Christmas: the bigger picture - Autumn 2 2024

Equip :

• 2 chairs
• Bands
• 2 pins
• Lots of large balloons

As bucketball except the goalie has a pin and a goal is scored by hitting the balloon up to your goalie who bursts it. You need large balloons, as the smaller cheap ones do not fly well. You could have 2 balloons at once.

Equip :

• 2 large balls
• Row of chairs at each end of the hall facing inwards.

Form 2 teams and each stands in either end third of the hall(lines are marked).The middle third is out of bounds. Each team must throw the ball at the other team and hit them below the knee. If they are hit they go behind the opposing team and stand on a chair. Their own team can throw the ball to them and they can hit the other team from behind. The last team left in wins.

Equip :

• 2 skittles
• Small soft ball
• Bands

Mark out 2 squares of about 1m wide in opposite corners of the hall and put a skittle in each. 1 defender is in each area to protect the skittle.

Form 2 teams and each team has a skittle to defend while attempting to knock down their opponents. The ball must be thrown from player to player and you cannot run with the ball. Each skittle is in an area that is out of bounds to all except the defender(s).If an attacker throws the ball from outside the area and knocks down the opposing skittle they score 2 points. If a defender knocks down their own skittle by accident they give away 1 point. If an attacker enters the area the other team have a free throw at the skittle without the defender in the way and score 1 point if they knock it over.

Equip : Foam ball and net

Each team has to get the ball over the net and land it on the floor inside the court on the other side. You can have a maximum of 3 passes on one side before it must go over. A point is only scored if your team served. A serve is an underarm hit from the back of the court that goes over in one. A team must get to 15 points to win. Players take it in turn to serve until their team looses a point and then the other team starts to serve.

Variations : Blind volleyball – hang a sheet over the net so the teams cannot see each other.

Equip: None

Mark one end of the playing area ‘KITCHEN’ and the other ‘CELLAR’. Divide into two teams, the RATS whose base is the cellar, and the CATS whose base is the kitchen. Both teams start in the central third of the hall. The leader starts to tell a story – if the word Rats is said, the rats must try to tag the cats before they reach the safety of the ‘Kitchen’. Any that are caught become rats. The opposite occurs if the word Cats is said. The game ends when everyone is on one side, or at the end of the story.

Equip:

• Ball
• Chairs
• Goals

Divide into 2 teams, and each member has a chair, which they decide where to place. Then announce that you will play football, and set up 2 goals. The ball may be passed by hand or foot, but all players must remain seated on their chair. After a set time, allow the teams to relocate their chairs and continue. Or players stand in a circle on the floor and one foot must be in it at all times. They can pivot around.

Equip: None

Rock – clenched fist, Paper -flat hand, scissors – 2 fingers out

Rock blunts scissors, paper wraps stone, scissors cut paper

Divide into 2 groups. Each group decides upon which of the three hand symbols they will give, and then line up facing the other team across the middle of the room. On a count of 3 they make the symbol. The team that wins must then tag members of the other group, before the losers run back and touch the wall behind them. Any that are tagged join the opposite team.

Equip:

• 1 or 2 ropes.
• Marker for centre of rope

Can be played as two teams or, using two ropes knotted at their middles, 4 teams.

Variations

(a) Have a bag of sweets that the rope marker must be pulled past to share between the team.

(b) Rope is tied end to end to form a circle. Use four teams spread around the circle and place a skittle for each team in a corner of the room. The team must pull the rope towards their corner so as to pick up the object without letting go of the rope.

Equip:

• Chairs(one per member)
• Balloons

Divide into two teams and have two rows of chairs, one per team member, facing each other about arms distance from their neighbour and approx 2 paces between the lines. Players must remain seated at all times and try to knock a balloon over the heads of the other team to hit the floor behind them.

VARIATION

Set up the chairs as above but seat teams members alternately down each side and have a goalie for each team, one at each end of the lines. Players must stay seated and try to hit the balloon towards their goalie.