The Amazing Race Challenges for Kids, teens, youth group, adults. Great activities ideas & fun games to do for an Amazing Race birthday Party
Amazing Race party ideas! Includes free ideas for clues, pit stops, roadblock and detour challenges to help create your Amazing Race Theme Party! Plus party printables!
Theme parties are definitely one of my favorite things to plan and post about here on the blog! I recently told you about Lily’s Amazing Race Party, which you can read all about here in case you missed it. My husband and I have done this for our first 3 kids’ 13th birthdays, and I […]
Plan an Amazing Race Birthday Party with ease with this ultimate guide. From The Amazing Race invitation, clue cards, challenges ideas, food
Last weekend our eldest turned 9.. and we threw him an amazing race birthday party! As with all the boys other parties.. I bought a plai...
Today is my daughter's 15th birthday, and we've had 15 years of fun, frugal & festive parties! This year, back by popular demand, we're having The Amazing Race Birthday Party. This party requires a lot of advanced preparation, but I promise it's FUN and FRUGAL...about $100 including supplies, food, and favors! You'll be the mom
Amazing Race, Fear Factor & Other Scavenger Hunts Your Teen Will Thank You For Are you planning a birthday party for your teen & have no clue how to entertain a group of teenagers? Chances are you've considered a scavenger or treasure hunt. You or your teen might be worried that friends will think this is a lame party idea. I'm here to tell you, with proper planning a teen scavenger hunt is anything but lame. Your teen and her friends will thank you. Her/his friends will be talking about how much fun they had for weeks. Of course, they will be blabbing about it on FaceBook & Instagtam, long before it even ends. Your teen & friends will light up the twiitershpere with hilarious tweets all day/night long. And, the best part...you will be the cool mom, the fun mom, all the while you'll be providing good, safe fun for the kids. I had no idea how many people are googling scavenger hunt ideas. I originally published an article about my daughter's scavenger hunt on my writing blog, teen party ideas and I was shocked at the number of hits it received. This blog is a more appropriate forum for the topic so I am writing a more detailed post. We have teen daughter, ages sixteen and fourteen and a son who is eleven & we've successfully hosted scavenger hunts, treasure hunts, photo scavenger hunts, video scavenger hunts, Amazing Race Scavenger hunts, Fear Factor games, Survivor themed hunts & C.S.I. themed hunts for all of them. I'm going to share with you the best of our parties and I will also give you my opinion of the pros & cons of each. I'm not going to describe each individual birthday party, because that would take forever. I will give you the best highlights and my ideas for pulling your party off without a hitch. As a bonus, you get to learn from my mistakes. I will tell you what I would do different if I hosted the same party again. Preparation...Preparation...Preparation is Key. Ignore everything else I tell you, if you choose, but do not ignore the above statement. A few days before the party I put a note in each neighbors mailbox, alerting them of the party & giving them my contact information, should they have any complaints. I've hosted neighborhood scavenger hunts in the past, so my neighbors are all familiar with the hunt (we have a lot of kids in our neighborhood). In the past, if the games involved knocking on doors or neighbor participation, they were asked to leave the note taped or attached to their door if they did not mind the kids ringing the bell. The first thing I did when the kids walked through my front door was hand them a printed list of house rules which included the obvious, no drinking, smoking, bothering the neighbors, drama & I made them agree not to post any inappropriate or unkind messages or photos on any of the social media sites. I also made each one of them text me their phone number and their parents phone number & I made sure their parents knew how to reach me at all times. Each teen knew that any violation of the rules would result in a phone call to their mom or dad. In the past I've had teams grab a tootsie roll sucker out of a paper bag to determine which team they were on, but since this group was so large, I pre-assigned the groups (separating b/f/f's) and creating diversified groups to encourage less drama and better team work. No one seemed to mind. This time I handed each kid a colored T-shirt ($3) three bucks at Hobby Lobby, and that told them which team they were on. This hunt was held at the Louisiana Boardwalk (a shopping/eating outdoor area), so I had to get other moms to help me with transportation. Each team was required to stay together at all times and ride in the same vehicle. Last year I hosted was a slumber party when my daughter turned 14. She had thirty something girls sleepover and about seventeen guys participated in the Amazing Race Photo Scavenger Hunt. It came off without a glitch and the kids were so occupied and entertained that there was not one single episode of teenage drama. I was armed with a one inch binder when the scavenger hunt riddles, dares and and tri-folded bonus activities and after each team selected a team leader I handed the binder to the team leader and we loaded up in the caravan of cars, trucks and SUV's and headed to the boardwalk. The groups could complete the task in any order they chose and they did not have to complete them all (highly unlikely they would be able to in the two hours allotted for the game.) The teams