Coping Skills Freeze Tag

Coping skills freeze tag is great for people to identify coping skills that they can use and when they can use them. Peers listening to each other's coping skills can also help give new ideas.



How To Play:
Designate one player as 'it' with the other players scattered throughout the playing area. The person who is it tags the other players. When a player is tagged, (s)he freezes. To be unfrozen, the player has to name a coping skill and be unfrozen by getting a high-5 from another peer who is not frozen.
I like to make a rule that people cannot repeat coping skills so that they have to think of more.
With younger groups, you may need to talk about what coping skills are beforehand and have older kids give examples so everyone understands.

Discussion:
Coping Skills: ask each participant what their favorite coping skill is and when they can use it

Please Share Your Thoughts and Ideas:
What are things you would discuss with this game?
What are some other ways that you like to play tag?

Other Variations on Playing Tag:
Triangle Tag
Animal Tag
Freeze-Tag Toss
Spot Tag  

Image Credit: http://www.forthoodsentinel.com/images/photos/15751_tn.jpg

Spot Tag

Spot tag is a funny game for the participants to break the ice, laugh with each other, and work on important skills. They quickly realize how hard running is while trying to hold their leg, ankle, arm, head, etc.

How To Play:
Designate one player as 'it' with the other players scattered throughout the playing area. The person who is it has a ball (that is soft) that he throws to tag the other players. When a player is tagged by the ball, he has to cover the spot where he was tagged with one hand (but is still allowed to be chased) and continues running around. When tagged a second time, the player uses his other hand to cover the spot where he was tagged (but he is still allowed to be chased). When tagged a third time, he/she switches places with the person who is 'it'.

Once the ball hits the ground, it is considered "dead" so if it bounces and hits someone, that does not count. Also, only the person who is it can pick the ball up. No other player can pick it up.

Discussion:
Anger management: talk about how our anger can hinder us and how we can learn to control it
Depression: similar to anger, talk about how depression can hinder us and how we can improve our mood
Laughter: talk about the importance of laughter and enjoying ourselves
Exercise: talk about the importance of exercise and how it can improve our mood and is good for us

Please Share Your Thoughts and Ideas:
What are things you would discuss with this game?
What are some other ways that you like to play tag?

Other Variations on Playing Tag:
Triangle Tag
Animal Tag
Freeze-Tag Toss 
Coping Skills Freeze Tag 

Image Credit:
https://aames3.files.wordpress.com/2011/04/kids-running_300.jpg

Freeze-Tag Toss

Materials

• Soft item/ball

How to Play
Have a team of taggers and a team of people to be frozen (about a 1:5 ratio). The team that can be frozen will have a soft item/ball. The taggers try to freeze everyone. The only way to be unfrozen is to receive a high-5 from someone who is holding the soft item/ball (cannot throw it at the frozen person). The team that can be frozen can pass the soft item/ball to people who are not frozen. If the person holding the soft ball/item is frozen, s/he must drop the soft item/ball, and another player will have to pick it up. The taggers can never touch or hold the soft item/ball. The round is complete when everyone is frozen except the taggers. Then select new taggers and start over until you run out of time!

Lessons Learned
Communication - How did you know who to pass the soft item/ball to?
Instant Gratification - Did you always get the soft item/ball when you wanted it?
Teamwork
Problem Solving - Did y'all have a strategy of who to throw the soft item/ball to? (ex. pass it to a person closest to a frozen player) Did your strategy always work out? How did you adapt it?
Sharing - Did anyone refuse to pass the item/ball?

How would you use this activity? Do you know other tag variations?

