Game/Activity Ideas
Nature’s Inventions
*Good for older scouts
This activity can be directly related to our study of nature, marine biology, and
evolution, which are large aspects of the educational program at Emerald Bay. The
goal is for the scouts to match different animals to objects, showing how the animals
have adapted to survive and how we harness those skills. For example, an armadillo
rolls itself into a ball for defense, which was an inspiration for the tank. Whichever
patrol can finish matching the animals to the objects first wins.
 Materials – Attached page with photos
 http://www.glencoe.com/sec/busadmin/entre/teacher/creative/stimulate/
exer5.htm
Floating Foil
Because Emerald Bay is on the ocean, it is important for scouts to understand how
boats keep themselves afloat. Using the principles of buoyancy, have the patrols
discuss for 5 minutes how best to make a piece of aluminum foil float. Give them a
piece of foil, and give them another 5 minutes to shape it. The smart patrols will
shape their foil similar to a boat. Begin adding coins on to each piece of foil. The one
that stays afloat the longest wins.
 Materials – Large tub of water (plastic bin?), aluminum foil, many pennies
The Raft (or Tarp) Game
This is a teambuilding game. The premise is that the scouts were on a large boat in a
lava river that began to sink, and they have made it to their life raft. However, the
raft is upside-down, and they have to flip it over to inflate it. Anyone who touches
the lava is out, so they have to work together to flip it without stepping in.
*The trick to this game is having everyone stand on one end, folding the other end
over diagonally, and standing on the newly folded side while they flip the first side.
 Materials – Tarp
The Ultimate Multitasking Game
This game tests the scouts’ perseverance and multi-tasking skills. Each additional
phase should start 15 seconds after the one before it. Have the scouts get in a circle.
Begin passing a ball around the circle clockwise. Send a balloon over the group (with
regular air) that they have to keep in the air. Begin passing another ball around
counter-clockwise. Send a ball around passed by feet only. Make them stand on 1
leg. Then start adding the other balloons. While this is not really EB-specific, it can
be a good teambuilding exercise.
 Materials – 3 balls, 3 balloon
Crossing the Channel
The goal of this game is to have the scouts cross between 2 sides of the “river”
without falling in. Follow the listed procedure
-Lay down 2 ropes 20-50 ft. apart (depending on group size)
-Give the patrol a set of paper plates (1 per 3 ft)
-Patrol has to get from one side of the channel to the other without stepping in,
using the paper plates as large rocks
-If nobody is standing on a plate that’s in the channel, it gets washed away
-If there are a lot of scouts, have the patrols race and give penalties for losing plates
-Whichever patrol gets across the quickest wins, but the patrol gains a minute if
they lose a plate or 3 minutes if they lose a person.
 Materials – 2 ropes, 15 paper plates
The Human Triangle Game
*This game requires exactly 14 physical participants, but more can help from the
outside.
This is another critical thinking and teambuilding game. Lay out a triangle of paper
plates flat on the ground (5 on the outsides, shaped like a flat pyramid). 14 scouts
stand on 14 of the plates, with 1 corner open. The goal is to have only one scout left
at the end. To clear scouts, they “jump over” (but really walk around) each other to
an open spot. The one that was “jumped over” leaves his spot, so now there are 2
open spots. Continue the process until no further moves can be made.
 Materials – 15 paper plates
Make a (Sea) Monster
*This works very well for groups of different sized individuals
Split into groups of 5-8 (evenly split or as close as possible). The goal of the game is
to build 1 person out of all the bodies of the group members. However, the person
will have a strange number of arms and legs.
-Feet – Only that number of human feet should be touching the ground
-Hands – Only that number of hands can be loose/visible
The groups should have about 10 minutes to brainstorm and practice building their
monsters. The monsters will then race from start to finish, but are disqualified if
they fall apart.
 No materials required
Simple Games
Link Tag
Everyone gets a partner and links arms. All the pairs then move into a circle.
Designate 2 runners and 2 people to be “it.” The runners become safe by linking
arms with someone in one of the pairs, but when that happens the original partner
must become a runner.
Blob
Designate 1 person to be “the blob.” When he tags someone, they must link arms and
run together. Every person that is tagged is added to “the blob.” When there are 4
people in a blob, they split into 2 pairs of 2.
Human Knot
Everyone gets in a circle and grabs hands with 2 different people not next to them.
The object of the game is to get the group in to a circle.
Many of the games came from this site:
http://www.ultimatecampresource.com/site/camp-activities/team-buildinggames-and-initiatives.page-1.html