were warned that they would lose points any time their group split up and they would only receive points for the competed task and solved riddles if they actually photographed it. There was a time when I would have said it would be a good idea for you to ask the kids to bring digital cameras or tell you to pre-purchase cheap disposable cameras, but who'm I kidding. Every single teen these days has a smart phone with video and camera options, so one less task for you mom. Below is a lost of the 50 regular task/challenges for the teams to complete. I also offered bonus challenges that I will go into later. Page 1 starts with: Perform any or all of the following. Each challenge is worth two (2) points, unless otherwise stated, with bonus points for creativity. You must document the event with a photo or video to receive credit. In the past I've handed out bags for the teams to bring back certain items, but it was much easier to just have them photograph particular items. If I don't write "Take a photo of" in front of the task, it is implied. Remember, no points if the event is not documented with a photo or video 1. Find a coin with Blake's birthday year on it 2. Get a stranger to serenade you 3. Take a picture with one or more team members with a family of four or more 4. Get a picture of a man with a mullet 5. Take a photo of a person wearing a concert t-shirt 6. A person playing a musical instrument 7. Get a stranger to give you his/her cell phone number 8. Convince a stranger to chug his/her beverage 9. Convince a stranger to give you some of his/her food (a french fry will do) 10. Convince a stranger to sing a U2 song (must be videotaped) 11. Get a kiss that leaves lipstick on your cheek 12. Photo of a stranger with a tattoo 13. Photo or video of a couple arguing 14. A buy one get one free coupon 15. A fortune cookie (5 bonus points for the weirdest fortune) 16. A business card (extra points if it is a lawyer) You can make this any profession, but we picked lawyer, because I'm a lawyer & so are Blake's dad and her step-dad. 17. A clean disposable toilet sea cover 18. A stranger's autograph (extra points if the name is unisex) (extra points if the name is Jordan) any unisex name can apply for your hunt 19. Entire team sitting with an unknown family at a restaurant 20. A photo of a team member with someone who is at least 85 years old. (extra points if they are smiling) (extra points if they are holding up their photo ID 21. Photo of at least two team members with a uniformed police officer (extra points if he is smiling) 22. Entire team standing by a convertible Corvette (extra points if it is red) (extra points if a team member is inside -with the owner's permission) 23. Entire Team sitting inside a boat 24. A team member hugging a stranger 25. Entire team in or next to a tree 26. Team members sliding down a slide 27. Entire team eating ice cream 28. A team member playing a pinball machine 29. A team member playing basketball 30. A team member sitting on a firetruck with a fireman 31. A team member handcuffed to a police officer 32. A team member inside a restaurant pretending to cook a meal 33. A team member inside a restaurant kitchen washing the dishes 34. Photo of graffiti (already there- DO NOT PUT IT THERE) 35. Entire team with a mascot 36. Entire team sharing one soda, each member with a straw 37. Two or more team members standing behind the display window in a retail store acting as a store window display 38. Entire team jumping, each member must be in mid air 39. Team member dressed in the funkiest get up (outfit in a store) 40. Team member delivering a meal to a stranger in a restaurant 41. The entire team in a "I can't believe we all fit in here" photo 42. Entire team playing Twister without the board. 43. A couple holding hands or kissing 44. Photo of a fashion "do" 45. Photo of a fashion "do not" 46. Pretend you are an investigative reporter and snap a photo of a questionable transaction 47. The More I dry, the wetter I get (answer- a towel) 48. What has a ring, but no finger The answer to the riddle was "shower curtain" 49. Keys open my door, buy mine only make a sound- (answer -a piano) 50. I start with an e, I end with an e, but I usually contain only one letter-(answer-an envelope) I've shared a few of the photos taken by the kids. They loved this challenge and especially liked the riddle part. The next party I did was The Amazing Race, followed by Fear Factor. I will share both of those next week. I am also adding a down loadable list of 100+ riddles for you. You can find a link to it at the top of my blog. If you have any questions I'd be glad to help. Please share your teen party ideas in the comment section.
The Amazing Race Challenges for Kids, teens, youth group, adults. Great activities ideas & fun games to do for an Amazing Race birthday Party
This post includes fantastic ideas for hosting an Amazing Race birthday party at home! You can also download free printable amazing race party invitations, amazing race game clues, and amazing race thank you notes!
This post includes fantastic ideas for hosting an Amazing Race birthday party at home! You can also download free printable amazing race party invitations, amazing race game clues, and amazing race thank you notes!
Host your very own version of The Amazing Race! Includes twelve Amazing Race challenges and clues that can apply to ANY hometown!
It's finally done! That's why I haven't had time to post regularly. I've been working on this party for my boy who recently turned 1...
Make your next date night an epic one with this Amazing Race themed date night! Fun for one couple of multiple couples to race each other!
