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Pond Elementary PTO
Classroom Party Game and
Craft Ideas
Some of these are unique ideas from our Pond Parents. This is a work in
progress. Please send your new and creative ideas to
PondPTO @rockwood.k12.mo.us
Fall Party Ideas
Pumpkin Rolling Game- 3 groups had to roll a small pumpkin with their nose/forehead to another
teammate at a designated stopping point, where the teammate would roll it back.
Foam Bat Craft: Kids trace their hands to make the wings and trace a model for the body. Use googly eyes, pipe
nd
cleaners, and pom poms to make eyes, mouth and nose. Cutting hard for some 2 Graders.
Pumpkin Bowling: large plastic apple juice bottles (I have seen them painted white like ghosts, mine were just plain)
and a small pumpkin to use a the bowling ball.
Fall Bingo: using candy as markers. Kids love as they get to keep the candy.
Pumpkin Straw Relay Race: The pumpkin straw relay race is where you give each child a drinking straw and line them
up in their teams. Give the first child in each row a pumpkin cut out of construction paper. Each child has to walk from one
side of the room to the other while sucking in on the straw to keep the pumpkin up (creating a vacuum). When they get
back to their team, they pass the pumpkin on to the next teammate. I wasn't sure if the kids would be able to do this but
they were and had a lot of fun with it. I did have to keep reminding them to walk. Variation: Use skittles or m & m’s
Spider Darts: I made targets with points and glued them to black cardboard. I then hung the spider webbing over the
targets. Kids had plastic spider rings that they threw at the targets. Whoever got the most points won (similar to darts).
They kept the spider rings as prizes.
Candy Sort: Give each child 50 pieces of colored candy. Give 1 minute to sort by color. (Minute to Win It Game)
Lollipop Ghosts-Cover a lollipop with white fabric or tissue. Tie it with a ribbon and draw a face on it.
Spiders-Roll a black Styrofoam ball in glitter. Stick pipe cleaners in for legs and add googly eyes.
Owl and Spider Crafts: Owl is made out of a pine cone and feathers. The spider is a spray painted
acorn with pipe cleaners for legs.
Pumpkin Decorating: Was decorate a small pumpkin with markers, carrots with toothpicks, and stickers for mouth.
Pumpkin Bowling: Use a small pumpkin as a ball and 2- liter bottles ¼ of the way with beans or sand as the pins.
Pumpkin Ring Toss: Bring in a pumpkin with a large stem and use swimming rings or cut paper plates into rings.
Kids take a Clear Food Service glove...put one candy corn in each finger tip, Tip side at
the end (like a finger nail) fill glove with popcorn, put a spider ring on the ring finger tie the base of the
glove with Rafia! (one of my favorites and from my sister)
Creepy Hands:
Mummy Game: Wrap the teacher, parent, student in toilet paper. First team to completely cover the
body wins.
Skeleton Puzzle: Purchase a cheap skeleton with joints. Pull apart and hide around the classroom.
Have students find the pieces and then first team to put the skeleton together correctly wins.
Winter Party Ideas
Gingerbread Man Scavenger Hunt: These clues were posted on 2 foot gingerbreads hung up at
key locations around the school. Prior to the party, Ms. Bailey read The Gingerbread Man by Jan
Brett.
Clue #1 (outside the classroom)
Let’s get ready to have some fun
Remember school rules…do not run!
Today, you are going on a scavenger hunt…
Let’s catch that gingerbread man so start heading to the front!
You drop off notes and sign in here when you might be late…
Secretaries, Principals and others await!
Run, Run as fast as you can…
You can’t catch me, I’m the Gingerbread Man!
Clue #2 (Office)
Boy this is fun, but you just missed me…
Keep on looking I’m not hard to see!
I’m heading to a spot that can get really hot…
Playing ball, doing jumping jacks, and INDOOR games are at this spot!
Run, Run as fast as you can…
You can’t catch me, I’m the Gingerbread Man!
Clue #3 (Gym)
I’m too fast for you…
Please don’t be blue!
I like to read and listen to puppet shows too…
You know where I can check out books, don’t you?
Run, Run as fast as you can…
You can’t catch me, I’m the Gingerbread Man!
