![]() Games, although often not thought of as very substantial, are crucial to a fun and adventurous time. There are many reasons to play games. Check out the list below for just a few reasons why games are a good ideas.
Real games. Real leaders. Real young people!
Now that you’ve been to a section and witnessed games being played by leaders and you’ve commented on them, it’s important to understand how the strategy behind leading a game works.
You've had the chance to fill in the session 2 observation checklist. From the checklist, you'll see that leading a game is split into three different stages; the preparation, the explanation and the game itself.
Here is an example of a completed question from the observation checklist for cat and mouse maze, try and ensure all of your checklist is full of comments, so when you're in a section, you can refer back to it.
![]() When preparing a game, remember to think about...
So, you've been asked to run a game. Which game will you run? The first thing to consider is the dynamic of the young people - is it cubs at the beginning of a night? Or is it scouts at the end of camp? Here are a few things to consider:
When explaining a game, remember to think about...
Now you've chosen your game and made the game area safe, you'll need to explain the game to everyone else. Remember though, you may be explaining it to a wide range of people (from other leaders, to very young beaver scouts!) Here are a few things to remember and consider:
When you lead a game, remember to think about...
Finally, planning done; risks managed and game explained. Now it's time to play the game. As the young leader running the game, and in charge of a number of young people, it's a big responsibility. Here are a few points to consider when leading the game:
Practice makes perfect. Not magic.
Realistically, you’re never going to get the perfect game for everyone. Often, you’ll be told just a few seconds before you’re required to run the game. Therefore, you’re never going to remember every point about running a game from the observation sheet.
The best games often come from the more experienced leaders. This is because they’ve done it time and time again and so know what works and what doesn’t. This is why it’s important to have faith in yourself and take the opportunity to run a game. The more games you run, the better you get, no magic formula, no amazing tricks. Just practice. At the end of the session, check you have:
| Session objectives: Check you:
Anyone. Anytime. Anywhere.
There are many many types of games, each one can be used at a different time. Here are 4 categories of games grouped by their type:
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