Best Improv Games for Kids, Teens & Adults this Year

Do you remember those Whose Line Is It Anyway improv games? Have you ever been on an improv show? Well, improv games find their roots in theater and actors play them by some rules. We will talk about them a bit later. What we want to discuss today are some of the best improv games for kids, teens, and adults. Besides keeping everyone involved in a deep state of fun, improv games develop wit and communication like no others. They have both an entertaining and educational value, and make excellent choices for group play.

Why Are Improv Games for Kids, Teens, And Adults Useful?

We’ve all experienced the sometimes awkward process of getting to know new people, especially in group settings. More often than not, improv games are a great way to allow people to get to know one another in a fun fashionImprov games are essentially games that are designed to improve on an individual’s improv acting skills in the theater. These games also make great icebreakers and are just plain fun for anybody to play.

Children love the interactive rules of improv games and are much more likely to have fun because of the unpredictable nature of these games. Since there is a great variety of games, kids are not the only ones who can participate. Corporate outings and company team-building exercises are also implementing improv games to encourage unity and cohesion among employees.

Improv Games for kids and teens are also some of the best activities you can organize indoors as a parent. No matter whether you stay inside the house to play while following the lockdown rules or you moved in the back yard for some cool outdoor challenges, the idea is that improv games benefit the young minds in more ways than one.

Take a look at these next thirteen fun, energetic, and creative improv games for kids, teens, and adults that can be used in a variety of settings.

13 Best Improv Games for Kids, Teens, and Adults

Game #1:

Imitation

This first game is simple and fun for any group, kids, or adults. The game starts with everyone forming a circle. Someone will start by performing some kind of action, small or big, such as snapping or a dance move. The player can also opt to make a sound of some sort like a dog barking or whistling a short tune. The goofier the better. The next person in the circle will then do their best to imitate that sound or action and the next person will imitate that person and so on and so forth. The game is similar to the telephone. You might think it should be simple to imitate a sound or action, but as more people attempt it, the more distorted and amusing it becomes. It is one of the best and funniest things to do indoors on a rainy afternoon with your kids and their friends.

Game #2:

Ten Strikes and You’re Out!

This next game can be played by any age group and in small or large groups. Each individual holds up each of their fingers, representing the number of “strikes” they get before they are out. One at a time, each person will state something that is true about themselves but is hopefully not true about the other group members. Do not mistake this for a “Never Have I Ever Game,” or a “Truth or Dare” game, however. For example, I could state that I own a dog. Whoever can say “I too own a dog” is safe. But whoever does not own a dog has to put a finger down. When someone runs out of fingers, they are out. The last person to have a finger up wins. The goal is to say something that is true of you but NOT true about others, so the more unique you can make it, the better. This game encourages players to pay attention to and learn about the other group members so they can plan their turn strategically.

Game # 3: 

Rocks Ahead!

This game requires some props, really anything that can be placed on the ground as an obstacle such as a shoe, pillow, toys, chairs, etc. One person is picked as the Captain who is at the wheel of the “ship” but cannot see anything due to heavy fog (this member is blindfolded). The rest of the group are the mates who are on the lookout for any obstacles that might sink the ship like rocks, reefs, etc. which are represented by the various obstacles placed on the ground throughout the room. The group, using only their words, will do their best to navigate the blindfolded Captain through the obstacles without touching any of them. If so desired, you may allow the “ship” 1 or 2 brushes against an obstacle to making the game a little easier. However, the game is most fun when the captain is left to tend to their duties and each crewmate can only utter one single piece of advice. This is especially noticeable if the team is pretty big. The more cremates, the better the game becomes.

Game #4:

Back to the Future

This game involves 2-4 players who will take a few minutes to improvise the plot for a short scene but will not act it out. Then the audience will decide if they want to see what preceded that scene or what happens after. This game promotes teamwork among the actors and is just plain amusing for the audience. This game works best for a group of friends or family members on a weekend, where some of the participants want to play a society game while others just want to have some fun without the effort. If you’re especially creative or knowledgeable you can try mixing some real history with made-up facts to make things even more interesting for the audience.

Game #5:

Turn and Trust

This next game is great for building trust and teamwork. It is one of the best team building games and activities to try on any occasion. Have the group form a circle with everyone standing really close together. Then instruct the group to make a quarter-turn to the left. Then ask everyone to move in, standing even closer together. Next, ask the whole group to sit down simultaneously. If done properly, each group member will end up sitting on each other’s knees. If you really want to challenge them, instruct them to walk while sitting by telling them which foot to start with. Do be careful, however, that this particular task could end up with some minor injuries. Be responsible and organize this game in some place where the floor is soft enough to prevent any damage that could occur during such a challenge.

Game #6:

Octopus

This next game is simple and makes one of the best improv games for kids or teens. It works well for adults too. The group starts in either a circle or a line with each player holding hands. The group then moves around with an inevitable tangle of people forming. For added fun, have the group then try and untangle themselves. You’ll surely get lots of laughs when partaking in this fun improv game for most ages.