Other Variations on Playing Tag
Triangle Tag
Animal Tag
Spot Tag 
Coping Skills Freeze Tag

Photo Credit: http://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&docid=JrL-3-mT86rDVM&tbnid=sDAYSBxLeQrMOM:&ved=0CAcQjRw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fcommunity.annthegran.com%2Fpost%2F2008%2F04%2F24%2Fa-magic-bookshelf-game-what-are-tags-and-how-do-i-use-them&ei=OggyVMG8IcGnyATtz4DIBA&bvm=bv.76802529,d.aWw&psig=AFQjCNH1uYIbzguxRbn9d5ydLMCqpccTPQ&ust=1412651446497669

No-Outs Dodgeball

The rules are the same as dodgeball, but there are no outs!

Materials:

• 10-15 dodgeballs
• 5-8 cones

Set Up: Split the court in half and spread the balls on the half-court line evenly. Use the cones to create a line on both halves of the playing field. When a player is hit, they have to stand behind the line of cones on their side of the court and cannot cross it. They can still throw balls to hit the other team to get them out. If a player who can still cross the cones catches a ball, a player who was stuck behind the cones can become unstuck. If any player (including those who are stuck behind the cones) catches a ball, the person who threw the ball is now stuck behind the cones. The team left with players able to cross the cones wins.

Here is a drawing of how the court looks when set-up:

The triangles represent the cones and the circles are the dodgeballs.

Lessons Learned
Teamwork
Communication - did those who could cross the line give balls to those who could not?
Keep trying - even if we get "hit with a dodgeball", we can still do our best and help others
Work with our limitations

Picture Credit: http://socalmusicservices.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/dodgeball.jpg

Toe Fencing

To play, face each other, holding hands. Then try to tap the tops of each other's toes with your toes. When one of the partners scores three hits, it is time to switch to a new partner. Players should be equally armed - barefoot vs. barefoot, shoe vs. shoe, etc. Remember the name of the game is toe fencing, not toe stomping.
 


Life Lessons
Have fun, importance of laughter, etc.
Why somethings are okay in certain situations but not others, boundaries, etc.

Please Comment Below: What group did you do this activity with? How did you adapt for the safety of your participants?

Here are a few links to ideas on how to lead activities better:

• Why Leadership and Activities are Important 

• Correctly Using Leadership

• Leading the Activity (Problem Solving, Group Control, etc.)

• Handling Different Age Groups

• Managing Large Groups and Choosing Teams (relays, team spirit, including everyone, etc.)

Credits: pictures from http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/236x/01/18/22/0118221822e60667a0db4c65126bc54c.jpg

Captain's Daughter and Movie Trivia

If you can't tell, I absolutely love all of the games I post. I am extremely picky about the games I will use. Last summer, I had an internship where I had to lead about 3 activities a day with boys and girls from ages 5-12 (the age groups where split up thankfully). I read about 5 books and only found 40 activities that I liked. Since then, I have had classes and learned about leadership and activities. I was very selective in class as well. Thankfully, I have found more activities I like.
Anyways, movie trivia is a game I have truly loved! I have played it with family and friends alike. It always brings out great laughs and fun memories. Captain's daughter is similar to Chicken in the Hen House that I posted the other day. The only difference is that people are not paired of. It also gives different motions to use.

Captain's Daughter
Have one person be the "caller." Everyone else is walking around talking with each other. The caller stands in front of everyone and calls out commands. The different commands are:

• Mermaid - the person stands upright with their hand on their hip, and the other waving in the air while shaking their hips
• Buoy - two people join arms back to back and bobble up and down
• Captain's Daughter - one person grabs another person and holds them in their arms

• Dog in a Dog House - one person bends over in an arc while the other pretends to be a dog inside of the doghouse 
• Chicken in a Hen House - one stands on all fours, while the other kneels flailing their arms like a chicken
• __ in a canoe (can be 2, 3, 4, etc.) - the # of people sit in a line one in front of the other, rowing a canoe

• Hit the Deck - fall flat on the floor
• Walk the Plank - run and touch the wall

The last person to carry out the command or not fit into the canoe is out and becomes a judge. The last person standing wins! 

