha Ha: Some child party games will bring a lot of laughter -- this is definitely one of them. 
Have the kids sit or stand in a circle. One of them begins the game by saying "Ha," as solemnly as she can. Then the next player says "Ha, Ha" and the third person says "Ha, Ha, Ha." The game continues with each child adding a "Ha" during his or her turn. All the players in the circle must keep a straight face during the game. Anyone who smiles or laughs goes out. But now they have a chance to make silly faces and noises trying to get the kids in the circle to laugh. They can make the facial expressions or sounds, but can't touch the other players. The child who keeps a straight face the longest is the winner. "Ha Ha Ha" Variations: Copy Cat: If you're looking for indoor party games that allow the kids to copy each other, try this one! The children sit in a circle. One player starts the game by making a body movement such as wiggling nose, clapping hands, shaking head, shrugging shoulders, etc. The next player must repeat the first player's move and add a new movement. The third player must copy the first two movements in the order they were made, and then add her own movement. Play continues in this fashion around the circle. If a player can't remember the movement or repeats the movements in the wrong order -- he is out of the game. The last player remaining in the circle, wins. "Copy Cat" Variations: Mummy Wrap: This party game is a great icebreaker for children who don't know each other very well. 
Split the group into pairs. One person is the "Mummy" and another - the "Mummy Wrapper." Get the Mummy Wrappers to race wrapping their Mummies using rolls of toilet paper as fast as possible. To win the game, the Mummy Wrapper must wrap his or her partner from head to toe (except for the face). The children will soon discover that the toilet paper will tear, causing delays and do-overs. They will have a lot of fun rushing to be the first to complete the task. Be sure to have enough toilet paper for the players to trade places, so everyone can have a chance to be "mummified." "Mummy Wrap" Variation: Chain Reaction: Child party games that involve dancing are a lot of fun! Kids will have a great time playing this game. Before starting the game, choose one player to be "It" and have him leave the room. Pick another player to be the Dance Teacher and get the kids to scatter around the area. When you start the music, get the Dance Teacher to initiate a dance move while everyone else imitates it. Then you invite the player who is "It" back to try to guess who is leading the dance. The Dance Teacher must change the moves continuously throughout the song, little by little, without being too obvious that she is the leader. Tell other dancers to be subtle when they follow the Dance Teacher. They should only glance at the leader without staring, or they will give the person away too easily. When the child who is "It" guesses who the Dance Teacher is, choose other players for the two positions until everyone had a chance to lead and to guess. "Chain Reaction" Variations: 
Before the game, cut airplane shapes out of cardboard for each player. Write each person's name on the airplane to avoid any confusion over who wins. Hang a map on the wall and mark "runway" spot somewhere in the middle of it. At the start of the game, gather the players on the opposite side of the room from the map. Put several obstacles on the floor: wastebaskets, pillows, chairs, etc. (Be sure that the obstacles are not breakable or too small -- so the kids won't trip over them.) Give the children some time to study the placement of the obstacles and the "runway" spot. Then blindfold the players, give them their airplanes, and get them to move towards the map without touching the obstacles and pin their airplanes as close to the "runway" as they can. Remind the kids to move slowly so they don't get injured. If a child touches one of the obstacles, it's considered a plane crash and the player is out. If the player pins his plane on "water", it's considered a crash-landing. The player who puts his or her airplane on land close to the "runway" is the winner. "Airplane" Variations: Return from Indoor Child Party Games to Game Area Back to Kids' Birthday Party Guide Subscribe to Family Smiles |
