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    You are here: Home / Games / 20 Waiting Games For Kids That Will Tickle Your Brain

     

    20 Waiting Games For Kids That Will Tickle Your Brain

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    Here's what's missing from your life: more brain teasers.

    I'm not kidding. They help you relax in a lot of sticky situations.

    Such as family gatherings.

    And when you have to play the waiting game.

    I know you hate getting caught waiting in a long line with your kids without something to keep them (and you) from going crazy! Don't feel you have to resort to brain dulling screen time. You need some brain tickling waiting games! Keep the whole family laughing and having fun and keep these play anywhere games in your virtual back pocket.

    Waiting games for kids that will stretch their brains.

    Now that I have successfully brainwashed you to believe that brain teasers will improve your life tenfold, you will want to try all 20 of these waiting games for kids; they are great on-the-go games. (Note: this post contains affiliate links.)

    So what are you waiting for? Give it a go! (<--- see what I did there?)

     20 Waiting Games for Kids on the Go

    Guess what's in my purse! 

    Each kid lists as many items as they can think of that might be inside your purse. The one who comes the closest wins!

    In my purse is a story.

    Choose three items from your purse and challenge kids to invent a story around those three items.

    What's missing? 

    Place 10 items from your purse on the table in front of you. Have kids try to memorize items for 10 seconds. While their eyes are closed remove 1-3 items. After opening their eyes, kids try to remember what is missing.

    Two truths and a lie.

    Everyone takes a turn making three statements. Two are true and one is not. Family members try to guess which is the lie.

    Mirror mirror.

    Kid and parent face each other. The child starts moving very slowly and the parent tries to mirror the movements as closely as possible. Or, two children can mirror each other and the parent tries to guess who is leading the movement.

    How many can you name?

    My older son loves this and actually requests it on our walks home from school! Name a category and your child has 10 seconds to name as many things in that category as possible. Make categories general ("animals") for young kids, and specific ("animals with no teeth") for older kids.

    Magazine hunt.

    When in a waiting room with magazines, turn the magazine into a scavenger hunt. Instruct kids to find certain items. "Find something purple that starts with a C," or "find a blue animal."

    Penny drop.

    Take out a penny and try to drop it so it lands on your shoe without falling off.

    Scrap of paper drop. 

    This is one of my favorite waiting games for kids. Seriously! Drop a small scrap of paper. Kids try to catch it with two fingers before it hits the ground.

    Listen closely.

    Determine a word or phrase to listen for. Everyone stays quiet until they hear someone else in the waiting area say that word or phrase.

    Make me laugh.

    Without touching the other person, make them laugh. Optional: make this a silent game.

    Silly sentences.

    One person chooses 5 random letters. Kids come up with sentences in which each word starts with the designated letter. For example, HRTB. Harry read three books.

    Invent haiku.

    My son and I used to "write" haiku on our walk to school. Learning about haiku was part of our poetry challenge, which you can read about here: haiku and hyperbole.

    Invent limericks.

    Now that we are talking about poetry, why not try your hand at limericks, too. They lend themselves to lots of giggles. Learn about limericks and get some ideas about how to start.

    If you aren't convinced about using poetry as a waiting game, read about these 8 ways poetry calms kids!

    Would you rather?

    Ask each other questions which begin "would you rather"? The Measured Mom has 100 questions you can print out if you prefer to keep a supply in your bag.

    Thumb war.

    Despite the fact that I always win, my 7 year old never gets bored of challenging me to a thumb war.

    Word chain.

    Choose a topic, such as food. The first person says a word, the second person says that word plus his own, the third person says the first two words plus her own, and so forth, continue until someone can no longer remember the word chain.

    Sound chain. 

    One person starts a pattern using snaps or claps. The others must repeat the pattern. The first person then adds on to the pattern and the others must repeat this longer pattern. Play continues until no one can remember the pattern.

    Sound ball. 

    One person mimes throwing a ball at another person while making a silly sound. The other person "catches" the ball while making the same sound. He then "throws" the ball back with a new sound. The catcher then "catches" the ball making this new sound, and then "throws" it using a different sound.

    20 questions.

    It's a classic, don't forget about it!

    Share it on Facebook:

    MORE WAITING GAMES:

    • 5 fun thinking games
    • Tongue twisters: instant boredom buster for kids
    • 15 word games for kids
    • Dots and boxes: pen and paper game for bored kids
    • Land, sea and air: instant indoor active game
    • Brain teasers for family gatherings

    Brain teasing waiting games kids will love.