Game #7:

Jabbering Jargon

This improv game is structured around an individual, with audience participation. The individual starts calling out any words he/she wants with the goal of saying as many words as possible that have no association with the previous word. For example, I could say, “baseball, sky, bed, dog, lamp, light bulb” but at the light bulb, I would stop since there is an association between lamp and light bulb. This game encourages creativity and focuses on the individual and vigilance from the group since they will be the ones stopping the individual when an association is made.

Game #8:

Fast-Forward/Rewind

In this game, you will need to pick a “director” and the rest of the group will serve as actors. The actors will act out a scene and at any point, the director can “rewind” or “fast-forward” the scene at which point the actors will adjust their scene accordingly. This is a great game for improving impromptu skills and also forces the actors to work in unison, especially in the “fast-forward” portions of the game. It’s even more fun if you enact strict rules like “you have to replace the word x with the word y after z rewinds”. The game tests the participants’ memory this way while also staying pretty fun and fresh for the entire duration. Overall, a great game for patient and creative people.

Game #9:

Active Audience

This game is played with 1-3 players as the “storytellers” and the rest of the group provides assistance when the storytellers look to the crowd for creative ideas. For example, a storyteller may say, “I like Italian food but my favorite food of all time is…” At this point the audience could yell out “dirty socks” or “beach towel” and the storyteller would continue, “I like Italian food but my favorite food of all time is dirty socks. Dirty socks just really hit the spot when I’m famished.” The story can go for as long as you like. This is a great improv game that encourages the storytellers to tap into their creative side. It also leads to some great jokes that can be referenced for a long time. In some instances, the game could literally continue for hours on end without any breaks. This is the level of fun that we’re talking about when we have such an interactive game as this one.

Game #10:

The Voice

This next game is great for an improv class or just a fun game for anyone to engage in. It can take place on a stage or anywhere there is ample room. The group, minus one, will come up with a scene to act out. One individual will not be acting but will instead be the voice of an “invisible character” whom the rest of the actors will have to incorporate into their scene. The “voice” is a supposed invisible character whom the actors can see but the audience cannot. It’s a great game especially for children because it forces them to use their imagination and creativity to create a compelling story.

Game #11:

Rumor Has It…

This is a great warm-up game for any group. All players sit in a circle. The first person points at an individual and whispers, “Did you hear…?” to the person next to them. That person affirms and adds to the silly rumor. For example, the game might start with a player pointing to the person across from them and whispering to their neighbor, “Did you hear Joe has a reverse aging disorder and is actually over 200 years old?” The neighbor might then gasp dramatically and whisper to their neighbor, “Did you hear Joe has a reverse aging disorder and is actually over 200 years old and is from Mars?” This would continue until the person sitting next to Joe would tell the audience the collective rumors she/he heard about Joe. This game encourages creativity and emphasizes memory recall and is also sure to lead to some fun inside jokes. You can also make your own rules to attempt making the game even more fun. For example, you might force the players to make the following rumor rhyme with the previous one. That in itself adds even more creativity to an already fun and creative game.

Game #12:

In Sync

For this game, you will need to come up with three things that can be easily mimicked with hand gestures. For example, if you picked a king, the sign could be to use your hands to form a crown above your head. If you picked a chicken, the sign could be to bob your head and cluck. Consider this a game of charades or a part of the Fishbowl Game if you like. The mimicking part is the same across the board. You can pick anything, just make sure all the players know the three things agreed upon and what their signs are. At your signal, each player will pick one of the three things and will make the appropriate sign. The game continues until everyone in the group picks the same thing to act out. It is fun to watch who leads the group in which thing to act out and who is stubborn in following!

Game #13:

Group Mime

This last game involves group coordination to mime a group activity. For example, tug-o-war, rowing a boat, peddling a 10 person bike, etc. This game encourages suggestions from the audience and teamwork from the players. If there is no audience then simply ask any one of the players for a suggestion of what to mime. Again, it can last for hours on end given the fact that you and your teammates are young and full of energy.

There you have it, 13 fun improv games. Do you still need more fun game suggestions? Make sure you check out our extensive list of dice games as well!

Best Improv Games for Kids, Teens & Adults: Rules

As we said at the beginning of this article, improv games also come with rules. It doesn’t matter if you choose to play improv warm-up games for a team building session, improv games for teens to keep them busy this summer, or situation based improv games to put on a play or a show, the rules are mostly the same. Inspired by theater practice, they sound like this:

  • Do not deny anything, denial is the worst practice for improv games. You always have to agree with a statement. Moreover, for good improv, you play the game along the lines of YES, AND…
  • Never ask questions with an open end;
  • Always make a statement;
  • Improv games and exercises’ results do not necessarily have to be funny. There are big differences between improv and stand-up comedy, so you should know which is which. If the material in stand-up should be funny, in improv it is not a rule to make people laugh, although we are all used to the comedic takes of improv shows.
  • Mind the partners you wok with in improv, as if you make them look good, you will look good as well;
  • Always tell a story, no matter how short or absurd;
  • It is alright to make mistakes.

Improv Games: Share Your Story!

Have you ever played improv games for kids with your children at home? How about short improv games with your friends who come over in weekends? Do you prefer improv games for team building sessions with your employees an colleagues? Tell us if you ever engaged in such fun activity and how it worked! We’d love to hear from your experiences and examples of fun improv games anyone can play!

Featured Image via Pixabay

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