There are several ways to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. Between the food, dressing up, making crafts, and playing games, the holiday can be celebrated with style and spirit. However for kids of all ages, playing games is a great way to celebrate this holiday. While there are plenty of online games and printable activities, some of the most fun can be had by playing these simple homemade games. Keep in mind that each of these games can be structured to fit the ages, interest level, and attention span of the participants. So if you are in charge of your child’s classroom St. Patrick Day celebration, or just want to have some fun at home, here are several St. Patrick’s Day games to play-
Have a treasure hunt-The sky is the limit in how you put this together, but this is a great way to mark the holiday. Let everyone know that if they are clever they will be able to discover the leprechaun’s hidden treasure.
What you will need:
Written clues that guide the treasure seekers
A pot of gold hidden somewhere (we recommend gold foil-covered coins)
Instructions for the games-Simply give the group the first clue and send them on their way. Each clue should lead to the discovery of the next clue, until they find the treasure. You can use rhyming language, code or anything else that will make the game more fun. At the final clue they should find the pot of gold treasure! Special note-A variation of this is to send the group of seekers on a scavenger hunt. Tell them they must gather one of each item on the list in order to find their treasure. This variation is especially good for younger kids who may have difficulty reading or deciphering clues.
Fishing for Shamrocks-This game works best for younger children. You can have a prize attached to each shamrock, have the name of the prize written on each shamrock, or simply give a prize for the most, biggest, or whoever caught the red shamrock.
What you will need:
Several “fishing poles” You can easily make these by tying string onto anything from wooden spoons, to longer sticks. Be sure and gauge the size and ability of whoever will be fishing. On the end of the “fishing line”, be sure and attach a magnet.
Cut out and laminate lots of different sizes and colors of shamrocks. Construction paper or cardstock works best to make the shamrocks.
You will need to put one paper clip on each shamrock.
Instructions for the game-To start the game just spread the shamrocks all over the floor. Have the kids begin trying to fish for the shamrocks. Distribute the prizes how you determined before the game began.
Make a leprechaun trap-This game works best when there are several teams of participants. Remind the team that builds the best trap that they will be rewarded with the leprechaun’s treasure.
What you will need:
Bags full of assorted materials that can be used to make the traps. Keep in mind that the wilder and wackier the materials, the better the game will be. Let your imagination run wild as to what you put in the bags.
A timer
A prize for the best leprechaun trap (You may want to give prizes to all participants, include a prize for wackiest, most creative, smallest, largest etc.)
Instructions for the game-Divide the participants up into teams. Hand out one of the bags to each team. Make sure that the bags are closed so no one gets a peek ahead of time. Explain that they will have only so much time to build the best leprechaun trap. Set the timer and let the fun begin!
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