Movie Trivia
Divide players into equal teams. Give each player an equal number of small, blank papers i.e. 3 or 4. Each player writes a different movie on each piece of paper. Fold the papers in half and put them all in one bowl.
During round one, a player from team one gets up and draws a piece of paper. The player can use any actions and words (except for words in the title) to give clues. Once the movie is guessed by someone on their team, the player draws another piece of paper and so on until his/her 45 seconds is up. After the player from team one is done, a player from team two steps up and draws a piece of paper. He/she uses words and actions to have people on the team guess what movie it is and so on until all of the pieces of paper have been used. Then the players start round two. It is the same as round one except players can only use one word and actions to get teammates to guess the movies. Once the pieces of paper are used again, round three starts. During this round, players can only use actions to have teammates guess the movies.
Twist: Instead of only writing movies, players could write actors/actresses, movie quotes, tv shows, etc.

Recommendations
For Captain's Daughter, do a few practice rounds so everyone can get the hang of the different calls. Elimination games such as this are a great segway into refreshments after a few rounds.

Life Lessons
Movie Trivia teaches people how to act quickly on their feet and problem solve when others are not understanding them. It also helps practice memory during round  two and three. They learn more about communication and how people communicate differently. This is extremely important because learning that everyone communicates differently (and their way works) is a wonderful lesson for life so they can work with others. 
Captain's Daughter is a fun one to play that teaches participants to be alert and move quickly. 

 
Materials
For Captain's Daughter, you will not need any supplies. For Movie Trivia, you will need:

• 3 to 4 slips of paper per participant
• 1 pen for each participant (or have some share)

Please comment below on how you would use it with your population, thoughts on how it has worked for you, advice for others on how to implement it, what you would process and so on! We'd love to hear about it!

Here are a few links to ideas on how to lead activities better:

• Why Leadership and Activities are Important 

• Correctly Using Leadership

• Leading the Activity (Problem Solving, Group Control, etc.)

• Handling Different Age Groups

• Managing Large Groups and Choosing Teams (relays, team spirit, including everyone, etc.)

Hawaiian Themed Party

For my class, we had to do a final group event that included everything we had learned in class:

• Pre-opener: a game that people can participate in as they arrive
• Entertainment: song, skit, jokes, riddles, etc.
• Magic Trick
• Jokes and trivia
• Relay
• Song/Dance
• Refreshments

The party was a blast and not too hard to put together! You do not have to use every element that we did. The party with everything included lasted about 45 minutes. You can easily make it last longer or shorter as you desire.

Here are the things you will need:

• Enough chairs for each person attending (for the pre-opener)
• Ukelele (for the entertainment)
• Deck of cards or homemade cards (for the magic trick)
• For the relay:
• Long rope
• Sunglasses (1 pair per group)
• Lei (1 pair per group)
• Flower hair clip (1 pair per group)
• Face paint (1 pair per group)
• Grass skirt (1 pair per group)
• Camera (1 per group, optional)

Here is what we did!

Pre-opener
Before the party, set up chairs in rows for however many participants you have (30 people = 5 rows of
6 chairs). As people come in, show them to their row (once one row fills up, fill up the next row). Once everyone is seated, start playing music and have everyone stand up and walk around the chairs in their row. While the music is going, take away one chair from each row. When the music stops, everyone has to sit down. The people without a chair have departed to Hawaii. Have them step over to the side of the plane. Once one person is left, welcome everyone to Hawaii, and give the winner a prize (some sort of candy bar or something).

Entertainment
One of the girls in the group knew how to play the ukelele. She picked a few of her favorite songs and played them for the group. Everyone sat in front of her, sang along, clapped, etc. The songs she played were:

• Somewhere Over the Rainbow by IZ
• If I Could Take Your Love With Me by Anonymous
• Dream Girl by Ekolu

This activity was very helpful in order to bring down all the energy and get everyone's attention for the next fun activity!

