10 Fun Drama Games for Bored Children on School Holidays

School holidays can be long, and the common statement, “I’m bored” haunts parents/carers as they try to be inventive with things to do that don’t involve screens, money and mess.

Drama games may be the answer – they’re fun, active, free and they can also develop confidence, focus, vocabulary, and concentration.

Here’s ten that can be played with groups of 2 to 22 and ages 3 to 73.

1. Alien, Tiger, Cow

Players are shown 3 gestures – alien, tiger, cow.

They must then close their eyes and think of one of these gestures they will come out with.

Leader counts 1,2,3 and everyone creates their pose/gesture.

The aim is for everyone to be the same.

2. Mirror, Mirror

In pairs, children decide who will be A and who will be B.

Student A begins to move slowly, and student B must copy the movement exactly as if they are in a reflection student A sees in a mirror.

Swap, encouraging students to move slowly with the aim being that anyone watching the pair wouldn’t be able to tell who the leader is leading the movement and who is following.

If you have a third child, it can be their role to guess who the leader is and who is the follower.

3. Sausages

Ask one person a series of questions, no matter what the question is, they must keep a straight face and they must answer “sausage”.

For example, What’s your sister’s name? Answer is “Sausage”.

4. Quick Change

Choose one person to be the “changer”.

Everyone else studies his/her appearance for 3 seconds.

Ask the “changer” to leave the room out of sight.

While out the “changer” must change three things about his/her appearance (pull a sock down, change placement of watch, unbutton a button, etc.)

When the “changer” re-enters, the other players must figure out what three things changed.

5. Yes Let’s…

One person calls out, “Let’s….” and then an activity.

For example, “Let’s build a sandcastle”.

Whenever a suggestion is called out, everyone replies with, “Yes let’s.”

The group starts acting it out.

At any time, anyone can call out a new suggestion. “Let’s go scuba diving” or “Let’s fly to the moon.”

6. Anything Material Goes

This performative game is good to get the creative ideas flowing.

You will need a piece of material – ideally quite large, so a bed sheet or a blanket is ideal.

Ask the child what the material could be used for.

The possibilities are endless – a magic carpet, a picnic blanket, a cape, a tent, etc.

Play a game using the material – for example, a magic carpet could take them to an imaginary land for an amazing adventure.

7. Transform an Everyday Object

Collect 3-5 everyday household objects.

Engage the children in turning everyday objects into anything they can imagine using a little bit of dramatic flair.

Colanders can become pirate hats, wooden spoons can become swords, towels can become magic carpets.

Together make up a story to act out using your props. EG. The pirate goes on a journey, using the sword for protection and finds a treasure chest. FUN!

8. Freeze, Dance, Justify

Children dance to their favourite music and pause when the music stops.

They then must justify their weird poses in creative ways.

For instance, a child squatting on the floor might justify their pose by saying “I’m a frog sitting on a log.”

9. Animal Charades

One player thinks of an animal and acts it out using the dramatic technique of mime.

The other players try and guess what it is.

10. 10 Seconds

Call out an object and the children need to make it, using their bodies within 10 seconds.

For 2 players: knife and fork, bacon and eggs, dog, cup and saucer, egg in an egg cup

For 3 or more players: fridge, washing machine, bicycle, dinosaur, pizza.

So, dive into the world of drama and let the fun begin!

Fairlie O’Donnell,

Drama Team Manager