Party Games for Kids and Adults Together
A birthday party with cousins, parents and grandparents in the same backyard doesn’t need two separate game plans. These eight games give children and adults ways to play together: sharing an answer, taking different roles or using a shorter course. Pick one active game and one quieter option, then explain how turns and scoring work before you start.
Which game fits your group?
For a seated group, try Family Trivia, Guess the Baby Photo or Would You Rather. For guests who want to move, try the partner relay or scavenger hunt. Cup stacking works around tables; charades needs space for an actor; balloon volleyball needs room on both sides of a string.
For a ready-to-read seated game, use the Would You Rather question pack. It has six newly suggested example questions, a random picker and a button to print the page with the questions.
Pair a younger guest with an older one before announcing a competition. State any adjusted rule, such as a shorter distance or help reading a card, before the first turn. It is easier to agree on the rules now than after someone wins. Rotate partners between games if guests want to.
You do not need equal numbers of children and adults. A teenager can partner with a younger child, two older guests can play together, or one group can have three people. The rules below explain how a trio takes part without getting extra scored attempts. Anyone may pass or watch a round.
Use the ages as starting suggestions, then consider whether guests can follow the instructions. For children under eight who cannot yet read questions or recognize the references, skip unadapted trivia and movie charades. Read simple questions aloud or use animals and familiar actions instead. The kids’ icebreaker games have simpler options; the games and question packs offer other formats.
Eight games to play together
These are suggested rules you can use as written. Allow roughly the time shown for each game. Larger groups may need longer. For a large group, run turns at several tables or play fewer games so everyone gets the same opportunities.
Partner Relay Handicap
Suggested ages: 5+ · Players: 8–30 · Allow: About 10 minutes · Space: Open floor or yard · Supplies: Spoons, small balls and marker cones.
Pair younger and older guests. For example, mark a cone three steps from the start for the younger partner and six steps away for the older partner. Try the distances before playing and agree on them for every pair with the same age arrangement. A shorter course is an adjustment, not a promise that everyone will finish together.
The younger partner carries a ball on a spoon to their cone and back, then hands the spoon and ball to the older partner for the longer leg. Walk the course for this version. If the ball drops, stop, put it back on the spoon and continue from that spot while the timer runs.
Give each team one practice attempt and one timed attempt, with a two-minute limit for the scored attempt. Start the timer when the younger partner lifts the spoon. Stop it when the second partner crosses the start line with the ball. Fastest completed attempt wins; equal times share the win. An unfinished attempt has no finishing time. If none finish, end without a winner and shorten the course for another game.
For a trio, split the older partner’s leg between the two older players at a marked halfway point; keep the total distance unchanged. If the trio has two younger players, split the younger leg instead. Everyone carries the spoon, and the team still gets one scored attempt.
Family Trivia Round Robin
Suggested ages: 6+ · Players: 8–24 · Allow: About 15 minutes · Space: Seated circle or tables · Supplies: A mixed question list, private answer key and scorepad; paper and pencils for teams.
Prepare ten questions, alternating familiar children’s topics with broader knowledge. For example, ask “What animal says moo?” and “How many days are in a week?” Choose references your guests know rather than assuming every child watches the same shows. Keep the answers on a separate sheet that only the host sees.
Every pair or trio answers every question. Read it aloud, give teams 30 seconds to confer, then ask them to write one answer without calling it out. A partner can write for a child. Let the youngest player suggest an answer first; older partners can discuss it before submitting.
Reveal answers only after all teams have submitted or time is up. Award one point for a correct answer, zero for a wrong or missing answer, and no extra points for speed. Finish after ten questions. Most points wins; tied teams share the win. A trio submits the same one answer as a pair.
Silent Charades Teams
Suggested ages: 6+ · Players: 8–24 · Allow: About 15 minutes, longer with many teams · Space: Open room · Supplies: Prompt cards and timer.
Make two to four mixed-age teams so each has a child and an older guest where possible. Choose visual prompts such as a cat stretching, brushing your teeth or a cook stirring soup. A familiar movie character can work if every team knows it. Only the actor sees the card; the host may whisper or show a picture of the prompt to a nonreader.
Each team gets two turns, one with a younger actor and one with an older actor. The actor uses gestures without speaking or making sounds; their own team guesses for up to two minutes. End the turn on a correct guess for one point, or at the time limit for zero. A passed card ends that turn for zero, with no replacement. Other teams do not steal answers.
