Well-Equipped Volunteer: Train & Grow Your Children's Ministry Volunteers

This game is a classic! I remember playing it as a kid and I’m sure you do to. I played it for hours and I played many different versions of Hide & Seek.

This game can be played inside or outside. It requires no equipment.

Everybody knows how to play Hide & Seek. I want to give you some fun variations that I have played with kids – proven winners!

Object Hide & Seek

I play this version a lot with younger children and in classroom situations as a way of highlighting the theme.

In this version of hide & seek, the chosen player hides a specific object – I’ve used a cross, a doll, a bean bag, and a toy car. Choose any object you want. While the chosen player is hiding the object, the rest of the class hides their eyes and counts out loud. When they get to the designated number, they begin hunting for the hidden object. The player that finds it gets to hide it during the next round.

Hide & Seek in the Dark

In this game, we played the regular rules for hide & seek with the added fun of turning the lights off and giving the seeker a flashlight.

Kids absolutely love playing this game in the dark! It was requested almost on a weekly basis when I led a mid-week club program. We used sometimes all of the church building and sometimes I limited it to one floor. We played with the lights off and the seeker had a flashlight. Of course all leaders had flashlights as well for safety. I also made a rule that the stairs were lit – and I stationed a leader at the stairs to ensure there was light to safely use the stairs.

Sardines

This is a great version of hide & seek. In this game, one person hides and everyone goes to look for that person. However, when you find them, you don’t call it, you hide with them. Everybody hides in the same spot together, hence the name sardines. Everyone gets packed in together! The last person to find the hiding spot hides first in the next round.

I have also played sardines in the dark - but this is not for the feint of heart!

Reasons Why I Love this Game:

1. All children play at the same time. No one is left out.
2. It is easy to learn and simple to play.
3. It is extremely versatile – it can be played almost anywhere, requires minimal or no equipment, and can be played with almost any number of children.
4. I love the creative places kids will choose to hide and the creative ways kids will try to find the hiders.

Have fun!