10 Kids Party Games with a Wheel, Dice and Coin
A kids' party runs best when the games are quick, the rules are simple and nobody can argue about who was picked. A phone or tablet with a few free random tools takes care of the arguing: the wheel decides, the dice decide, and the grown-up just reads out the result. Here are ten games that work for birthday parties, sleepovers and rainy afternoons.
1. Wheel of Silly Challenges
Fill a picker wheel with short challenges, one per slice, then let each child spin in turn and do whatever it lands on. Ideas that always get a laugh:
- Walk like a penguin to the door and back
- Sing "Happy Birthday" in a robot voice
- Do your best animal noise and let everyone guess
- Balance on one foot for ten seconds
- Tell a joke (or make one up)
- Do five star jumps
- Make the birthday child laugh without touching them
- Freeze like a statue until your next turn
Keep the challenges short and safe, and add a "free pass" slice so shy children can skip without fuss. For more ready-made lists, see picker wheel ideas.
2. Dice Actions
Give each number on a die an action, write the list where everyone can see it, and roll with the dice roller on a big screen. Everyone does the action together:
- Hop on one leg
- Touch your toes
- Spin around once
- Jump as high as you can
- Clap above your head
- Wiggle like jelly
Roll two dice for two actions at once, which gets very silly very fast. It is a great game to burn energy before cake.
3. Pass the Parcel with a Random Stop
The traditional British party game: a prize is wrapped in many layers of paper, children pass it around a circle while music plays, and whoever holds it when the music stops unwraps one layer. The last layer holds the prize.
The fair twist: before each round, use a random number generator to pick a number of seconds, say 5 to 20, and stop the music when the time is up. That way the grown-up cannot be accused of stopping on a favourite.
4. Heads or Tails Elimination
Everyone stands up and picks a side: hands on head for heads, hands on hips for tails. Flip a coin flip and everyone who guessed wrong sits down. Keep going until one child is left. It works with any number of children and needs no space at all. More coin games are in 8 coin flip games.
5. Bear, Hunter, Ninja
Rock paper scissors with the whole body. Hunter (aim a bow) beats bear, bear (claws and a roar) beats ninja, ninja (karate chop) beats hunter. Two teams huddle, choose a pose, line up and reveal it together on the count of three. Full rules and other versions are in rock paper scissors variations.
6. Twenty Questions
One child thinks of an animal, a food or a famous character. The others take turns asking questions that can only be answered yes or no, such as "Does it live in the sea?" If nobody guesses in twenty questions, the thinker wins. Need inspiration? See yes or no questions.
7. Magic 8 Ball Fortune Corner
Set a tablet on a table with the Magic 8 Ball and let children take turns asking it a question: "Will I get a puppy?", "Will it snow tomorrow?" The answers are random, which is half the fun, and it is a calm game for the end of the party when everyone is tired.
8. Truth or Dare for Kids
For older children at sleepovers, a clean round of truth or dare is a favourite. Keep the questions kind and the dares safe and indoor, and let anyone pass. Our truth or dare for kids list has 120 questions and dares sorted by age.
9. Random Teams Relay
Put every name into a random name picker and draw two or three teams, so friends and siblings are mixed up fairly. Then race: carry a spoon with a ball on it, hop to a chair and back, or pass a balloon down the line without hands. Tips on balanced teams are in how to make random teams.
10. Lucky Number Prize
Hand every child a numbered sticker or card when they arrive. At the end of the party, draw one or more numbers with the random number generator set to "no repeats", and the winners choose a small prize first. Everyone stays to the end, and nobody can say the draw was fixed.
Tips by Age
- Ages 3 to 5: keep it to movement games like Dice Actions, the challenge wheel and pass the parcel. Short rounds, and everyone wins something small.
- Ages 6 to 8: add Heads or Tails Elimination, Bear Hunter Ninja and the relay. They love elimination games, as long as rounds are quick.
- Ages 9 to 12: Twenty Questions, the Magic 8 Ball and clean truth or dare go down well, especially at sleepovers.
Whatever the age, have one grown-up in charge of the screen, keep turns short so nobody waits long, and finish with a calm game before parents arrive.
FAQ
What are good party games for kids that need no equipment?
Heads or Tails Elimination, Bear Hunter Ninja, Twenty Questions and Dice Actions need only a phone or tablet for the coin, dice or wheel.
How do you make pass the parcel fair?
Pick the stopping time at random before each round, for example a number of seconds from 5 to 20, so nobody can stop the music on purpose.
What games work for 5 year olds at a party?
Simple movement games with short rounds: a wheel of silly challenges, Dice Actions and pass the parcel.
How do you pick a prize winner fairly at a kids party?
Give every child a numbered sticker when they arrive, then draw numbers with a random number generator set to no repeats.