Stop after every team has had both turns. Most points wins; ties share the win. Uneven team sizes do not change the number of turns. Give guests who did not act first choice of the acting roles if you play another two-turn game.
Balloon Volleyball Seated-Standing
Suggested ages: 5+ · Players: 6–20 · Allow: About 10 minutes · Space: Open room · Supplies: Balloons and a string or rope to divide the sides.
Make two mixed-age sides. Adults sit on the floor or in chairs while children stand; anyone who prefers to sit can do so. Agree on positions before starting rather than changing them after a point. Tap the balloon over the string; a side may tap it several times before returning it.
Play ten rallies. If the balloon touches the floor, the other side gets one point. If it goes outside the agreed playing area, the side that last touched it loses that rally. If it catches on the string or bursts, replay that rally without awarding a point. Stop early if you cannot continue with another balloon.
Alternate which side serves, giving each side five serves in a completed game. Rotate the server after each of that side’s serves, and invite guests who have had fewer taps to take the next return. With an odd number, one side has an extra player; move that player to the other side after five rallies. Finish after ten scored rallies, with a hard stop at ten minutes. In a completed ten-rally game, most points wins and equal scores are a draw. If time runs out or you stop because a balloon bursts, end without a winner; an unfinished rally earns no point.
Guess the Baby Photo
Suggested ages: 6+ · Players: 8–30 · Allow: About 12 minutes · Space: Wall or table space · Supplies: Printed baby photos, tape, numbered answer sheets and pencils.
Ask adult guests for a photo about a week ahead, and check that they want it included. Number the photos without names. Keep the number-to-name key private until everyone has finished. Put a list of participating adults’ names beside the display so children are matching photos to people rather than recalling names unaided.
Pairs and trios write one guess for each photo, with no spoken answers. Adults do not identify their own photo to teammates. Give everyone the same ten minutes, then use about two minutes to reveal the names. Award one point for each correct match and zero for a blank or wrong answer.
For each team, exclude photos belonging to its members. Compare the proportion correct out of the remaining photos, so a trio is not penalized for having fewer eligible photos. For example, six out of eight and three out of four are tied. If any team has no eligible photos left, play without scores. Otherwise the highest proportion wins and ties share the win.
Cup Stack Pairs
Suggested ages: 5+ · Players: 6–20 · Allow: About 10 minutes · Space: A table place per pair · Supplies: Equal sets of six plastic cups and a timer.
Show a six-cup pyramid: three on the bottom, two above and one on top. The child stacks while the older partner hands over cups one at a time, then the child takes the pyramid down into one nested stack. The helper does not place cups in the tower.
Allow one practice and one scored attempt per team. Start the timer when the first cup is touched; stop when all six are nested again. If the tower falls, rebuild it while the timer runs. End an unfinished attempt at two minutes and record it as unfinished rather than assigning a finishing time.
Fastest completed attempt wins; equal times share the win. If nobody finishes, end without a winner and try a smaller tower without scores. In a trio, the third guest hands cups back to the helper; if two children are playing, one builds the pyramid and the other takes it down into a nested stack. The team still gets one scored attempt. Switch roles for a fresh game rather than adding extra attempts to the current score.
Scavenger Hunt Partner Teams
Suggested ages: 5+ · Players: 8–24 · Allow: About 15 minutes · Space: Agreed rooms or yard area · Supplies: An item list and a small bag per pair; pencils if recording finds.
Give every pair or trio the same list of six things to find. Example entries are a red toy, a leaf, a striped cushion, a spoon, something round and a book with an animal on the cover. Include objects the children recognize. Read the list aloud or add pictures for nonreaders.
Set the search boundary before anyone starts. Children spot items; older partners read the list and help with things children cannot reach. Point out large objects and mark them on the sheet rather than carrying them. Record each find and leave shared objects where they are so every team can find them. If teams collect items, set out one matching item per team and explain where to return them afterward. One object counts for only one list entry.
Give all teams ten minutes to search, then five minutes to show or describe their finds and return borrowed items. A missing item earns zero, not an extra search turn. Each confirmed entry earns one point. Most points wins; ties share the win. A trio uses the same six-entry list and time limit, with two children alternating which entry they look for first.