Clue #4 (Library)
Boy that was close you almost caught me…
I really had to flee!
Sometimes you might eat too many cookies and feel a little sick…
My next location takes great care of me. I might be resting there…hurry…quick!
Run, Run as fast as you can…
You can’t catch me, I’m the Gingerbread Man!
Clue #5 (Nurses Office)
Our game is almost over it has been so much fun…
Just remember that I won’t be outdone!
The last stop for me is your home away from home…
Reading, writing, and centers you might roam!
Run, Run as fast as you can…
You can’t catch me, I’m the Gingerbread Man!
Final Spot (Classroom)
Keep on looking for me throughout the day…
Go have fun and play!
Gingerbread House Placemats from Oriental Trading
Gingerbread Man Bean Bag Toss: Parent made a Gingerbread House out of a cardboard box.
Kids tossed bean bags into cut-out holes.
What’s In the Box?: blindfolded two kids at a time and they have to wrap a box - I pre-cut the
wrapping paper, provided easy size boxes to wrap (used photo boxes from Michaels), and brought in
the tape. After they wrapped the box, they got to rip off the paper so the box was ready for the next
kid - the kids really enjoyed this activity
Ice Fishing/Go fish game. Have the wooden balance beam -1" off ground. Fishing pole (string and
magnet) and fish with paper clips. Variation: Fish over a sheet and clip items stickers or small items
as they fish.
Jingle Bells (Minute to Win It Game); You’ll need a large rectangular Kleenex box, 5-10 medium
sized jingle bells, and a belt. Cut two slips in the back of the box to create a belt loop. Fasten the
box with the bells inside. The box should be on the small of the child’s back. Child must shake, jump
or move to get all the bells out of the Kleenex box hole.
Ice Skating Relay: Use shoe boxes for students to use as ice skates. They skate down, put on
gloves, scarf and hat. Then they have to unwrap a piece of candy with mittens on. Take off the items
and skate back to the next person in line.
Ice Melt: Give each student an ice cube. You can have them record predictions of how long it will
take. Race to see whose cube melts the fastest or closest to prediction. They can rub, sit on it,
squeeze but not lick it!
Reindeer Stirrer - can take home goes great with hot chocolate. Maybe could give hot chocolate
packets out with it.http://www.marthastewart.com/269965/candy-cane-reindeer?backto=true#slide_34
Candy Cane Mouse - same as above, can give out hot chocolate packets with it.
http://www.marthastewart.com/273608/candy-cane-mice
Spring/Friendship Party Ideas
Valentine Chopsticks: Use chopsticks to pick up candy hearts
Valentine Pot: Purchase small clay pots, black beans, green pipe cleaners and pencils.. Students
adhere foam stickers to the outside of the pot. Insert a scoop of black bean. Give each child 3-5
pencils to put stickers to put on pipe cleaners. Wrap these around pencils on the top to make a
“flower”.
Team Building Games:
 Human Knot: Have 6-8 students stand in a circle and stretch hands across and link. They
cannot have the same person. They must attempt to get untangled.

Famous Pairs: Put a famous person/character’s name on the each child’s back. Make sure
they all match up evenly. Then, students walk around asking questions about their character
to others. Is he a cartoon, was he a president, is she alive? The first team to find their match
wins. Examples of pairs include: Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Batman and Robin, Bert and
Ernie, Mario and Luigi, etc.
Stacking Game - This is a timed game. Donna Merritt has a second hand watch. Each child will
take a turn seeing how many candied hearts they can stack in 30 seconds, count candies after time
is up, keep score and see who stacked the most candies. There are ribbons for "Best Stacker"
for highest score of each group.
Matching Lids: I brought in a bunch of heart shaped containers with lids. Take them all apart and
mix them up on the floor. Blindfold one student at a time and they have to match up the lid with the
container. I did this in a small group and had the children watching encourage and help the child
playing by giving directions (to your right!, etc.).
Golf Ball Knock Off: I have a board w/ golf tees on it. You place plastic golf balls on it. See how
many you can knock off the a squirt bottle (no water guns allowed). Have everything but backdrop (I
made out of a large cardboard box) and squirt bottles.
