Games That Teenagers & Adults Can Play at a Birthday Party

There are several fun games to play at your birthday party.

Birthday parties are a place for everyone to enjoy themselves. Entertaining games are a great way to get all your guests involved and having fun together. White elephant gift exchanges, knowledge games, outdoor games and board games are good social games suitable for every age group and only require a little effort or money to organize.

Gifting Games

Games that involve giving small gifts to your guests are great entertainment. A white elephant gift exchange is an example of a game that is fun for birthday parties. Buy cheap items -- enough for every guest -- at a store, with a few gifts more desirable than others. Great gifts could include warm socks, coffee mugs filled with candy, candle holders, flower vases with silk flowers or hand and feet lotions. You can also make the gifts yourself. Great self-made gifts include cookies, jewelry, photos or towels. Give a number for every guest to determine the order they pick their gift. A guest can either pick an unopened gift or steal a gift already opened. This game is entertaining and suitable for people of all ages.

Knowledge Games

Play knowledge games where each guest answers questions and the winner gets a small gift, like a gift card. You can use this game to test the party goers' knowledge about the birthday boy or girl. Come up with 10 multiple choice questions and write them on a paper. Make copies for every guest and give everyone five to ten minutes to answer the questions. Read all the questions and answers out loud so everyone will hear the correct answers and learn more about the birthday boy or girl. In case there is a tie, write three more questions for the finalists.

Outdoor Games

When the weather allows it, playing games outside is a great option. Scavenger hunts or team Olympics are great examples of outdoor games. For a scavenger hunt, come up with 10 items you can buy for about a dollar. Buy four or five of each of the 10 items, depending on the size of the party group. Hide these items around your yard. Make a list of all 10 items and make an adequate number of copies for each team. Divide the guests into four or five groups and give each group a copy of the list. One person from each group plays at a time and tries to find one item on the list. Once she has recovered an item, she returns inside and the next person takes a turn. Each group must find all 10 items and the winner is the group that finds them first. Give each person in this group a ribbon or a small gift. For team Olympics you can divide your guests into a few groups, or pit the teens against the adults. Come up with three to five outdoor games like throwing darts, football, soccer and volleyball and have your teams compete against one another.

Board Games

There are several great interactive board games that will entertain a large group of people. Games like Taboo!, Pictionary, Cranium, Apples to Apples and games based on TV game shows are good choices. Divide your guests into groups and play either one group against another group or all at the same time depending on the game. Again, give a little gift for the members of the winning group. You can also come up with a funny prize for the worst group, like tooth brushes or pieces of gum.

References

• Santa Lady: White Elephant Gift Exchange
• Board Game Central: Party Games