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Team Building Activities for Kids

Sourabh Gupta
Team building activities are an absolute necessity for kids as they grow up in life. These activities inculcate cooperation, communication, and teamwork in children. Try these games and activities, and help your child to develop into a well-rounded individual.

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Often, in social functions, we see kids fighting over a piece of chocolate or a toy, or making noise and crying. To stop such petty quarrels and behavior, there is a need to bring these kids together, in order to do some constructive activity which will help them understand the positives of cooperation, patience and teamwork.
Constructive activities can be in the form of team games that are more often than not, fun. These activities bring kids together, to share, play, and win in a positive way. They also help children open up, forget their shyness, and improve their communication. These team building activities for children are definitely going to be a success among the little ones.

Team Building Games for Kids
This is one of the funniest activities that kids enjoy. One child is made the leader and all others are told to ape him. Whatever the leader does, has to be copied by the others. It's an extremely fun-filled activity.
Tell each kid to write down three things about themselves - two of them true, and the third a lie.
When they have finished writing, ask each of them to read whatever they have written, one by one. Ask the other kids to guess what they think is true and what is a lie. This game enables the children to get to know each other better.
Make kids form a circle and assign each of them a number. The child with number 1 will start the game by calling out his/her own number, and another number at random, like, 'One, Four.' Now, the kid with number 4 calls out his own number, and another number at random like, 'Four, Nine.'
Let a few rounds pass, and then change the game by adding a new rule. Now, the kids should also clap twice in unison as the numbers are being called out. The game becomes challenging because while clapping, kids have to concentrate on the numbers as well. The aim is to see how many rounds the group can play without getting mixed up with the numbers.
A fun-filled team game, tail the donkey is one of the most favorite games for children's parties. A picture of a donkey, without the tail is put up on the wall. On his turn, every child is blindfolded and turned around on his place.
He is then handed a paper tail with a pin. The challenge is to pin the tail at the right place. It is most hilarious to see the tail being pinned to all the wrong places. The player who pins the tail nearest to the rear of the donkey, wins. The game helps in the development of the mind and senses.
This is another effective activity that builds up creativity and cooperation among kids. Ropes of different lengths - five feet, ten feet, fifteen feet and twenty feet are required.
Tie the ends of each rope forming a circle. Ask an entire group of kids to get inside the circle formed by the rope, without a single body part being outside the circle. Start the game with the twenty feet rope.
Once they have achieved that successfully, ask them to get inside the circle formed by the fifteen foot long rope, and so on, until they get to the smallest circle. As the circles get smaller, it gets increasingly difficult for them to get inside, and they will need to get creative and cooperative to complete the task.
This is one of the oldest and classic team building exercises that requires strength as well as a creative mind. Only a rope is required for this activity. Divide the kids into two groups and have them stand in a line, one behind another, facing the opposite team.
Mark the center of the rope, or tie a ribbon at the center, and give the ends of the rope to the two teams. Also, mark a spot or line on the ground, which the two teams cannot cross. Now, ask the teams to pull on the rope.
The team which crosses the center or the marked line, loses the game. This activity requires kids to think and realize things, such as putting stronger people in the front and back, and weaker people in the middle, so that they can win.
These team activities give kids an opportunity to express themselves and open up to people. The most important thing that they learn is sharing - be it happiness, sadness, victory or loss.
Working in a team will make them aware of things like cooperation and trust, and in a way, make them responsible human beings. They will learn not only how to contribute in a team, but also how to appreciate each other's work.