Would You Rather Family Edition
Suggested ages: 5+ · Players: 8–30 · Allow: About 8 minutes · Space: Any room · Supplies: The question pack on this page or a printed question list for the host.
Use the six example questions in the pack, or write choices about familiar things children can imagine. Replace adult-life questions about work or dating. Read each choice aloud and let everyone show one or two fingers at the same time; anyone may pass. The picker can return to earlier questions, so keep track of those you have read and skip repeats. With the printed list, read in order and skip a question if it does not suit your guests.
For each question, invite one child and one older guest to explain their choice in one sentence, then move on. Choose different speakers next time and let them decline. Stop after five different questions even if the votes are evenly split. That allows up to ten short explanations; a larger group will not all have a speaking turn, though everyone can vote. There are no right answers, points, winners or ties to break. Odd numbers need no adjustment because everyone votes together.
Before everyone starts playing
Most simple setups can be prepared in about 10–15 minutes once supplies and questions are ready. Baby photos need advance requests, and writing trivia or prompt cards takes extra time.
- Confirm adult and child RSVP counts, then decide pairs, trios or teams before anyone is asked to pick a partner.
- Check the supplies for the game you chose: equal cup sets, complete prompt cards, enough answer sheets or marked relay courses.
- Explain the adjusted rules, number of turns, ending and tie rule before the first scored attempt.
- Keep trivia answers and the baby-photo key out of players’ view until answers are collected.
- Read cards aloud or use pictures where younger players need help.
- Have a simpler activity ready for anyone who does not want the main game, and decide who will lead it.
- Agree whether guests want a separate 15–20-minute stretch later; do not assume it is necessary.
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An example 45-minute game session
This example includes one movement game and a seated finish. It totals 45 minutes; it is a suggestion, not a recommended attention span. Use a group small enough to complete the chosen turns within each block, or lengthen the session before announcing it.
- 0:00–0:05 · Explain the games and form teams. Show the relay course and let guests try carrying the ball.
- 0:05–0:15 · Play the partner relay. Give every team its practice and scored attempt; run several marked courses together if needed.
- 0:15–0:25 · Take a food and drink break. Put the equipment aside and let guests sit or chat.
- 0:25–0:37 · Guess the baby photos. Allow ten minutes for private guesses and two for the reveal.
- 0:37–0:45 · Finish with Would You Rather. Read five questions from the pack, take votes and invite one child and one older guest per question to give a short explanation if they want to.
If you do not have baby photos, use cup stacking instead and allow two minutes to clear the table afterward. Do not cut the last team’s turn short to meet the schedule: choose fewer games or give everyone a shorter attempt limit before starting.
Food, drinks and breaks between games
A shared menu does not need identical portions or toppings for every guest. Serve a mild base dish with extras alongside it, such as plain sliders with optional toppings. The menu for kids and adults together has other dishes and example quantities. Ask about food needs before deciding what to serve.
For morning gatherings, a coffee station for parents and other adults lets guests get a drink between games. For outdoor play, use the party water-station guide to arrange water, cups and refills. Put drinks somewhere guests can visit during a break rather than on the cup-stacking table.
Plan how you will pack party leftovers before the last game ends. Families driving to or from the gathering can use car games for kids; those are passenger activities, separate from the party rounds.
Questions about playing with mixed ages
What if a child is too young for the main game?
Offer a simpler activity or let them join someone they know without keeping score. Pointing to a Would You Rather choice is different from reading trivia or acting out an unfamiliar movie. Read prompts aloud, use pictures or switch games if the adjustment still does not let the child take part. They can also watch and join the next round.
How do you give adults something to do too?
Give older guests turns of their own, not only helper jobs. They answer trivia with a partner, take an acting turn in charades or carry the second relay leg. Baby photos can start conversations about the people in the room. Ask what guests want to play rather than assuming any game will appeal to every adult.
Can kids and adults play separately for part of the party?
Yes, if guests want that. You might set aside 15–20 minutes for a separate activity, with an adult leading the children’s option. The adult party games guide has formats for the older group. Bring everyone back together for food or a shared closing game if that suits the party.
How long should each game last?
Allow about eight to fifteen minutes for most of these games, and more time for a large group. Tell everyone how many rounds or attempts they will get before starting. If guests want a break, stop and return to the game later rather than stretching it to fill the time.