Toddler Party Ideas at Birthday in a Box

Simon Says

Basic Rules:

Choose a leader to be "Simon" for the first round.
Have the leader call out a series of commands; some should start with "Simon Says…" and some shouldn't.
Children who fail to complete a task in which Simon did say "Simon says" first and children who complete a task when Simon didn't say "Simon says" are out for the rest of the round.
The winner is the last person who follows all of Simon's directions correctly, and this child becomes Simon for the next round.
If all of the remaining players get "out" at the same time, they should all stay "in" until only one player remains and is named the winner.

Detailed Explanation:

Choose a child to be the leader for the first round; or, if your guests are younger, have an adult be the leader throughout the game. The leader will be "Simon," and the other players must do whatever Simon says.

To start the game, the leader should call out a series of commands, such as "Simon says…touch your nose!" or "Simon says…hop on one foot!" The children must complete every task in which the leader says "Simon says…" first. Randomly, the leader should call out a task without first saying "Simon says," and all children who complete that task by mistake will be out for the rest of the round.

Here is a sample dialogue of what the leader could say, along with how the children should react:

"Simon says…tap your head!" — The children should do as directed.
"Simon says… touch your left foot with your right hand!" — The children should do as directed.
"Hop up and down!" — The children should do nothing.
"Simon says… hop up and down!"— The children should hop up and down.

Children are out when they:

complete a task that Simon said without first saying "Simon says," or,
don't complete a task when Simon did say "Simon says" first.

Play until there is only one player left; that player is the winner and the leader for the next round!

Theme Party Modifications:

If you're throwing a themed party, you can change the leader's name from "Simon" to a character from your chosen theme. For example, you could call the game "Cinderella Says" or "Batman Says."