How to play

Number of players: 2 - 26

Ages: 5+

Materials needed: Ideal is a white board (the bigger the better), but a clean ​piece of paper works, too!

Instructions: Participants make one move at a time. When it is your turn, you ​simply have to start drawing within 10 seconds and “create” something new ​that is real. Subsequent moves create something new off of what is already on ​the page. This is NOT a game that requires artistic ability; rather, it ​encourages children to change their perspective to find a new solution. The ​time component is ideal for encouraging students to navigate situations that ​are pressurized (such as quizzes, in-class essays, standardized tests, etc).

1. It is a ​french ​fry!
   

2. Now it’s a ​piece of pizza!

3. Now it’s a ​trophy!

4. Change your ​perspective, ​because now it ​is a fish!

How to play

Number of players: 2 - 26

Ages: 4+

Materials needed: One (or two) items per player; could be a pencil, scrap of ​paper, or anything! The item will start in their hand (if standing) or in front of ​them on their desk (if seated).

Instructions: The goal of this game is to tell a creative story, one move at a ​time. Participants will sit or stand in a standard shape, and one person and one ​word at a time, tell a story. The subsequent “speakers” must advance the story ​forward in a grammatically correct manner. The “items” are lifelines, which ​teachers can make for words like “and” or “because” (typical words that give ​an easy-out to a storytelling situation, and/or one for a “period” at the end of a ​sentence. Participants have two seconds to spit out their word, each turn! ​(You can expand the time limit for younger students, obviously). Take away ​or turn their lifeline when they use it for easy recognition of who still has one. ​Game is over when one person remains! See example below (this was real).

The - Saucy - Grandma - Is - Very - Fun - When - She - Jumps - Over - A - Cranky - Dog - Because - ​She - Doesn’t - Smell - Like - Cheese - (Period).

How to play

How to play

Number of players: 2 - 8 (or a full class, if you make teams)

Ages: 4+

Materials needed: A white board or one piece of clean paper and one writing ​utensil per person

Instructions: This game is played either heads-up between two students or ​every student “with” the teacher. Every participant will begin the game by ​writing down, on a scrap of paper not to be seen by anyone else, one ​CONCRETE noun (something you can see or touch, like a football or a ​dog). Once everyone has their nouns hidden away, it is their job, one ​instruction at a time, to get the other student (or teacher) to draw their noun. ​The catch, however, is that you have to use descriptive words instead of ​literal details (example: If my noun is “clown”, I can’t say “Draw a clown ​nose,” I would have to say “Draw a circle”). What the students learn, quickly, ​is that we are rarely as detailed as we should be (when describing/writing). ​The previous instruction SHOULD be “Draw a circle, roughly the size of a ​quarter, in the center of the page.” After five rounds are up, each contestant ​(or teacher) must provide an honest guess as to what the noun is. If not ​successful, guesses are made after each subsequent instruction.

How to play

Number of players: 1 - 30

Ages: 4+

Materials needed: One piece of clean paper and one writing utensil per ​person

Instructions: Every letter of the alphabet corresponds to a number, and math ​challenges can be created on the fly by simply saying a few letter aloud or ​writing them on the board. To push the competitive factor if you so desire, ​have them block their page off into six numbered sections and put a time ​limit on each problem. This can work with any math operation and is helps ​facilitate a relationship with numbers in the mind of a student.

1. A + B = C 2. H - C = E

1 + 2 = 3

8 - 3 = 5

Wick Roll is a game that combines the game ​of Life, Choose Your Own Adventure, and ​Dungeons and Dragons (you read that right) ​that takes students through challenging ​moments in their daily schedule on the way ​to the coveted Positive Quick Note!

How to play

Number of players: 1 - 30

Ages: 7+

Materials needed: One piece of clean paper and one writing utensil per ​person, or one pre-printed “Finish That” sheet

Instructions: Students need to demonstrate their knowledge of fun ​categorical topics, such as famous lyrics, quotes, or jingles! Quick and easy, ​fun and breezy.

How to play

Number of players: 1 - 30

Ages: 3+

Materials needed: One piece of clean paper, one writing utensil per person, ​and one color swab

Instructions: In today’s world, especially for our students who own mobile ​phones, our eyes are “down” more than ever before, and we naturally ​become blind to the world around us. In Color Hunt, the students will get a ​very specific color square and be tasked with going on a twofold scavenger ​hunt. First, they have to find as many items as they can that resemble their ​color, written on a standard list. Second, they have to find the most unique ​item they can that matches their color. The idea of the game is to get students ​to notice the world around them, and it can be played inside or (even better) ​out.

How to play

Number of players: 2 - 30

Ages: 3+

Materials needed: One ping-pong ball and a flat, elevated surface (the longer, ​the better)

Instructions: The coolest thing about science is that it literally exists within ​everything. How does a football keep its spiral? Gyroscopic torque, of course! ​In this game, the students will stand at either end of a table. The first student ​will bounce the ball just once before it travels over the edge across from ​them. The second student needs to bounce exactly twice, third three times, ​etc. The boy who survives the round remains at their end of the table while ​the next challenger steps up. The lesson here, of course, is that something ​happens to the energy of the ball with each bounce. Newton’s Laws abound, ​and the concept of gravity, transfer of energy, inertia, and more are just ​waiting to be discussed. Science is everywhere, and the more we understand ​it, the more successful we will be!

How to play

Number of players: 1 - 30

Ages: 3+

Materials needed: A stopwatch, and preferably one that can be projected (for ​everyone but the participant to see)

Instructions: Tell the students that it is their job/challenge to stop a ​stopwatch at exactly ten seconds flat, or at least within 0.1 seconds away from ​10 seconds. The game is quick and easy, but what the majority will come to ​learn is that time “speeds up” when pressure situations take place. Time ​management is important in nearly every facet of life, and for students, it can ​come into play when taking an assessment, budgeting time for assignments, ​or playing sports and competing. Even with the knowledge that their ​classmates are stopping the stopwatch too quickly, it is a challenge for ​students to relax and take time as it comes.

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9....stop!

How to play

Number of players: 1 - 30

Ages: 3+

Materials needed: Two scraps of paper (different colors, ideally)

Instructions: The teacher will introduce a topic, such as: “Who has ever ​broken a bone?” Each student will have two papers in front of them, one that ​reads “Me!”, and the other that reads “Me, and I have a story to tell about it.” ​Raising neither sheet is how to answer “Not me.” Once the topic has been ​opened, students can take turns sharing what they are comfortable to. Topics ​can run the gamut, and include “Who has ever traveled somewhere really far ​away?”, “Who has ever done something they are really proud of?”, “Who has ​a skill that they think is really unique?”, etc.