Sam had a hard time picking a party theme for this year’s birthday, and I worried he might be getting too old for that sort of thing. Luckily a quick Google search for 11-year-old “twe…
Today is my daughter's 15th birthday, and we've had 15 years of fun, frugal & festive parties! This year, back by popular demand, we're having The Amazing Race Birthday Party. This party requires a lot of advanced preparation, but I promise it's FUN and FRUGAL...about $100 including supplies, food, and favors! You'll be the mom
We are birthday party UNDERachievers in my house. Our kids have low key parties every year. The grandparents come over, they have cake, they go home. No frills- no fuss. When my kids have a party with their friends, we usually do a craft (that I buy at the store all ready cut up and ready to just assemble since I have no crafting ability!), we let the kids play and run around and then go home. I'm not the mom who does treat bags, or cool party games. I wish I was- but those kinds of things just don't seem to happen in my house! But this year was a little different. I've mentioned maybe a zillion times on this blog about how we are Amazing Race junkies. Sadie asked if she could have an Amazing Race themed birthday party with her friends. I'll be honest, I got so excited about this one, that I actually threw a party that required some thought! If you aren't familiar with the premise of The Amazing Race- teams are on a scavenger hunt type race that requires them to perform tasks to get their next clue to continue on in the race. Sadie wrote and erased this sign at least 10 times before it was just like she wanted it! The point is- we had an AMAZING time at this party and it was not that difficult to plan. If a birthday party underachiever like me could pull this one off, I'm convinced that anyone could do it! First we sent the invitations (which I made by pulling the Amazing Race logo and simply pasting onto a word document). Easy peasy. On the day of the party, excitement was high in our house! Since the kids are all 9 and under, we kept the area small (no traveling in cars or going out of sight in our neighborhood). Kamron took the kids to the end of the cul-de-sac, gave them the rules and then told them to take off running to find their first clue (on our front porch). GranMary was there to pass out the first clue- which told teams to grab a golf ball and walk the length of the driveway with the ball on a spoon without it falling off. (I found a website that has a downloadable clue template with made the race clues seem so professional!) This task proved to be way too easy for the age of the kids. If we ever do this again, I would change this task to make them carry the spoons in their mouths to add some challenge! Once the kids finished this challenge, their next clue sent them to the neighbor's house where they had to memorize a short poem- After they memorized the poem, the kids had to come back to our house and recite the poem for the judge. Kamron played the role of a hardcore judge! He showed those kids no mercy! It took at least 4 or 5 tries for each team to get the poem right. It was so fun seeing them run back and forth between the houses trying to see which team would get the poem right first! Reciting the poem for the judge. Once the team memorized their poem and recited it correctly, they were given their next clue. Teams had to choose between two different tasks- eat a jalapeno pepper (quick but spicy) or make butter (easy, but time consuming) I thought for sure that several of the teams would be squeamish about eating a hot pepper and would choose to make butter even though it would slow them down. However, all the kids were hard core and swallowed down those peppers! (And now I have enough cream to last me a lifetime!) Immediately afterwords, I think they regretted the decision to eat peppers! The world is full of difficult choices, no? After they successfully ate the peppers (and chugged a lot of water!) they were given their next clue which led them inside the house for an eating challenge! For this task, I took about 50 paper bathroom cups and filled them with various goodies (just enough to cover the bottom of the cup) About 6 or 7 of the cups had a smiley face drawn on the bottom of them. The object of the task was to pick up one cup and eat the contents. When you found a cup with a smiley on the bottom, you could receive your next clue. In retrospect, I would add a few more marked cups. The kids had to eat WAY too many cups to find the marked ones. They loved this challenge, though! Once that challenge was completed, the next clue led them to the door of our basement where posters with each contestants' names were printed. Each girl at the party then had to write encouraging, kind words to each other party goer. I think it's never too early to teach our kids to value and honor their friendships (and to recognize and admire each other's strengths!) I loved watching the girls effortlessly write sweet things to each other- and themselves. Yes, I made each girl write things that she liked about herself on her own paper. Self esteem building, people. Getcha some. Good Lord, my basement window needs a good cleaning!?! Once their affirmations to one another were complete (each sentiment had to be at least 50 characters long) they were given their next clue with led them to the kitchen table... For this leg of the race, teams had to put together a 100 piece puzzle. For this age of kids- that was too many pieces! It took so long that we lost a little of the momentum of the "race" aspect. A 50 piece puzzle would have been better. Once a team completed their puzzle they were given their last clue which led them to the pit stop (finish line). Kamron was waiting at the finish line (the mat from our bathroom floor) to check them in. The first team to the finish line was... Sadie and Gracie Team Lucy and Miles and Team Alexis and Noah were not far behind. We passed out lip gloss and candy bars at the pit stop for prizes. The kids had a blast on the giant scavenger hunt! I had so much fun that we are planning to do this the next time we have all of our friends over and have families race together as teams! It was a pretty cheap party to throw as most of the tasks only required things we already had around the house or could be purchased at the dollar tree. Overall, the birthday girl said it was "the best party ever" and that's what really counts! Like what you read? Join us on Facebook!
We started the first day of camp with my YCL's (Youth Camp Leaders) fluffing up all the pom poms we had made (about 50 of them). We then hun...
This post includes fantastic ideas for hosting an Amazing Race birthday party at home! You can also download free printable amazing race party invitations, amazing race game clues, and amazing race thank you notes!
Well, we had fun organizing and running another big birthday party for one of our girls. She really wanted an Amazing Race themed par...
