With the school holidays upon us, I thought I’d share some games for small numbers of children. There are still many places where large numbers can’t gather. Most of these games can be played with 2, 3 or 4 children or adults. Some of them can even be played alone. Many of these games I remember playing as a child with my brother, cousins, neighbours, friends or even my grandmothers.
I have many memories of playing all sorts of games in the different houses we lived in or when we were on holidays. Hide-and-seek features in many memories and was a favourite of my nieces for a very long time. A memory that stands out is using the garden hose and ropes to make our own life size Pac Man game in the side yard at a house we lived in. I can’t remember what objects we used for the power pellets. One person was Pac Man, while the others were the ghosts. We would play the game like the video game.
Anyhow here’s a number of indoor and outdoor game ideas for small numbers.
Indoor Games
Hide the Thimble
Choose a small item that one person hides whilst the others are out of the room. Once the item is hidden, the others try and find the hidden item. You can use the terms “hot” & “cold” to let others know if they are close or far away from the hidden item.
Memory
There’s two different versions of this game. One is played with a pack of cards and can also be called Concentration. Lay out the cards upside down and take turns turning over 2 cards to try and find matching pairs. If you find a pair you keep it in a pile & have another turn.
Memory or Concentration 
Tray of objects. How many can you remember?
The other is collecting some small objects and arranging them on a tray or table. Allow participants to look at the objects for 1 minute and then cover the objects with a towel. Participants write down or say all the objects they can remember.
I Spy
One person looks around and spies an item that they want others to guess. They then say “I spy with my little eye something beginning with _______.” Other people guess what the object might be. The person who guesses correctly has a go at spying an item for others to guess. With young children you could use colours rather than letters. This is also a good game for when travelling in the car or on a bus or train.
Charades
Someone mimes while others guess what they are miming.
Noughts & Crosses
Simply get a piece of paper and draw two lines one vertically and two lines horizontally to form nine squares. One player is noughts (O) & the other is crosses (X). Players take turns to draw a naught or a cross to try and get three in a row.
Jacks/Knuclebones
A set of five jacks, originally made from sheeps knuckles, now usually plastic. In the basic game you throw up 1 jack and try and grab as many jacks off the floor as you can, before catching the jack that was tossed up. There are many variations. You can play by yourself or with 2 or more players.
Outdoor Games
Marbles
Again many games can be played with marbles. You can also make your own marble run out of tubes and small cardboard boxes.
Hopscotch
All you need is a place to draw a hopscotch with chalk on cement or even in the dirt. Have a stone each or similar as your tor. In the basic game you have to through your stone onto the first square and jump through the hopscotch and pick up you stone on the way back. Then you move onto square 2, 3 etc. If you miss the square or jump on a line, it’s the next persons go. The first person to get through the hole hopscotch is the winner.
Elastics
Although those this game is better with at least 3 people in can be played with one or two people. The elastic can be place around chair legs or the back of a chair. One person jumps over the elastic without getting caught in it. You start off with the elastic around your ankles and then move up to knees, waist, under shoulders and lastly the neck. Again, there are a number of variations.
Hide and Seek
One person is the seeker and counts to a predetermined number whilst the others hide. The seeker then finds all those who are hiding. The first person they find becomes the next seeker. This game can of course be played inside. A variation is sardines where one person hides and the others try to find the hider and then hide with them.
What’s the Time Mr Wolf
One person (the wolf) is at one end of the yard facing away from the others. The others all say “What’s the time Mr Wolf?” The wolf answers with a time and the others take that many steps towards the wolf. If the wolf says “dinner time”, the wolf then chases the others. If he catches someone they become the wolf.
Piggy in the Middle
Two people stand on either side with the others in the middle and throw a ball to each other. The person/people in the middle try and catch the ball. If they do the person who threw the ball is now in the middle.
This is just a few games that can be played with small numbers of children.
What games do you remember playing as a child or what other games would you suggest for small numbers of children?