Non-Competitive Games

www.fridayschildmontessori.com

The trouble with a lot of traditional organised games for children

(of all ages – not just pre-schoolers)

is that they involve winners and losers.

This can be a bit worrisome for some parents who would rather

that children avoid intense competition and the problem of

getting a child who either

(a) wins everything and gets unbearably arrogant about it or

(b) loses everything and ends up with a self-esteem problem.

A little competition now and again won’t hurt and some children

enjoy races and the like.

But there’s no real need to have every single organised game at a party or “play date” a competitive

game with winners and losers.

However, there are a lot of non-competitive games out there that children (and adults) can enjoy.

This doesn’t mean that these are quiet games where you all sit

around giving each other group hugs, any more than children who go to Montessori preschools are

chaotic and unable to stick to a programme

(or hyper-neat and organised, depending which Montessori myth your uninformed auntie spouts when you mention that

you’re sending your son or daughter to Friday’s Child

Montessori).

A lot of non-competitive games are quite boisterous. A lot of them

are traditional. And one of the good things about these games is that everyone can join in and give

it all they’ve got, no matter how old

or young they are.

Having said that, some of these games are more appropriate for

slightly older pre-schoolers compared to, say, two-year-olds –

but that won’t stop the two-year-old joining in and

having a blast!

Here’s a selection, which could come in handy if you’re

organising a children’s party or if you’re going to be in charge of entertaining the children this Christmas:

Socks Off. For this game, everyone has to be wearing socks

(but not tights) and no shoes.

Everyone gets down on their hands and knees and the aim of the game is to remove everyone

else’s socks while not letting yours come off.

If your socks are pulled off, you’re not out but you just keep on going. The game ends when

everyone’s barefoot.

If you want to get really technical, the person who is last to lose a

sock could be called a winner, but this game is so much fun that

this is irrelevant.

Blanket Toss. Get a large blanket and put a selection of soft

toys in it.

This really does mean soft all over so watch out for any teddies with hard plastic noses or huge goopy

plastic eyes.

Definitely leave Barbie dolls and similar off. Everyone grabs and edge or a corner of the blanket and shakes it to make the soft

toys fly up in the air.

The game ends when all the teddies have flown off the blanket

and/or everyone’s exhausted. A variation can be played with

balloons, although these fly off more readily.

Obstacle Courses. Use chairs, tables, blankets, large boxes,

beanbags and the like to create an obstacle course.

Children take turns at negotiating their way up, around, over,

through and under the obstacles.

On a hot day, if the children are dressed appropriately for it, one

obstacle could be a lawn sprinkler that has to be jumped or stepped

over.

Bubble Blowing. Make bubble wands from those plastic ring things that let you know that

you’re the first one into a bottle of juice – pinch one part of the circle

into a point and stick this point down a drinking straw.

You can also make them out of various bits of wire or buy a cheap

set that comes with bubble mixture. Make mixture by

combining dishwashing liquid, sugar (or, better still, glycerine – but who’s got that in the kitchen

cupboard?) and water.

Experiment to get the right consistency and don’t overdo the

sugar. Put the bubble mix in a series of dishes and bowls and issue each child with a bubble

wand.

It’s best to do this outside where the wind will blow the bubbles away very prettily and where

inevitable spills and the residue from popped bubbles won’t make

the floor sticky.

Treasure Hunts: Like the Amazing Race, you start with a

clue that takes you to a new location, where you’ll find another clue and so on until you get to the

final destination where there is a stash of treasure

to be shared

(if you do this for a birthday party, the treasure could be the party bags or stuff to go into them).

Keep the number of clues and the difficulty of them age-appropriate.

More non-competitive game ideas at

www.fridayschildmontessori.com/blog/non-competitive-games