Here is the document for “The Amazing Race to Come Unto Christ 2014.” Our youth just completed this activity and it was a HUGE success! We used it as a combined activity to introduce …
This post includes fantastic ideas for hosting an Amazing Race birthday party at home! You can also download free printable amazing race party invitations, amazing race game clues, and amazing race thank you notes!
Ideas and games for an amazing race style kid around the world party.
Theme parties are definitely one of my favorite things to plan and post about here on the blog! I recently told you about Lily’s Amazing Race Party, which you can read all about here in case you missed it. My husband and I have done this for our first 3 kids’ 13th birthdays, and I […]
Perfect Youth Activity! After splitting them up into 4 groups they used paint to mark their face with so we knew which team they belonged to. We had… Team #1 GREEN Team #2 RED Team #3 BLUE …
It's finally done! That's why I haven't had time to post regularly. I've been working on this party for my boy who recently turned 16. The party was awesome, if I do say so myself, but it was a lot of work! But now I've done most of the work for you, feel free to take my ideas and run with them, or race with them as the story goes. First I scoured the internet for ideas for an Amazing Race party and found quite a few good ideas, but most of them didn't take care of all the finishing touches. All the little details that make the party great. I'm really not trying to brag or anything, but it turned out much better, and a little different then I imagined. Second, since the original show takes the players all over the globe, I wanted to re-create a little of that. So I looked through images of flags from around the world. I chose 12 of the more easier designed flags, pulled out my fabric stash and made flags for each of the countries. The cut size was 20x30 inches. They were pieced together and then sewn and roll-hemmed. I may make them into a quilt someday but I already have a request to borrow them for an upcoming youth activity at church, so the quilt will wait. The 12 countries I chose were Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Sweden, and Japan. My husband asked why I chose the countries I did when we were making up the location clues and I said just by the flag design. I went to Goodwill and found 3 different color sheets for $1 each and ripped them up in to bandana size. Each kid got a bandana in their team color to wear the rest of the night. If you look close in the pics you will see them on the kids. The colors were Blue, Yellow, and Red. Then I solicited the help from a few of my neighbors to help with the challenges. I needed locations close by for the kids to go to for each challenge. I ended up with more volunteers than challenges which was nice. There was a total of 8 challenges. At each location they hung the flag of that country in the trees outside so the kids could find it easily. Since my house was the start and finish, I hung a huge American flag above my front door. I also ordered globe balloons from Amazon to put out in the front of my house. I should have taken pictures of the front but unfortunately, I forgot to. These are the ones I chose: 1. Become a spy and change your identity. Dress up and have the handler take your picture. I found a package of mustaches at Party City that were stick on. They were a must for this challenge. The boys ended up wearing theirs for the rest of the night. 2. You must put 7 marshmallows in your mouth and say "Chubby Bunny." Then eat 7 saltines and whistle 3 notes. I only got video from this location, and I know some of the kids would be embarrassed if I posted the video. Just use your imagination. It's really funny! 3. We live by a lake that is surrounded by trees and ducks that swim in the pond. So for this challenge they had to each climb a tree, feed the ducks, and count the benches that surround the lake. It's not that big of a lake so it was relatively easy. The pic is my monkey boy in the tree. That kid can climb anything, anywhere! 4. The Italy challenge was that they were out of money and needed to get $2.00 in change. The problem was that it was mixed in with a large bowl of cold spagetti. They had to make the change as a team, while blindfolded. One of my personal favorites! 5. One challenge was at a nearby park. The kids had to slide down the slide, hang upsidedown on the jungle jim, then do underdog on the the swings. This one was also a pit stop where I gave them water and a mini candy bar. 6. For this challenge there was two tasks. One was to separate the M&M's by color and fill in the numbers on the poster board to write 1997, which is my son's birth year. Then they had to go through a large bowl of pennies and find 3 pennies that were from 1997. 7. For this one they had to unscramble some letters to send a message to my boy. I totally messed up in cutting the letters and forgot to make a D for Birthday. Thankfully the kids were smart and improvised for me. 8. The last one was to shoot 3 free throws and throw a football through a hula hoop. Pretty easy and basic, but fun at the same time. I also gave them challenges to do along the way. Each one had extra points attached to it. One of them was to take a picture of a garden gnome. Only one team found one. The others were to take pictures of license plates other than ones from AZ, take a picture of an animal other than a dog, and take a picture with a random dog walker. Each team had a person with a camera phone with them and they texted the pictures to me as they took them. Now for the details. I made envelopes that contained the information for each challenge. It was pretty easy. I just made the image in photoshop, printed it out on colored paper and folded it into an envelope. If you use my templates, you will need to cut about an inch off each side of the 8 1/2 by 11 size paper. Fold in thirds. Then cut about 1/4 inch up on each fold line on the bottom. Fold this flap up. Trim the side pieces off like shown. Then get a glue stick and glue the bottom and top flap down. I notched the top of each envelope so it was easy to pull the challenge card out. I printed 3 challege cards and envelopes for each challenge so each team got their own. I gave them to each of my friends with their supplies for their challenge to give the kids when they came. Each team got a manilla envelope with their team color on it. Inside was the race map and location clue cards along with the bonus challenge card. Now for all the free printables I promised. Each one is a .jpeg that fits an 8 1/2 by 11 size paper. These are the challenge cards. I printed these on cardstock. Since I had 3 teams, there are 3 cards per challenge. Next are the challenge envelopes. Print these on 8 1/2 by 11 colored paper and trim like shown above. Next are the destination clues. They were made to help the kids get to each country flag at each location. I gave you a blank one if you would like to make your own. Finally, the bonus challenges. I almost forgot. The invitations. The first one I printed on yellow paper then used it to make the envelope for the invitations. This is the stripped down version I used. And this is the generic version you can use. Just add your own information to it. I hope you like what you've seen today and maybe someday do a party like this. I'd love to hear about it if you do! Have an amazing day!
