A reader sent in this question:
Would love anyone’s ideas for our troop’s 85th birthday party. We will have pizza & cake. We typically do patrol activities at a normal meeting, but wanted to do something different for this. Movie has been ruled out due to time constraints. Wanted to invite past Scoutmasters, but what to do then? Any ideas? We have 60 Scouts 11-17 years old. Any ideas area welcomed. Thank you!
Sometimes tweens and teens like to revert to their younger years. I’d suggest doing “old school” birthday party games, maybe with a Scouting twist. Have your SPL and patrol leaders decide how to adapt the games. Some suggestions:
- Pin the Scoutmaster in the hammock (or on the cot) – like Pin the Tail on the Donkey, but with some making fun of the Scoutmaster
- SPL ASPL Scout – like Duck Duck Goose, but with Scout positions
- Limbo – no adaptation necessary. Youth that age usually love limbo.
- Musical tents – like musical chairs
- Egg toss – you wouldn’t even need to adapt this one. Everyone enjoys a good old fashioned messy egg toss
- Charades – use a Scout related theme with options like “fire building”, “tent pitching”, “getting lost in the woods”. I am confident your youth leadership can come up with a very funny list.
- Hot Potato – play as is or replace the potato with some Scouting item
- SPL Says – just like Simon Says
- Capture the Flag
- Steal the Bacon
- Guess how many – fill a jar with candy and guess how many. Person who guesses closest gets the jar
- Troop trivia – if you have a good history of the troop, play a trivia game and give a prize to the person with the most correct answers
And there are lots of other classic games which could be played or adapted. Get the youth leadership involved and you will have more ideas than you have time for.
Readers, what are your ideas? Add them to the comments below.
