Components
- 200 cards
- 30 second sand timer
- score pad
- pencil
- instructions
- rubber band to hold cards.
Object of the Game
Players must perform and guess a whole host of fun charades that will have everyone laughing out loud. The team with the most points after 10 rounds wins the game!
Setup
Select which of the four charades games you want to play. Shuffle the cards and place the deck within easy reach of all teams, making sure that the charades side is facing down.
Divide into teams, with at least two players per team. There is no limit to how many players can be on a team, nor do teams need to have an even amount of players.
Choose one player to be the scorekeeper. The team with the youngest player goes first (Team ONE).
Game Play
Team ONE selects one member to be the first actor (this role must rotate between all players on the team- every team member must be an actor before the first player can take on this role again).
Any player on an opposing team flips over the sandtimer, and the actor now has 30 seconds to act the charade for his/her teammates.
The actor must not:
- Talk, hum, or give any other verbal clues
- Mouth words or letters, or draw letters in the air
- Point to any object in the room
Beside each charade is a number which indicates the number of points that can be earned. When a charade is guessed correctly within the allowed time, Team ONE earns the points for that charade, and the scorekeeper writes the points earned in the appropriate space on the score pad.
If the charade is not guessed correctly, the scorekeeper writes a zero on the score pad.
A charade is only guessed correctly when a teammate calls out the complete charade as written on the card. For example, if the charade is "hitting a grand slam home run" and the guesser only says "hitting a grand slam", the charade has not been guessed correctly.
The card is now placed at the bottom of the pile, and play moves clockwise around the room to Team TWO.
In this example, if a team successfully guesses "Tweety Bird" and "Teddy bear" they would earn five points.
End of the Game
Once all teams have completed 10 rounds, total up the scores. The team with the most points wins the game!
Charades Standard Signals
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Person
Stand with hands on hips.
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Poem
The player pretends to hold a paper and pretends to read the poem.
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Book Title
Unfold your hands as if they were a book.
-
Movie Title
Pretend to crank an old-fashioned movie camera.
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Song Title
Pretend to sing.
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Play Title
Place both hands out, palms facing the audience and touching at the thumbs, and draw them apart like a theater curtain.
-
TV Show
Draw a rectangle to outline a TV screen.
-
Quote or Phrase
Make quotation marks in the air with your fingers.
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Location
Make a circle with one hand, then point to it, as if pointing to a dot on a map.
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Event
Point to your wrist as if you were wearing a watch.
-
Computer Game
Using both hands move your thumbs like you are using a game pad.
Website
Hold one hand out, palm down, horizontal to the ground, as if holding a computer mouse. Make a sweeping motion side to side, then stop and tap index finger as if "clicking".
Characteristics of a Word or Phrase
-
Number of Words in the Charade
Hold up the corresponding number of fingers.
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Which Word you Are Working on
Hold up the number of fingers again.
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Number of Syllables in the Word
Lay the number of fingers on your arm.
-
Which Syllable you Are on
Lay the number of fingers on your arm again.
-
Length of Word
Make a "little" or "big" sign as if you were measuring a fish.
-
Sounds Like or Rhymes with
Cup one hand behind an ear, or pull on your earlobe.
-
Longer Version of
Pretend to stretch a piece of elastic.
-
Shorter Version of
Do a "karate chop" with your hand.
-
Plural
Link your little fingers.
-
Past Tense
Wave your hand over your shoulder toward your back.
-
Opposite
Form each hand into a hitchhiker's thumb signal and point them in opposite directions.
-
The Entire Concept
Sweep your arms through the air making big brackets.
-
Close, Keep Guessing!
Frantically wave your hands about to keep the guesses coming, or pretend to fan yourself, as if to say "getting hotter".
-
A Letter of the Alphabet
Move your hand in a chopping motion toward your arm (near the top of your forearm if the letter is near the beginning of the alphabet, and near the bottom of your arm if the letter is near the end of the alphabet).
-
Stop! Work on Something Else
Hold both arms out in front of you, palms of your hands waving, facing your teammates, while simultaneously shaking your head, eyes closed.
-
Someone Has Guessed Part of the Charade Correctly
Point at your nose with one hand, while pointing at the person with your other hand.
Common Smaller Words
"A" steeple index fingers together.
"I" point at your eye, or your chest.
"ON" make your index finger leap on to the palm of your other hand. Reverse this gesture to indicate "Off".
"THAT" make a "T" with your index fingers, followed by one flattened hand tapping your head for "hat". Following this with the "opposite" sign indicates the word "This".
"THE" make a "T" sign with your index fingers.
"OR" pretend to paddle a canoe.
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