For birthdays, we alternate a "friend party" and the following year a low key "family party." This year was my youngest's 13th birthday and his turn for a friend party. He went back and forth...
This is one of the BEST activities I have done as a combined mutual activity. A lot of work... but one of the BEST! I first did thi...
Of the hundreds of Fast Forwards, Detours and Roadblocks on "The Amazing Race," these are some that were the most memorable.
It's finally done! That's why I haven't had time to post regularly. I've been working on this party for my boy who recently turned 16. The party was awesome, if I do say so myself, but it was a lot of work! But now I've done most of the work for you, feel free to take my ideas and run with them, or race with them as the story goes. First I scoured the internet for ideas for an Amazing Race party and found quite a few good ideas, but most of them didn't take care of all the finishing touches. All the little details that make the party great. I'm really not trying to brag or anything, but it turned out much better, and a little different then I imagined. Second, since the original show takes the players all over the globe, I wanted to re-create a little of that. So I looked through images of flags from around the world. I chose 12 of the more easier designed flags, pulled out my fabric stash and made flags for each of the countries. The cut size was 20x30 inches. They were pieced together and then sewn and roll-hemmed. I may make them into a quilt someday but I already have a request to borrow them for an upcoming youth activity at church, so the quilt will wait. The 12 countries I chose were Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Sweden, and Japan. My husband asked why I chose the countries I did when we were making up the location clues and I said just by the flag design. I went to Goodwill and found 3 different color sheets for $1 each and ripped them up in to bandana size. Each kid got a bandana in their team color to wear the rest of the night. If you look close in the pics you will see them on the kids. The colors were Blue, Yellow, and Red. Then I solicited the help from a few of my neighbors to help with the challenges. I needed locations close by for the kids to go to for each challenge. I ended up with more volunteers than challenges which was nice. There was a total of 8 challenges. At each location they hung the flag of that country in the trees outside so the kids could find it easily. Since my house was the start and finish, I hung a huge American flag above my front door. I also ordered globe balloons from Amazon to put out in the front of my house. I should have taken pictures of the front but unfortunately, I forgot to. These are the ones I chose: 1. Become a spy and change your identity. Dress up and have the handler take your picture. I found a package of mustaches at Party City that were stick on. They were a must for this challenge. The boys ended up wearing theirs for the rest of the night. 2. You must put 7 marshmallows in your mouth and say "Chubby Bunny." Then eat 7 saltines and whistle 3 notes. I only got video from this location, and I know some of the kids would be embarrassed if I posted the video. Just use your imagination. It's really funny! 3. We live by a lake that is surrounded by trees and ducks that swim in the pond. So for this challenge they had to each climb a tree, feed the ducks, and count the benches that surround the lake. It's not that big of a lake so it was relatively easy. The pic is my monkey boy in the tree. That kid can climb anything, anywhere! 4. The Italy challenge was that they were out of money and needed to get $2.00 in change. The problem was that it was mixed in with a large bowl of cold spagetti. They had to make the change as a team, while blindfolded. One of my personal favorites! 5. One challenge was at a nearby park. The kids had to slide down the slide, hang upsidedown on the jungle jim, then do underdog on the the swings. This one was also a pit stop where I gave them water and a mini candy bar. 6. For this challenge there was two tasks. One was to separate the M&M's by color and fill in the numbers on the poster board to write 1997, which is my son's birth year. Then they had to go through a large bowl of pennies and find 3 pennies that were from 1997. 7. For this one they had to unscramble some letters to send a message to my boy. I totally messed up in cutting the letters and forgot to make a D for Birthday. Thankfully the kids were smart and improvised for me. 8. The last one was to shoot 3 free throws and throw a football through a hula hoop. Pretty easy and basic, but fun at the same time. I also gave them challenges to do along the way. Each one had extra points attached to it. One of them was to take a picture of a garden gnome. Only one team found one. The others were to take pictures of license plates other than ones from AZ, take a picture of an animal other than a dog, and take a picture with a random dog walker. Each team had a person with a camera phone with them and they texted the pictures to me as they took them. Now for the details. I made envelopes that contained the information for each challenge. It was pretty easy. I just made the image in photoshop, printed it out on colored paper and folded it into an envelope. If you use my templates, you will need to cut about an inch off each side of the 8 1/2 by 11 size paper. Fold in thirds. Then cut about 1/4 inch up on each fold line on the bottom. Fold this flap up. Trim the side pieces off like shown. Then get a glue stick and glue the bottom and top flap down. I notched the top of each envelope so it was easy to pull the challenge card out. I printed 3 challege cards and envelopes for each challenge so each team got their own. I gave them to each of my friends with their supplies for their challenge to give the kids when they came. Each team got a manilla envelope with their team color on it. Inside was the race map and location clue cards along with the bonus challenge card. Now for all the free printables I promised. Each one is a .jpeg that fits an 8 1/2 by 11 size paper. These are the challenge cards. I printed these on cardstock. Since I had 3 teams, there are 3 cards per challenge. Next are the challenge envelopes. Print these on 8 1/2 by 11 colored paper and trim like shown above. Next are the destination clues. They were made to help the kids get to each country flag at each location. I gave you a blank one if you would like to make your own. Finally, the bonus challenges. I almost forgot. The invitations. The first one I printed on yellow paper then used it to make the envelope for the invitations. This is the stripped down version I used. And this is the generic version you can use. Just add your own information to it. I hope you like what you've seen today and maybe someday do a party like this. I'd love to hear about it if you do! Have an amazing day!