Yarn Bug!!!
http://www.makingfriends.com/yarn_bugs.htm Great craft for older students. Too hard
for 2nd graders. You do not have to buy kits. I have patterns for feet and hands
attached. Each one gives instructions on how to make.
Clucking Chicken: You will need a disposable plastic cup, some small pieces of felt, a
piece of fine string or knitting cotton -say about 60 centimeters long, a small piece of
sponge cloth like Wettex, a darning needle, black marking pen, scissors and glue - But
lets cut out the felt shapes first. They're rather small for you to see easily, so I've cut
some larger shapes from paper just to show you what they look like. You will need two
identical pieces shaped like wings. From another piece, cut a longish little diamond
shape for the beak and a square piece for the comb on the chicken's head. While you at
it, cut a small rectangular piece from the spongecloth.
Take the wing shapes and cut a few slits along the outer edge to give the
impression of feathers. Glue them about halfway down on either side of
the cup.
Now take the little diamond shaped piece, fold it over in half, and crease it
as sharply as you can, so that it stays folded and looks like a chicken's
beak. Glue the bottom half of the beak between and slightly above the
wings.
Take the square piece of felt, fold it over in half and cut slits along the
edge, but not all the way through. Open it up and tie one end of the string
tightly around the centre.
Thread the other end of the string through the darning needle and push
the needle through the outside top of the plastic cup. If the cup is too hard
to push through, you can soften it by pouring hot water into it and letting it
stand for a few minutes. I've already made a small hole in this one. Glue
the comb to the top of the cup and let the string hang down through the
middle. Take the needle off the end of the string.
Remember the little piece of spongecloth? Fold it over lengthwise and tie it
on the end of the string.
Our chicken is almost finished, but it needs eyes. Use the black marking
pen to draw eyes on the front, just above the wings.
Just dip the piece of spongecloth on the end of the string into
water. Squeeze it out. Now, hold up the chicken in one hand,
and use the other hand to wrap the spongecloth around the
string close to the cup. Grasp the string firmly with it, and
slide the cloth down the string in little jerky movements.
Tried But True Games that Kids Love For Any Theme
 Pictionary
 Guesstures/Charades
 BINGO
 Musical Chairs
 Cake Walk
 Trivia
 Name that Song
 Hot Potato Variations
 Potato Sack Races
 Pin the Tail Variations
 Mad Libs
 Human Tic Tac Toe (separate kids into two teams with
hats or scarves…red = x and blue=o). Then, set up nice
chairs in a box formation. Kids take turns sitting into the
seats.
 Hangman
 Puzzles: I buy a bunch of greeting cards that pertain to the party theme. Then cut up the
front of the card, the picture part, into pieces of a puzzle. Mix the pieces up and let the kids
figure it out. For the younger kids I would have photocopies of the picture that they could look
at.
 Puzzle Variation: Make coloring page of kids face, let kids color and match picture to
kids name....do it in groups and time.....which ever group gets the shortest time wins.
 Hot and Cold Game: Send the teacher out in the hall. The kids hide an item
(pumpkin, stuffed snowman, heart container) and the teacher comes back in. The kids guide
her to the item by saying cold, warm, warmer, hot, hotter, etc.
 Minute to Win It Games (see sample below)
Cookie Down the Face: Each child is given a cookie (Oreo or vanilla wafer). They use facial
muscles to work it from the forehead to their mouth. This was hilarious and challenging. It
was a great time filler for a station that might run fast. (Minute to Win It Game)
Ideas for Themes for Parties
 Piggyback on what they are learning about…animals,
medieval times, Missouri History, dinosaurs, etc.
 Karaoke Party
 Bring a board game party
 Baseball
 New’s Years
 Football
 Friendship
 Olympics
Great Websites
www.kaboose.com
gameideasforkids.com
familyfungo.com
www.enchantedlearning.com
dlkt-kids.com
www.makingfriends.com
www.marthastewart.com
www.craftsforkids.com
www.verybestkids.com
www.childfun.com
www.bhg.com/familycrafts
www.orientaltrading.com
www.kid-party-ideas.com
www.reasontoparty.com/schoolevents