This is a fun circle game for older students.

Basic Game

Kids stand (or sit) in a circle.

No matter how many kids are in the circle, you’ll use the numbers one through ten.

One kid is selected to start the round by saying ‘one’ and the kids count around the circle from there, each kid calling out the next number in order. After any kid calls out ‘ten’ the next kid calls out ‘one’ and things continue around the circle like this until everyone is comfortable counting one through ten around the circle. (This won’t take long.)

Take a pause and assign a word to one of the numbers. For example, ‘one’ is now ‘soup’. Restart the action, and whenever the circle gets around to ‘one’ that kid has to say ‘soup’. Anyone who says ‘one’ instead of ‘soup’ is out.

After a few times around the circle with a word added in place of a number, pause, add a second word in place of another number, and continue. (Don’t do this sequentially. The next number substituted might be eight, for example. You don’t have to start by replacing ‘one’, either.)

Continue in this way, pausing to introduce a new word whenever they seem comfortable with the current set. Eventually the circle of kids might sound something like:

  • soup
  • two
  • three
  • pizza
  • orange
  • six
  • automobile
  • eight
  • zebra
  • house

When one kid remains, they are the winner of the round and everyone is back ‘in’ for a new round.

If you have replaced all of the numbers with words and the kids are still zooming through them, start replacing words with more difficult or strange words, or move existing words to different spots (‘Pizza was four, but now it’s eight.') There are also other options below for making the game more challenging in subsequent rounds.

More Challenging Versions

Depending on how well the group handles the basic version of the game, you may want to make it more challenging using some of the ideas below. (If the group likes one of the variations below, you could also start with that variation the next time you play.)

  1. If you’re sure the kids will make appropriate word choices, randomly select a kid to come up with a new word when you need one. For example, the kid you select would say, ‘Four is…pizza.’ and play would continue.
  2. The word chooser can be you, or the kid who just made a mistake, or the kid immediately following them. Or you can select someone randomly each time. Or you could tell the kids in the ‘out’ pool that they’ll provide new words for the circle each time you ask them, to keep them engaged.
  3. For a faster-paced version of the game, introduce a new word every time someone goes ‘out’.
  4. You can announce a theme for each round. Words used in place of the numbers during that round can only be words that fit the theme. (Examples: animals, foods, colors, etc.) If you want to really challenge them, make the theme ‘numbers’ for one round. (‘One is now fourteen.’ ‘Three is now one hundred and eleven.')