Stake FSY Activity - Small Group Games
10–40 youth, 1 counselor to every 10 youth recommended
Some of these games can be played in small spaces, while others require more room. These games are just suggestions, so if there are other games your youth enjoy, feel free to play those. You are also encouraged to have a discussion after each game about how it applies to the gospel, in groups of 10–20 youth. Let the youth be creative with their answers. There are some suggested conversation-starter questions included with each game description that may be used if the youth are struggling to come up with their own ideas, but use these only after a good period of silence.
Poison Stump
All youth stand in a circle and link together by grasping forearms. Choose one youth to be the “poisonous stump” and stand in place in the middle of the circle. Youth “poison” other youth by pulling the other side of the circle to the middle. If the youth in the circle touch the youth in the middle, they’re out. The person that got eliminated should step out of the circle, and the youth still in the game should close the gap. The last four or five people not poisoned are the winners. If the people in the circle break their link, the two who broke are out and the circle should be re-formed with the remaining players.
Gospel application conversation-starter questions:
- What or who could the stump represent? (Satan, sin, self-doubt, pride, negative relationships, and so on.)
- Who could the members of the circle represent? (Friends, family, Church members, classmates, teachers, worldly influencers, and so on.)
- What would have happened if you had stepped out of the circle without getting “out”? (This could be like removing yourself from the pull of negative influences.)
- What or who could the people that broke the link represent? (Those who give in to the pressures of the world, stop believing in Jesus Christ, and so on.)
Animal Sounds
Youth close their eyes, and a counselor moves among them whispering the name of an animal to each person—wolf, cat, pig, kangaroo, snake, lion, crow, monkey, frog, elephant, and so on. Feel free to be creative. Try to have the same number of each animal—around three of each. The challenge is to find all the other animals of one’s own kind, and the first group to be completed wins. No talking is allowed; youth can make only animal sounds. Loud chaos ensues, but gradually order and unity emerge as animals find one another. Be prepared to shepherd people from danger, though the game is usually very safe.
Gospel application conversation-starter questions:
- What or who could the counselors who kept you in the safe zone represent? (Commandments, Christ, and so on.)
- How can this experience relate to hearing the promptings of the Spirit? (You must listen for specific things, the noises from other creatures were very distracting, and so on.)
- How did you feel when you found your group, and how can that relate to the gospel?
Toad Attack
Everyone sits in a circle. One person is chosen to be the “detective” and goes to a place where he or she cannot see or hear what is going on in the circle. Those in the circle close their eyes. A counselor walks around the circle and taps the shoulder of someone who becomes the “toad,” but no one else knows who the toad is (at first). The detective comes back in the middle of the circle. The toad sticks his or her tongue out at random people around the circle, trying not to be noticed by the detective. When the toad sticks his or her tongue out at someone, that person must lie down as if dead (the more dramatic the death, the better). All players must look into the eyes of the other players in the circle. The detective gets three tries to guess the toad’s identity. If he or she succeeds, someone else is chosen for the next round. If not, he or she is the detective again.
Gospel application conversation-starter questions:
- Who or what does the toad represent? (Satan, missionaries, and so on.)
- Who or what does the detective represent? (Satan, priesthood leaders, and so on.)
- What did you (the detective or other circle members) feel when you were looking around the circle and didn’t know who the toad was? Apply that to the gospel.
Anteater
The counselors designate a “hill” that the ants are trying to reach. Two or three people are chosen as anteaters; everyone else is an ant. The anteaters are placed between the ants and the hill. The ants try to run to the hill without being caught by the anteaters. If the anteaters tag an ant, the tagged ant must lie down with arms and legs in the air. The other ants can then come back and try to rescue the tagged ant by having one rescue ant at each appendage of the tagged ant. Once there is a rescue ant at each limb of the tagged ant, they all stand up, link arms, and run back to the hill. While touching a tagged ant, rescue ants have immunity from the anteaters, but they can be tagged by anteaters while coming back from the hill. If the ants get everyone to the hill, they win. If the anteaters tag all the ants (or if there are only three left—they can’t rescue with only three), they win.
Gospel application conversation-starter questions:
- Who or what do the anteaters represent? (Christ, missionaries, Satan, and so on.)
- Who or what do the ants represent? (Good friends, bad friends, priesthood leaders, and so on.)
- What strategies made it easier for you to achieve your goals? How does that apply to the gospel?