Nancy Ellen Hird

Charades (Using Mystery Terms)*

 

*I think this version of charades (using mystery terms) will be a fun game for children 11 to 13 years old and above. It may be too challenging for 10-year-olds, particularly if they have not played charades before.

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Instructions for the party planner:  A player draws a slip of paper from a container. Written on each slip in the container is a clue—a word or phrase. The player, using only gestures, acts out the clue. Other party guests try to guess the clue. The object of the game is to guess the clue the player is acting out.

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There are two ways to play charades: in teams or as a group.

 

To Play in Teams:
Divide your guests into 2 teams. Have team members sit together. There should be some space between the two teams. A player from one team goes first and draws a clue from the container. Clues should be folded tightly so no one can see what they are choosing!

 

Set a time limit (usually 2 minutes). The player uses that time to act out the clue. Her/his team players try to guess the word or phrase.  The team can shout out answers until they guess the right answer or time is up. If the team guesses the clue within the time limit, that team gets a point. If they haven’t guessed the right answer, the other team has one chance to guess. If that team guesses correctly, they get a point. Whether or not they guess correctly, it is now that team’s turn to choose a player from their team and try to guess the clue.

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I suggest you play the game until one team gets 3 points. It’s a good thing to want to give each child a turn, but this can backfire. Some children are very shy and while they might be comfortable guessing, they might be very uncomfortable performing, especially if they have never played charades before.

 

Members on the winning team receive small prizes.

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To Play as a Group:
Choose one player to start the game. That player acts out the clue for everyone.  The first person to guess the clue is the next player to act out a clue. When playing the game in this way, I think it works best as an ice-breaker.

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After you explain the game and before you have the children begin, the teacher in me suggests that you, the parent, model being a player. Take a clue and act it out, letting the whole group practice guessing the clue. I think showing your children/guests how you do it and letting them practice guessing will help them grasp more completely how to play and enjoy the game more fully.

 

Some Standard Charade Signals (explain them before you start the game):
Book:  open hands like a book.
Song:  silently sing with a pretend microphone.
Movie: hold one fist in front of you and circle the other fist in a circle beside it (old fashioned movie camera).
Number of words: place extended fingers on your arm, one finger per word.
Which word: hold up 1 finger for first word, 2 fingers for the second word, etc.
Rhyming Word: tap ear which means "sounds like."

 

Possible Charade Clues for Your Mystery Tea Party:

Suspect  *  Witness  *  Police  

Crime scene  *  Detective 

A false lead  *  Clue  *  Hunch

Thief   *  Disguise  *  Puzzle

Nancy Drew  *  Case

Solve  *  Hidden staircase

Secret door  *  Partner

Notebook  *  Investigate

Encyclopedia Brown