Hawaiian Magic Trick
This is an adaptation of an extremely easy magic trick. Normally cards are used, but in this case, we "created" our own cards (16) with Hawaiian images like palm trees, pineapples, flip flops, flowers, etc. This is how you perform the magic trick:

1. Group cards in 4 columns with 4 cards in each column 
2. Ask one person to pick a card. You look away so he/she can show all participants which card was picked
3. Ask the person to point to the column where his/her card was
4. Pick that column first and put it in your hand. Then pick up the rest of the column, it doesn't matter in what order they go - make sure to pick them up in column though
5. Using that column first you start 4 different columns (making sure that each of the 4 cards are on 4 different columns)
6. Then ask the person to point to the column where their card is
7. By this point you already know which card they picked because it is the only one in the original column his/she pick and the new column. The important part is that you act mysterious and confident throughout the magic trick

Hawaiian Themed Jokes and Trivia
These can be used throughout the party to allow time for set-up for the next activity or you can share these just at random times or all together. It truly is up to you!

An old Hawaiian man lived alone in the country. He wanted to dig a taro patch (taro is used to make poi which has a paste-like texture and is eaten in Hawaii), but it was very hard work because the group was hard like a rock. His only son, Kimo, who used to help him, was in Halawa prison. The old man wrote a letter to his son and explained his predicament:
Dear Kimo,
I feel pretty bad because it looks like I won't be able to plant my taro patch this year. I'm just getting too old to be digging up this hard soil. I know if you were here you would be happy to dig the patch for me, and it wouldn't be a problem.
Love, Dad
A few days later, he received a letter from his son:
Dear Dad,
Do not dig up the taro patch. That's where I buried the bodies.
Love, Kimo
At 4 a.m. the next morning, FBI agents and local police arrived, and an army of men dug up the entire area without finding any bodies. They apologized to the old man and left. Later that same day, the old man received another letter from his son:
Go plant your taro patch now dad. This is the best I could do.
Love, Kimo

Why don't oysters give to charity?                                            Because they are shellfish
Why did the lobster blush?                                                        Because the sea weed
What did the Pacific Ocean say to the Atlantic Ocean?            Nothing, it just waved
What did one tide pool say to the other tide pool?                    Show me your mussels
Where do crabs and lobsters catch their trains?                         Kings Crustacean
Where does seaweed look for a job?                                         In the 'Kelp-wanted' ads
What do you find on a small beach?                                         Micro-waves!
What did the fish use as a cell phone?                                       A Shell Phone

Hawaii Fun Facts:

• Hawaii is the only state that grows coffee
• More than one-third of the world's commercial supply of pineapples comes from Hawaii
• From east to west Hawaii is the widest state in the United States
• The Hawaiian Islands are the projecting tops of the biggest mountain range in the world
• Hawaii was the 50th state admitted into the union on August 20, 1959
• Hawaii has the fewest overweight people in the United States. About 19.7% of Hawaii residents are overweight, compared to 30% on the mainland
• The Hawaiian alphabet consists of only 12 letters. The five vowels are: A, E, I, O, U and the seven consonants are: H, K, L, M, N, P, W

Relay-Dress up the Tourist
It's time to dress up for your vacation to get you into the Hawaiian spirit of adventure! Items needed:

• Long rope
• Sunglasses (1 pair per group)
• Lei (1 pair per group)
• Flower hair clip (1 pair per group)
• Face paint (1 pair per group)
• Grass skirt (1 pair per group)
• Camera (optional)

Have everyone line up in their groups (from the plane ride) on one side of the room (5 groups = 6 separate lines). On the other end, have a table set up with the items listed above on it (you can separate them out for the groups beforehand or jumble them up - your choice!). Have one person from each group go stand on the other side of the room (if you want it to be super funny, choose a male). Then have two of the leaders stand on either end of the room and hold the rope tight to create limbo! The first member of each group will have to limbo under the rope to get to the 'tourist' on the other side, choose one object, put it on the 'tourist', limbo back to the group, and tag the next person who then repeats the sequence.
If you have enough people, add the following step: when the tourist is all dressed, the last person takes their picture. If there are not enough people in the group, the first person goes again. The first group to finish gets a prize! (Bag of candy, a toy, etc.)

