Surprise Package

This is one of the party games that requires some preparation. But it's fun and well worth the effort.

For the game, you'll need boxes of various sizes. Before the activity, place a grand prize in the smallest box. Then wrap it with gold gift wrap. Label it "The Grand Prize." Place the gold box inside a larger one.

Then repeat the process until all the boxes have a gift inside, are wrapped and set inside one another. For gifts, it's a good idea to choose generic items that either boys or girls will enjoy. (You can give out small toys, candy, and so on.) You're going to end up with a large box containing smaller boxes (with prizes) inside of it.

The game starts as the kids sit in a circle and pass (or push) the box around while you play music in the background. When you stop the music, the person holding the box opens it and leaves the circle with the gift. (Don't tell the children that there are gifts inside the box.)

The game continues in this manner: you start and stop the music and players leave the circle with their gifts. Soon there will be only 2 children left. The player who opens second-to-last box, takes the gift, and passes the gold box to the remaining child. That kid is the winner, and he or she gets to keep the grand prize!

"Surprise Package" Variations:

*If you have a theme party, have prizes related to the theme. For example, for a pirate party, have eye patches, pirate coloring books, stickers, bandannas, and so forth.

*You can get the kids to close their eyes while they pass the box. They can open their eyes when the music stops to see who got the prize. This can add an extra surprise to the activity.