Studio 5 Contributor Kiersten Blanchard shares ideas for bringing the neighborhood together for an evening of night games that will outshine any other night games around!
Invites
The most important thing is to invite guests early so that they can plan ahead to keep the family out a little later than usual. Plan to pass out invitations no later than the night before. Set the start time for after the sun has set. To really make the glow accessories pop, you can suggest on the invitation that guests wear dark colors. Anything to do with night, lights or glowing makes a great invite. Here are a few ideas to get you started:
Punch a hole in the top corner of the invitation and string a glow bracelet through. Connect it together and you have the perfect way to hang it on your neighbor’s door knob.
Stars are the perfect accessory to a Night Games Party. Print the invite on a moon shape and decorate with stars. (Glitter and glow-in-the-dark star stickers available at Zurchers)
Attach a tiny flashlight (Zurchers – 12 flashlight necklaces/$8.00) to your invite. You could even roll a long and skinny invitation up and put it in the battery compartment.
Games
Each of these games is a new variation of an old favorite. First you’re going to need some glow sticks. Here are a few places to look:
Dollar Stores: Necklaces (2 pk. – $1)
Bracelets (5 pk. – $1)
Michael’s: Bracelets (15 pk. – $1)
Glow-in-the-dark spray paint ($7.49)
Walgreens: Jumbo Cactus Ball ($5.99)
Punch Balls (2/$1)
Oriental Trading Company: www.orientaltrading.com (many options – just search “glow”)
Carnival Source: www.carnivalsource.com/store/c/1677-Glow-In-the-Dark.html (must order $150+)
Glow Tag: Everybody starts out with a glow necklace or glow bracelets. The person who is it simply removes the glow wear, so that he is harder to see. Everybody else must avoid being tagged. The next person tagged is “it” and will remove his own glow wear until he tags somebody else. Make sure you play this in a big open area free of tripping hazards (i.e. sprinkler heads). As glow wear flies by, this game is almost as fun to watch as to play.
Radiant Ring Toss: To make the stake, use a rubber band to attach several glowing bracelets around a BBQ skewer. Then stick it in the ground. Use a glow necklace to mark the line participants must stand behind. Participants toss a necklace or bracelet (much harder) trying to get it to land on the glowing stake. As a variation, you could make a few different stakes, each a different color. The further away the stake, the greater the point value. Keep track of points and award a prize to the winner.
Shining Crab Soccer: Prepare the ball by using a punch balloon or beach ball with some transparency. (Opaque balls will not allow the glow sticks to shine through.) Insert several glowing bracelets into the ball and inflate. Or, you can buy the glowing Jumbo Cactus Ball from Walgreens that lights up when it is bumped. To play, divide the group into two teams and send each team to an opposite side of the field. Mark the goals with cones. (Put a bracelet around each cone so they can be seen.) Players “walk” on all fours (with belly buttons up) like a crab while trying to kick the ball into the opposite team’s goal. The first team to score 10 points wins.
Limbo: The only items needed for this are a glowing bar (like a broom handle painted with glow-in-the-dark paint) and some fun music. Two volunteers must hold the bar while players limbo beneath.
Piñata: No blindfolds are needed when playing piñata in the dark. Start with a piñata and a bat. Add glow-in-the-dark stars or stickers if you want. But, the real fun comes after the piñata is broken. Give kids flashlights to help spot the candy and small bags to capture their finds. (Small, inexpensive flashlights are available at Zurchers or orientaltrading.com)
Most of all, be creative…many of your favorite games can be adapted to glow in the dark! Don’t forget the music, treats, and twinkle lights to show the way to your Glow Light Party Night.
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