Follow the Leader

For Older Children

1. Have all but one of the children sit in a circle on the floor.


2. Have the remaining player sit in the center of the circle and close his or her eyes. (Note: You may use a blindfold to keep the child from peeking, if desired.)


3. The rest of the group or an adult must quietly pick someone to be the leader.


4. The leader will be responsible for leading the rest of the group in a series of actions (e.g. hand clapping, feet stomping, snapping, etc.) after the child in the center of the circle opens his or her eyes.


5. Once a leader has been chosen, the child sitting in the center of the circle may open his or her eyes.


6. The child must then try to guess who the leader is by carefully watching the group and trying to see which child starts each new action.


7. Once the child in the center correctly guesses who the leader is, the round is over.


8. The leader must move to the center of the circle, and a new round begins.


9. Play as many rounds as desired.

1. For very young children, the traditional version of Follow the Leader may be too complicated. As an alternative, have the children line up and follow an adult leader on a course around the house/party area.


2. The leader should tell the children to do as he or she does while they walk.


3. The leader may hop, skip, sing, dance, clap, or add in other movements while leading the children around the party area.