Young Women Values...The importance and benefits of "getting the YW Values all over you" and making them part of your every day life. When planning our Young Women Camp hike, I knew it should involve "holi powder" as part of the activity. With the help and input of some great minds, it ended up as one of the most fun Young Women activities I have ever planned or participated in. Holi powder is very messy but cleans up faster than I could have ever expected. Nothing was stained or ruined. We truly left no trace of this activity by the next day. (See the end of this post for ordering link and amounts to use) There were three phases to our Value Hike: 1) Kick-Off Introduction 2) Value Activities along the path with an obstacle course 3) The Finishers' Festival (holi powder represented the YW Value Colors) The Kick-off introduction prepared the girls for the Value Hike and the Finishers' Festival, representing completing Personal Progress and living the Young Women Values in our daily lives. There is a talk by President Monson, "Finishers Wanted" that goes well with this message. Here is a description of each phase: Kick-Off Introduction The girls met in the main hall for a 15 minute presentation given by Audrey Showalter. The focus was comparing what the girls need to bring with them on a hike (sturdy shoes, water, bug repellent, socks, sunscreen, proper clothing, etc.) to the Young Women Values. She asked them what would happen if they put all of these hiking supplies in their backpack and did not take them out and use them.... Here are some of the comparisons she used: Just as we need the proper supplies for a successful hike, we need to have the Young Women Values in our daily lives to succeed in this life and the next. What will happen if we don't take out our Personal Progress book and use the Young Women values in our every day lives? She discussed how we can make the YW Values a part of our lives and "get them on us". Here are some comparisons she made to hiking supplies and the YW Values: FAITH: Sunglasses- Effects of vision..Protect us from extremes. We cannot see some the actual rays of sun, but we know we need to protect our eyes. Faith protects us from things seen and unseen. DIVINE NATURE: Water Bottle- Living waters, Jesus Christ. We are divine daughters of Heavenly Father who gave his son, Jesus Christ. INDIVIDUAL WORTH: Personal Item- different for each person, yet necessary for successful hike and journey in life. The worth of each of us is great. CHOICE & ACCOUNTABILITY: Proper clothing for hike and in our daily lives. Make good choices every day. GOOD WORKS: Shoes. Different work requires different shoes. Always be involved in good works. Put your shoes on and get to work. INTEGRITY: Sunscreen. Use even when it looks like sun is not threatening. Do the right thing even when no one is looking. VIRTUE: Bug Repellent Must use if we want to keep bugs away. Wont help if it stays in our backpack. Must use on all areas of body, not just one. Must apply virtue to all areas, thoughts, actions, dress, speech. KNOWLEDGE: Map, Compass Helps us be oriented-know about obstacles before we get t them and how to handle them when we get there. The more knowledge we gain, the more prepared we are for life. At the end of the discussion, the girls were sent out by age level groups to begin the Value activities and obstacle course. We staggered the groups every 15 minutes. The 4th year girls were running the Value activity stations and the YCLs went with their age level groups. We had 130 girls participating. We warned everyone in advance that they would need to wear light colored clothing that they did not mind if it got stained or dirty. We also were mindful of girls who did not want to be covered with holi powder at the Finishers Festival and had an area for them to stay where they would be safe from getting colored powder on them. (It was interesting to note that most who thought they did not want to get powder all over them left the "safe zone" at some point and were covered with colored powder, aka the Young Women Values, by the end of the activity) Value Activities Our fearless fourth year leader Courtney Lockhart, and the fourth year girls put together activities for each value. Here is Courtney's description of each station: Each station had a fun activity and a 5 minute time limit. The time limit helped keep the hike moving so the 3 level groups wouldn't bottle neck at any one point. We choose to keep the hike shorter, if you want a longer hike you might want to space the groups a little farther apart. Our 4th years were in charge of the value stations. They created signs for each station with the value name and a little catch phrase and/or preview of was happening at each station. They were in charge of welcoming each group, instructing them on the activity, keeping the energy up, keeping everyone positive, and staying on time, as well as clean up afterwards. I had two reasons for giving this responsibility to the 4th years. Firstly, next year they are going to be YCLs and they need an opportunity to start developing leadership qualities. And secondly, one of the 4th years certification requirements is “Help to organize and participate in a nature walk or hike for younger campers”. I know that hikes tend to be filled with numerous complaints and negative attitudes like “are we done yet”, “why do we have to hike”, “this is so boring”, “why can't I just take a nap instead”, yada, yada, yada... But we did not hear one single complaint the entire hike! And I made sure to ask everyone involved! It was a huge success! Here is what we choose to do for each value station: Faith- Blindfolded Tag. Each person needs to find a partner. The first partner stands in front of the other partner with their hands outstretched and interlocking fingers(this is critical) wearing a blindfold, or closing their