How to Play Hanukkah Party Games

There are many popular party games that can be used during Hanukkah to keep guests entertained. Which ones you choose depends on many factors, such as the age of the guests, family traditions and personal preferences. Some games have been played for centuries, while others are new versions of old traditions or pastimes invented to help kids understand the meaning of the holiday.

Things You'll Need

• Bingo cards
• Pens and paper
• Playing cards
• Music
• Chairs
• Dreidel

Instructions

Have Fun with Your Family Playing Hanukkah Games

1. Play Hanukkah anagrams, a very popular party pastime among adults. To play, simply give everybody pen and paper and then give them a word related to the holiday: anything from the word Hanukkah to dreidel or Menorah. Then instruct players to create as many words as possible using only the letters from that specific word. The winner is the person or group with the larger number of words.

2. Play spin the dreidel, where a plastic dreidel is spun to either win or lose chocolate coins. A dreidel, which has four sides with letters representing the words "all," "none," "half," and "put" tell the player if he can take coins from the pot or if he must surrender his own stash. The winner is the person who accumulates the most coins.

3. Play Hanukkah bingo, a holiday variation of traditional bingo. Players must completely fill out a card that consists of 12 to 16 pictures related to Hanukkah celebration. The first player to fill out the card can yell Bingo! and win the game.

4. Play variations of word hunt, charades and other games, but use words and concepts related to the holiday.

5. Play musical chairs using traditional music. You can make the game more challenging my marking some chairs with special questions or Hanukkah items. Players can take any chair as long as they can explain what the item means. If they make a mistake or cannot answer the question posted on the chair, they are eliminated.

Tips & Warnings

• Choose party games that can be played by everybody, no matter their age, with just a few adjustments. If you have both children and adults in the party, you might want to have two separate game areas.

• Provide small tokens or prizes for the winners. Good ideas include plastic dreidels, chocolate coins and other Hanukkah-related items. You can also create small goodie bags that winners can take (without looking at what's inside) instead of accepting a regular chocolate coin as a prize.