    20 games for kids who hate to wait. Can be played anywhere anytime
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    Subscribe to our newsletter and as a thank you, receive 10 waiting games kids can play anytime anywhere.
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    « Learn to Write Poetry: 4 Week Challenge for Kids
    Picture Books about Anger, Frustration, and General Crankiness »
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Kirsten Larson says

      March 24, 2016 at 9:36 am

      These are fantastic ideas. We always find ourselves looking for things to entertain the kids while in line at LEGOLand or Disneyland. We also like "odds and evens," the classic "rock, paper, scissors" and a variation on Password (some people use their phone for this).

      Reply
      • Erica MomandKiddo says

        March 30, 2016 at 5:32 am

        Great idea!

        Reply
    2. Rachel says

      March 24, 2016 at 9:59 am

      Thanks for this wonderful list Erica! I love that these games require almost no props and can be done anywhere. Genius!

      Reply
      • Erica MomandKiddo says

        March 30, 2016 at 5:31 am

        I'm glad you found the post useful! We do enjoy a good brain game.

        Reply
    3. Linnae says

      March 24, 2016 at 10:41 pm

      The penny drop and scrap of paper are genius! I always have those in my purse! These others are great, too. Sometimes you just need a distraction more than anything. I'm thinking Name 10 for our next 12-hour car ride to Grandma's.

      Reply
      • Erica MomandKiddo says

        March 30, 2016 at 5:31 am

        Enjoy!

        Reply
    4. Kasey says

      July 14, 2016 at 2:16 pm

      One of our favorites is City, State, Country- The first person starts by naming a city, state, or country. The next person has to use the last letter of the name the first person said to be the starting letter of the next city, state, or country. For example: Person #1: Arkansas, Person #2: South Dakota, Person #3: Alaska, Person #4: Asheville, Person #1: England, etc.

      You can also mix it up and do food, or animals, or whatever.

      We also do the I'm Going on a Trip game, and we do it in alphabetical order. "I'm going on a trip and I'm taking an alligator." Next person: "I'm going on a trip and I'm taking an alligator and a boomerang." Next person: "I'm going on a trip and I'm taking an alligator, a boomerang, and a canary," etc.

      In the car we like to come up with funny things that license plate letters might stand for, for example, "TLM- Twirling Lemon Monkeys."

      Reply
      • Erica says

        July 15, 2016 at 7:34 am

        Great ideas!

        Reply
    5. Heather says

      January 01, 2017 at 3:04 pm

      I'm glad I came across this list. These are great ideas. I love the sound ball!

      Reply
    6. Christina says

      January 14, 2017 at 2:54 pm

      You have quite a list of fun and simple games to keep kids entertained when you have to wait. These are perfect next time we are at the doctor's office or waiting in line at the store.

      Reply
      • Erica says

        January 22, 2017 at 11:25 am

        Happy playing!

        Reply
    7. Nephy says

      February 24, 2017 at 8:18 am

      I am putting together a game night at my church and love these games. They are going to have so much fun.

      Reply
      • Erica says

        February 24, 2017 at 10:02 am

        How fun! Enjoy!

        Reply
    8. Kate says

      July 13, 2017 at 4:34 pm

      Thanks for the great ideas! These are going to be great on our upcoming road trip!!

      Reply
    9. Marga says

      April 25, 2018 at 2:55 pm

      Great ideas! most can be adapted per age.
      I am so trying all these.
      Thanks

      Reply
    10. Les says

      October 30, 2018 at 7:37 am

      Great list! My family likes to play the word game "Ghost" during long waits. It's an easy game, and you can find the rules on wikipedia. I also like to keep a pad and pen in my purse to play games like dots and boxes, tic-tac-toe, and hangman.

      Reply
    11. carmen fraser says

      July 17, 2019 at 7:30 am

      Thank you so much for those. I am helping at a holiday club and we are always looking for things to do to pass the time when we have finished our activity. much appreciated

      Reply
    12. Julie says

      August 13, 2020 at 10:41 pm

      I imagine there will no longer be magazines in waiting rooms.

      Reply
    13. Israa says

      January 23, 2022 at 5:23 am

      A life saving article, thanks alot.

      Reply

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