eyes. The partner in the back puts their hands on their partners shoulders and steers the blindfolded partner from behind. One partnership is deemed “it” and off you go, traditional tag rules apply. If you want more of a challenge implement a no talking rule. How it relates to the value- sometimes you can not see what is in front of you, and you have to rely on the Lord to lead and direct you. He is always there to steer you in the right direction if only you have the faith to trust in Him and take a step forward. Divine Nature- Egg Race. Divide into two or more teams. Each team stands in a straight line with the first person at the start line, everyone is given a spoon that is placed in their mouths, the end that you typically hold when eating. At the start line you have a box or bowl full of plastic eggs. The first person on each team puts an egg on top of the spoon. They then race to the finish line where there is another bowl or box(one for each team), they drop the egg into their teams box, and race back to tag the next person in line, who then grabs an egg and races to the finish line. If they drop an egg on the ground they have to go back to the start line and try again. Set a timer and the team with the most eggs in their end box wins. For a little extra fun have everyone walk/run like a chicken. And for a more difficult challenge add some obstacles. For example, the girls that were helping with this station thought my plan was too simple. So they put their heads together and came up with a great idea! They added some hula hoops to the mix. The hoops were placed on the ground and the runners had to run around them on their way to the finish line. And instead of just running back they made the runners hop back to the start line on one foot. And it worked wonderfully! How it relates to the value- an egg has divine qualities, and a divine mission to fulfill. It will grow into a chicken if it is nurtured properly. And these Young Women will grow into strong and righteous women if they nurture their divine qualities and strive to complete their divine mission. Individual Worth- Water Balloon Toss. Everyone partners up and stands across from their partner, just a few feet apart. One partner has a water balloon and tosses it to the other person. They both take a step back, and the other partner tosses the water balloon back to the first partner. And repeat until the water balloon falls to the ground or breaks. For a more difficult challenge, each time the balloon is tossed, the partner tossing the balloon must say something praiseworthy of the other partner. How it relates to the value- our souls are precious, just as the water inside the balloon is a precious resource. Both have infinite worth and potential to do amazing things, and neither should be taken for granted or diminished in any way. Knowledge- Pizza Box Race. Divide into two or more teams and stand in two lines at the start line. At the finish line is a large stack of empty pizza boxes. The first person races down to the finish line, grabs one box, races back to the start line, hands it to the next person in line, and returns to the end of their team's line. The next person then races down to the finish line, grabs a box, stacks it on top of the first box, races back to the start line, and hands it to the next person. Repeat until one team can no longer carry the boxes and drops them on the ground. The winning team is the team that can carry the most boxes before dropping them. You will need about 20-30 boxes per team. We had just shy of 50 boxes and it was enough for two teams. How it relates to the value- we need to feed our minds like we feed our bellies. And pizza and studying just go hand in hand. Choice and Accountability- Jell-O Eating Contest. Everyone is given a Jell-O cup and a straw. The girls have to eat the Jell-O as fast as they can with only a straw. Warning- this produces some rather rude slurping noises. How it relates to the value- I feel that a lot of times when C&A is taught during YW lessons a lot of the focus is placed on making righteous choices. I wanted this station to really focus on accountability. Every choice has a consequence. Sometimes good, sometimes bad, and sometimes neutral or benign. And we are accountable for those consequences. So when you choose to eat Jell-O with a straw you have to accept responsibility for the rude/silly noises that you will make. Good Works- Wheelbarrow Race. Everyone partners up. One partner gets down on their hands and knees. The other partner stands behind them, grabs the first partner's ankles, and lifts their lower body off the ground leaving just their hands on the ground. So the first partner becomes the wheelbarrow and the second partner steers the wheelbarrow. Working together they must race to the finish line. The YW that helped with this station drew, colored, and cut out flowers from poster board, placed them on the ground, and instructed the teams to help pick up the flowers on their way to the finish line. How it relates to the value- At every station we made a sign with the value name and a little catch phrase and/or preview of was happening at that station. Good works sign used the catch phrase, “Have you done any good today? If not, put your shoulder to the wheelbarrow!” Integrity- Spider Web This was our largest value set up, and the most time consuming. But it was 100% worth it! You will need 20, five foot PVC pipes, 3/4in diameter. I purchased the 10 foot poles and cut them in half(much better price). And you will need a ton of yarn. I asked for donations of scrap yarn that people weren't using anymore. To set up, you will need a large flat area. Place the PVC pipes in a 4x5 grid. You will want about 8 feet in between each pipe. Dig a hole for each PVC pipe, put the PVC in the hole, hammer it down, and pack the earth back around the pole to help stabilize