Camp Games for Youth

Camping is a great way to relax and unwind, at the same time learn about the environment and be one with nature. Camping is an ideal place for a young person to socialize and make friends with new people. No wonder, summer camps are so popular among the youth these days. There is one more reason why teens and young college goers simply love camping and that is the fun atmosphere that they promise through the various games.

All for a Smile!
Icebreaker activities are a must so that the camp participants can know each other better and bond. This game is especially designed for this purpose. To play this game, ask the camp participants to sit in a circle. Next choose a person who will be the "lover". Now, this "lover" has to pick any person of the opposite sex in the group and try to make him/her smile. Lover says something like, "Smile if you love me". The person lover chooses has to respond by saying, "I do love you but cannot smile". The lover can make funny faces or act weirdly or do anything to make the other person laugh. If the chosen person replies with the same answer four times i.e. "can't smile", then he/she becomes the next "lover".

Nature's Treasure Hunt!
Another interesting camp game is to plan a hunt of nature's treasures in the field and jungles surrounding the camp. To conduct this camp activity, divide the players into groups of five each. Next, hand each of the groups a list of things that they have to either bring back or identify while carrying on their hunt. The list can have things like - bring back a thing which is soft or rough or slippery, look for sounds which made you afraid or sad or happy and when you come back explain who made these sounds and how, get a natural object which has more than three parts, get the oldest thing that you see around the camp area and guess what its age will be, etc. Such games and activities are fun, adventurous and at the same time teach the players a lot about environment and nature.

Jump the Rope!
To play this game, appoint two players as facilitators who will swing the rope while others attempt to jump over it. The facilitators have to then decide on the rules that have to be followed by the other players while jumping the rope. The rules can be something like - girls will jump once, boys will jump twice, those in shorts will be followed by those in full length lowers, the first person will jump with his hands on his head, the second one with hands on his shoulders and so on. Now, divide the players in groups of ten each. Each group has to understand the rules properly among themselves and then jump the rope. If any member of the group jumps incorrectly, the entire group has to restart jumping again. In the end, the group which finishes jumping ropes accurately, with minimum attempts is declared the winner of this game.

Act Now!
Dramatic camp games for youth groups are very popular. One of the fun games is "lights camera action". To play this game, divide the players into groups of eight to ten each. Next, announce a topic, it can be anything like "Noah's Ark" or "Church" or "Christmas" and give each of the teams two minutes each to recreate it. Likewise, keep on giving out topics and let the players be as creative as possible in creating the "scenes". Give points to groups which recreate the best and the most authentic scene. In the end, count the points and give away prizes to the winning group.

The whole camping experience is a big learning curve for any young person. Camp games are a great means of social and mental development of the players. They teach the players important lessons in team building, leadership and hard-work, being so much fun at the same time.