Song/Dance - Hukilau (huki: pull, lau: leaves)
A ukilau is a fishing celebration invented by the ancient Hawaiians. The town would throw huge nets into the ocean with coconut leaves tied onto them to lure in the fish. Everyone would join together to pull in the nets. Jack Owens wrote the Hukilau song in 1948 after visiting Hawaii. The Hukilau is now a popular song and dance. We chose to teach our group the first verse, but there is more than one so you can decide how many you want to teach!

Oh we're goin' to a hukilau (pulling "ropes" 2x to the right, 2x to the left)

A huki huki huki huki huki hukilau (pulling "ropes" 2x to the right, 2x to the left)

Everybody loves a hukilau (arms outstretched in welcoming)

Where the laulau is the kaukau at the hukilau (left hand cupped like a bowl, right hand scoops and brings "food" to the mouth)

We'll throw our nets out into the sea (hands overhead and "thrown" forward)

And all the ama-ama come a-swimmin' to me (one hand on top of the other moving up and down like fish)

Oh we're goin' to a hukilau (pulling "ropes" 2x to the right, 2x to the left)

A huki huki huki huki hukilau (pulling "ropes" 2x to the right, 2x to the left)

Definitions: 

• Laulau: leaves
• Kaukau: pork/food
• Ama-ama: popular Hawaiian Fish

Here is a video that can teach you the lyrics and dance: (go to 1 minute 22 seconds for the dance)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qAk3I7gLT0


Refreshments

Hawaiian punch and fruit skewers (pineapple, grapes, strawberries on a toothpick - any fruit will work as long as you have at least 1 kind of tropical fruit).

Please comment below on how you would use it with your population, thoughts on how it has worked for you, advice for others on how to implement it, what you would process and so on! We'd love to hear about it!

Here are a few links to ideas on how to lead activities better:

• Why Leadership and Activities are Important 

• Correctly Using Leadership

• Leading the Activity (Problem Solving, Group Control, etc.)

• Handling Different Age Groups

• Managing Large Groups and Choosing Teams (relays, team spirit, including everyone, etc.)

Noah's Arc and Chicken in the Hen House

Noah's arc has become one of my new favorite games. It brings out people's creativity and laughter. Chicken in the hen house definitely gets the energy going and is a lot of fun as well!

Noah's Arc
Before everyone shows up, write a name of different animals on slips of paper. Each animal should be on two slips of paper. Put these in a hat/bowl, and have everyone draw out one slip of paper. Participants do not show their animal. Once the last person has drawn their paper, everyone starts making the noise of the animal on their slip of paper. Participants walk around and try to find their match. Once they have found their match, they sit down. After everyone has found their match, collect the slips of paper, and have everyone draw again. This time they act out their animal without making any noise.

Chicken in the Hen House
You can have Noah's Arc lead straight into this game. Either have the participants choose a partner or tell them to keep their same partner from Noah's Arc. Tell the participants to form an inner circle and outer circle. One person from the pair goes into the inner circle, and one person goes to the outer circle. The inner circle walks clockwise and the outer circle walks counter-clockwise. The leader yells out different directions to the participants:

• Rodeo: one partner gives the other a piggy back ride
• Lover's Leap: one partner leaps into the arms of the other partner
• London Bridges: one partner creates a bridge and the other goes under the bridge
• Sailors Sit: one partner kneels down on one leg for the other partner to sit on while both saluting
• Chicken in the Hen House: one partner puts arms above head to form the top of a house (triangle) and the other squats next to him/her and flaps wings like a chicken

Once the leader yells an action, each pair must find their partner and complete the action. The last couple to act out the action is eliminated and becomes a judge to help decide who is eliminated next. Game play continues until there is one triumphant couple left.

