Great Improv Games to Play With Kids
Loser Ball
Group in circle (2 or more circles if enough people)
An imaginary ball is tossed to someone, they have to miss catching it.
Everyone cheers enthusiastically for them
They retrieve the ball and throw to the next person
Group Move and Stop
Everyone walks normally around a room
Leader calls out stop and they try to stop as quickly as they can safely do
Leader says Go and they start walking again (done several times)
Now they are in control. Someone decides to stop moving, everyone else tries to stop moving as quickly as possible.
Keep doing it until you get good
Group Creation
Using your bodies create something together.
One person calls out an object and everyone works together to try and create that object. For example: a plane, a car, a dragon
This is all done without talking and as fast as you can. Now ask everyone what part of the object they are.
ADVANCED LEVEL: Make your object move
Group sounds and motion
One person begins by making a sound while doing a movement with their body.
One by one everyone else joins in making a sound and doing movement that they think compliments what is going on.
The point is not to copy each other, but for each person to add something new that works with everything else.
Once everyone is doing something, one person decides to do a new sound and movement and the rest of the group shifts to this new scene.
Keep going through a few rounds and see what you come up with.
Kitty Cat Careers
Everyone in a circle
One person steps in to the middle and begins acting out being a kitty cat doing a job that people normally do. They can only make kitty cat sounds.
Everyone else tries to guess what the career is e.g. kitty cat fireman, kitty cat mathematician, kitty cat teacher, etc.
Whoever guesses right gets to take the spot in the middle and act out a new kitty cat career.
After a successful guess,, everyone should sing the kitty cat careers song (Like Meow Mix):
Meow Meow Meow Meow,
Meow Meow Meow Meow,
Meow Meow Meow Meow,
Meow Meow Meow Meow,
KITTY CAT CAREERS (Everyone claps twice)
KITTY CAT CAREERS
Alien, Tiger, Cow
Everyone stands in a circle facing each other.
The group leader calls out, “Alien, Tiger, Cow”
Immediately, without pause
Each person takes on one of those characters:
Alien: Hold your hands next to your head with one finger on each hand pointing up like antenna and say, “Beep, Beep, Beep”
Tiger: Hold both hands in front of you like tiger claws and say, “ROAR”
Cow: Place your hands together with fingers spread apart in front of your stomach, bow and say, “MOOOOOOO”
The goal is for everyone to spontaneously make the same choice and to all be one thing together. Play a few rounds and see if you can get everyone doing the same one.
Word at a Time Story
Everyone sits in a circle facing each other.
You are going to tell a story acting as one voice.
One person begins the story and then it is passed around the circle with each person taking a turn
On your turn you can only contribute one word to the story
Keep going around until you have created a full story.
Example:
Person 1: Once
Person 2: Upon
Person 3: A
Person 4: Dragon
Person 1: There
Person 2: Was
etc. etc. etc.
Look What I Can Do
Everyone in a circle
One person starts by making a sound and a movement.
The person to their left now tries to copy exactly what they did
Keep going around the circle
Try to only copy what the person before you did as exactly as you can
Go around the circle a few times and watch as the sound and movement change, even though we are trying to copy exactly.
Now start a new one with a different person starting the pattern.
