Statues Game: Rules, Themes and Musical Statues
Statues is one of the simplest party and playground games there is. Players move around, and when the signal comes they freeze like statues. A judge watches for anyone who wobbles, giggles or moves, and those players are out until only the best statue is left. It needs no equipment, works indoors or outside, and suits children from about four years old. Here are the rules, a fair way to choose the judge, how to pick statue themes at random without repeats, a music version and classroom tips.
How to play statues
- Choose one player to be the judge. Everyone else spreads out in the playing area.
- The judge says “Move!” and the players walk, hop, dance or act out a theme.
- When the judge shouts “Statues!”, everyone freezes immediately in whatever position they are in.
- The judge walks around and looks closely. Anyone who moves, blinks too much, talks or laughs is out and sits at the side.
- The judge may try to make statues laugh by pulling faces or telling jokes, but may not touch them.
- Keep playing until one statue is left. That player is the winner and becomes the next judge.
A fair way to choose the judge
The first judge has a lot of fun, so children often argue about it. Draw a name with the Random Name Picker, or spin the Picker Wheel with everyone’s names on it. If you play several games in a row, remove each name after it is picked so that children who have been out early still get a turn as judge.
Picking statue themes at random
Themes make the game much better: instead of freezing in any position, players must freeze as a given thing, such as a superhero, a tree in the wind, a sleeping cat or a footballer scoring a goal. Write your themes on the Picker Wheel and spin before each round. If you keep every theme on the wheel, the same one soon comes up twice. The table shows the chance that at least one theme repeats. Themes is the number of themes on the wheel, and Three, Five and Eight are the number of rounds played.
| Themes | Three | Five | Eight |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 28% | 70% | 98% |
| 15 | 19% | 53% | 90% |
| 20 | 15% | 42% | 80% |
| 30 | 10% | 30% | 64% |
With ten themes, eight rounds almost always bring a repeat. Using “remove and spin” takes each theme off the wheel after it comes up, so no theme repeats until the wheel is empty.
Some theme ideas to put on the wheel:
- Animals: flamingo, gorilla, snake, frog, elephant, penguin.
- Jobs: firefighter, chef, painter, astronaut, dentist.
- Sports: goalkeeper, skier, archer, swimmer, weightlifter.
- Feelings: happy, angry, surprised, scared, sleepy.
- Season or party themes: snowman, scarecrow, pumpkin, witch on a broom, birthday cake.
Musical statues
In musical statues the music replaces the judge’s call. Players dance while the music plays and freeze the moment it stops. The person in charge of the music should stop it at unpredictable times, sometimes after a few seconds and sometimes after half a minute, and look at the room rather than the screen. It is very close to freeze dance, and most children know both names.
Classroom tips
- Calm ending: statues works well as the last activity before a lesson ends, because it finishes with everyone still and quiet.
- Nobody waits long: with a whole class, let players who are out become assistant judges, or play “out for one round only”.
- Learning themes: use themes from the lesson, such as shapes, letters made with the body, or historical figures.
- Fair judging: agree beforehand what counts as moving. Breathing and blinking are fine; swaying, talking and laughing are not.
Variations
- Grandmother’s footsteps: players creep towards the judge, who turns around suddenly; anyone seen moving goes back to the start. It is a close cousin of red light, green light.
- Statue museum: one player is the museum guard and the others are statues who move only when the guard is not looking.
- Partner statues: pairs freeze together in one shared pose, such as two people lifting a heavy box.
- Out with a twist: players who are out must then try to make the remaining statues laugh, without touching them.
- With chairs: for a game where players leave one by one to the music, play musical chairs.
FAQ
How do you play the statues game?
Players move around until the judge calls “Statues!”, then freeze. Anyone who moves or laughs while the judge is watching is out. The last statue standing wins and becomes the next judge.
What is the difference between statues and musical statues?
In statues the judge calls when to freeze. In musical statues, players dance to music and freeze when it stops.
What are good statue themes?
Animals, jobs, sports, feelings and seasonal themes all work well. Spin a picker wheel of themes and remove each theme once it has been used, so nothing repeats.
What age is the statues game for?
It works from about four years old, and older children and adults enjoy it with harder themes or partner statues.
Can the judge touch the statues?
Usually not. The judge may pull faces and tell jokes to make statues laugh, but touching is not allowed.