Recommendations
Chicken in the Hen House can seem a little overwhelming at first. One way to have the game run smoother, have them pair off and practice each action (London bridge, sailors sit, etc.) as you call it out and explain it. If you feel everyone has got it down, you can do a few practice rounds or just jump right into the game!
For Noah's Arc, make sure you write legibly so everyone can read your hand writing. You can also turn the lights off to add a third round. Have everyone draw a slip of paper and make the noise of their animal. It is awesome!


Life Lessons
Chicken in the hen house can teach kids that they can still have fun and contribute even when they get out. They can enjoy watching their friends run around like crazy, help judge, and talk to other friends. This game can be used to teach kids that it is okay to get out. This game can also teach participants how to work together using good communication and how to adapt quickly. 
Noah's Arc teaches children the importance of listening. You can apply it to different parts of their lives whether in the classroom or in the home. Listening to others allows everyone to help each other. 
Both of these activities get participants out of their comfort zones which creates the opportunity to build friendships and great memories. 

Materials
No materials are needed for chicken in the hen house. For Noah's Arc you will need:

• Enough slips of paper with animals written on them for the whole group (20 people, 20 slips of paper, 10 animals)

Please comment below on how you would use it with your population, thoughts on how it has worked for you, advice for others on how to implement it, what you would process and so on! We'd love to hear about it!

Here are a few links to ideas on how to lead activities better:

• Why Leadership and Activities are Important 

• Correctly Using Leadership

• Leading the Activity (Problem Solving, Group Control, etc.)

• Handling Different Age Groups

• Managing Large Groups and Choosing Teams (relays, team spirit, including everyone, etc.)

Signs and Animal Sounds

I love playing signs and animal sounds! Both of these games are great with a big group of people. These games are great to get good laughs and have always been hits with my friends. We joke about funny moments for days after. I hope you enjoy too!

My Experience
I started playing signs with my cousins when I was younger and have loved it from the first time I played! We usually start with easy signs and eventually have massive hilarious signs. I have taught my friends the game and have all gotten great laughs while playing. 
I played animal sounds for the first time at a bonfire at college. We laughed so hard listening to our friends trying to make the noises! I always have a hard time with this game because I am a laugher so I usually give myself away when trying to make an animal sound. This game is a blast!
If you play and have any experiences you would like to share please do!

Signs

Everyone starts off sitting in a circle. Each person picks a sign such as twirling hair, scratching the nose, etc. Go around the circle twice to have everyone show his/her sign. Then choose one person to go in the middle. This person closes his/her eyes and spins in a circle while counting down from five while someone in the circle starts passing the sign. The way to pass the sign is to do someone else's sign. The person accepts by doing his/her sign to show that he/she has received it. He/she can hold onto it or pass it on by doing someone else's sign. That person does his/her own sign to accept it and so on. The person in the middle is trying to find the person with the sign. When the person in the middle thinks he/she knows who has the sign, he/she touches that persons knee and asks, "Do you have the sign?" If the person answers yes, then that person is in the middle and starts counting and spinning while the sign is passed around. If the person answers no, then the person in the middle stays in the middle and tries to find the person who has the sign.

Animal Sounds
Everyone sits around in a circle, and one person is chosen to be in the middle. The person in the middle closes his/her eyes while spinning in a circle and then randomly points to a person (the person keeps his/her eyes closed). The person in the middle chooses an animal and tells the person being pointed at to make that animal's noise. After the sound is made, the person in the middle has to guess who made that sound. If he/she is correct, then the person who made the sound is now in the middle. If he/she is incorrect, then the person in the middle points at someone else and tells him/her to make an animal noise. 
Twist: If you would like to play this with younger children, have everyone sit in a circle with one person in the middle. The person in the middle closes his/her eyes and spins around in a circle and points to a person. The person in the middle makes an animal noise and the person who is being pointed at has to guess the animal. If the player guesses correctly then he/she is now in the middle. If the player does not guess the right animal, the person in the middle stays in the middle.