it. You want them to be fairly secure. Next take a skein of yarn tie it around one post, at the base, and string the yarn to another post loosely, tie it(without cutting it) and string it back to the original post. You will want the yarn to go back and forth between posts about 4 or 5 times at various angles. Connect all the posts to each other. When you are done you will have a massive web of yarn. To play this game all the girls will line up on one side of the rectangle and attempt to weave themselves through the yarn web to the opposite end. If you want to make it more challenging you can divide the girls into small groups and make them hold hands and weave through the web together. How it relates to the value- Think of the web as a web of sin or a web of lies. Integrity helps us navigate unscathed through the web of sin that the Young Women face on a daily basis. Virtue- Tug-O-War. You will need a large rope. Divide into two teams, one at each end of the rope, and a center line marked on the ground. The object of Tug-O-War is to pull the other team across the center line. To do this, you must use the rope and pull against one another until one team comes across the line in any way, or if they choose to forfeit. Each side must have an equal amount of players, and it does not matter the physical strength or ability. How it relates to the value- Hold true to your virtue; don't get dragged through the mud. The world is going to try to pull us this way and that, entice us to romp around in the muck. But if we hold tight to Virtue, rooting ourselves in high moral standards, we can remain pure and worthy. The Finishers' Festival This part of the activity was my dream. It was such a perfect ending to an already amazing activity. At one point, I wanted to have the girls have colored holi powder "poofed" on them as they completed each YW Value station. I am so happy I did not do this. Having a "Finisher's Festival" was the best way to incorporate holi powder, aka YW Values colored powder. At the end of the value hike, we had a welcome sign congratulating the girls for finishing. A few leaders cheered them on and we greeted them with a few "poofs" of colored powder, then handed them their own bottle and encouraged them to be ready to greet the next group of finishers in the same manner. Each time a group would arrive, the cheering and powder "poofing" would erupt. We had enough bottles of powder for each girl to have her own. They could have one color at a time and many would trade colors so they had the opportunity to use a variety as they greeted and cheered on the other "Finishers". We pointed out how good it feels to accomplish a goal of finishing and how much fun it is. Once everyone completed the activity, we had a gigantic celebration, the Finishers' Festival. Everyone used up their remaining powder and headed back to their camp sites to clean up. The clean up was much easier than I could have anticipated. Just have a hose close by and spray everything off. The powder does not cake or clump, just rinses away. The powder washed out of hair and clothing with no problem. By evening, there were few tangible signs of our Finisher Festival colors. There were a few places on my body, like the creases of my elbows and knees that needed some extra scrubbing, but I was pleasantly surprised at the clean up. This is much smarter for the environment than water balloons, silly string, shaving cream, etc. A quick spray with the hose and it is gone. In our case, we had rain during the night and there was no evidence of any colored powder the next day. Just make sure the girls have a change of clothes ready and a plan for cleaning up themselves. They will be messy and loving every minute. Girls and some of the leaders who did not want to get messy were soon leaving the "powder-free safe zone" to join in the fun. Here is what I learned about using "Holi powder": I ordered the holi powder from HERE Tell them I, Shauna Hostetler, sent you to their site. I do not receive any compensation for you to purchase from them, but just want you to know this is the best place to order from. I ordered the plastic bottles from HERE (12 oz clear plastic bottles, 7" tall) I did a lot of homework on this and decided these were the best type and price. Each order of powder contains 2 pounds each of 6 colors. Each bag will fill 6 bottles all the way for a total of 36 bottles per order. (you can fill them half way and get double the bottles of power. This will still provide a lot of powder for one person) I purchased 144 bottles and 4 orders of powder will fill 144 bottles all the way to the top. When filling the bottles, be prepared to have some messy fun. Use a funnel and have a long skewer to help push the powder through quickly. Some colors flow better than others. If you do not want to use the bottles (although I highly recommend them) you could give out small plastic bags or disposable cups filled with the powder and let the participants throw the powder with their hands (which is the more traditional way holi powder is used. Using the bottles increases your cost, but makes the activity more fun and helps to make the powder last longer. I collected the bottles at the end and will definitely use them again for a similar activity, a party, etc. I can think of so many events and occasions to use holi powder. (Watch out New Year's eve, Birthday parties, etc) From the comments from girls and their leaders, this was much more than a big mess of colored powder being thrown around (which was my goal). They understood the application of getting the Young Women Values "on you" and making them part of your every day life. Many have mentioned the connection as they discuss their camp memories. Enjoy planning your own Finishers Festival! In case you missed the link above, order powder HERE.
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