Recommendations

When switching the person in the middle, have the person who just left the middle start the sign every time so no one gets confused. If you do not want to do that, at least be clear on who will send the sign; otherwise, you could end up with multiple signs being passed. Also, if someone is trying to send the sign to another player who is not receiving it, tell them to keep sending it to that one person. Otherwise, there could be multiple signs sent around. 
For animal sounds, rather than the person in the middle just pointing to someone to make the sound, he/she can hold a pillow and sit on a player's lap and tell that person the noise to make. This way is definitely HILARIOUS! But some player's are given away because the person who is it can feel the pants/shorts. I think it is worth is just for the humor perspective.
Please give any recommendations you have about the games! I'd love to hear them.

Life Lessons
The life lesson I have always taken from these games is mostly being able to laugh and have fun and how that builds friendships. They both can be used to talk about communication - especially signs because everyone has to be looking to see if someone is trying to send them the sign (listening to others). Also, many signs can be similar so whoever is trying to send the sign must be careful to send it to the right person. Players in signs are practicing memorization as well.  

Materials

• Enough chairs for each person minus one. For example, if you have 15 people, you only need 14 chairs.

Where to Play
You can play inside or outside. I have played in a pavilion, in a living room, and out in the grass. 

Please comment below on how you would use these activities with your population, thoughts on how it has worked for you, advice for others on how to implement it, what you would process and so on! We'd love to hear about it! 

Here are a few links to ideas on how to lead activities better:

• Why Leadership and Activities are Important 

• Correctly Using Leadership

• Leading the Activity (Problem Solving, Group Control, etc.)

• Handling Different Age Groups

• Managing Large Groups and Choosing Teams (relays, team spirit, including everyone, etc.)

Credit:
Image 1: http://www.examiner.com/images/blog/wysiwyg/image/ChickShedCircle190.jpg

Animal Tag

Tag is such a fun game to play! I have found a few twists that I absolutely love playing! I have played them with kids as young as 6 years old. The kids love the creativity these twists allow.

My Experiences

I have played this game of tag multiple times. I love seeing everyone participate and laughing together. The participants are always super creative with their animal choices and how they portray their animals.

If you use this game, please comment and share your experience or twists you added! I'd love to hear different ideas!

Animal Tag

Choose one player to be 'it'. On the starting signal, the tagger attempts to tag as many players as possible. If tagged a player must assume an animal position (you can also do sports or other categories). A tagged player is un-'frozen' when a player who isn't frozen guesses his/her animal. If the player guesses the wrong animal, he/she stays frozen until the animal is guessed correctly.

Recommendations

You can let the players use their hands to tag each other if they get along well. I have found that a soft ball works best so the participants do not get too physical if they do not get along well. 

Life Lessons

Point out the importance of good communication. My favorite time I played, one of the girls decided to be a guinea pig. No one could guess her animal. After the game, we talked about the importance of using words and actions that others will understand. Also, when his/her animal was not being guessed, the participants would switch to different positions for the same animal. Using this, we talked about the importance of rephrasing to help communication. 

Materials

• 1-2 soft balls

Other Variations of Tag
Freeze-Tag Toss 
Triangle Tag
Spot Tag
Coping Skills Freeze Tag

Please comment below on how you would use this activity with your population, thoughts on how it has worked for you, advice for others on how to implement it, what you would process and so on! We'd love to hear about it! 
 
Here are a few links to ideas on how to lead activities better:

• Why Leadership and Activities are Important 

• Correctly Using Leadership

• Leading the Activity (Problem Solving, Group Control, etc.)

• Handling Different Age Groups

• Managing Large Groups and Choosing Teams (relays, team spirit, including everyone, etc.)

Credit:

Picture 1: http://www.polyvore.com/cgi/img-thing?.out=jpg&size=l&tid=9732960
Picture 2: http://cdn.sheknows.com/articles/2011/04/kids-playing-hens-chicks.jpg