Creative Icebreaker Games to Kickoff Family Reunions
TL, DR
Reunions are all about new beginnings, new beginnings that are often nostalgic. Below are ten fun and creative icebreaker ideas that will surely create a near-perfect tone for the group. Select games that are more interactive and would help each other get into the talking mode.
You can go for games such as Memory Lane Match-Up and Family Bingo, just to name but a few, to help start conversations. You can try Guess the Baby game, where participants try to recognize babies who are now all grown up.
Some of the perfect game examples that involve sharing interesting information would be such games as Two Truths and a Lie and Family Trivia. For active fun, there can be a Scavenger Hunt or a more creative and catchy Musical Chair.
For more interaction among the participants, get them together to build a Family Tree Puzzle or write a funny story in pass the story game. Conclude the day with fun by playing Guess which celebrity with the game Who am I?
All these activities are suitable for any age and ensure people, especially the participants, have fun and make memories that they will cherish.
Creative Icebreaker Games to Kickoff Family Reunions
Family reunions are events where families with members of different ages gather in order to renew relations clouded with joy, love or simply nostalgia.
However, when families have not met in a long time, be it months or even years, it can be difficult to initiate the conversation regardless of how much you have to share with your loved ones.
Ice-breaking games are useful for ensuring that everyone is now comfortable and the tone for the rest of the day is laid down.
10 Creative Icebreaker Games
Here are 10 engaging and thoughtful games for this holiday season to get everyone involved and laughing from the start:
1. Memory Lane Match-Up
Memory lane match-up is a simple yet engaging game that involves only two things: Index cards, and pens. All you need to do is collect funny and engaging information about other family members before the reunion.
Make one fact per index card. During the entire event, the cards and facts should be distributed on a raffle basis, and the next step will be to identify who the facts belong to.
For instance, “Who never liked to have milk but did it just to not get scolded in the morning?” or “Which of the siblings injured their arm while skateboarding while the parents were away?” or “Which of the learners got into a blind date and eventually married the date?”
Manage to collect facts that are non-offensive and a way to cherish the conversation. This game fosters the discovery of family history while helping everyone get better acquainted in the form of play.
2. Family Bingo
The family bingo is also like the memory lane match-up but in a different way. Everyone needs to write down something about themselves on a bingo card and mix all the cards in a bucket.
Everyone picks up one card and tries to guess which card belongs to whom. Here, you and your family members can enter any information that has not been shared with the family yet. It can be anything from future plans to past flops.
This game brings a wave of joy as everyone gets to know what their family members are up to, and it can be the best way to bring any surprise news to the family. It is an old game with a few modifications in a personal touch that sees the participants engage and explore.
It might not be a very fun game, but it is a way to get everyone comfortable and engaging through the conversation and build grounds for a more fun part of the reunion.
3. Guess the Baby
If you have more than one family gathering up for the reunion or all your siblings have got married and have their own families now, this will be an interesting game to get to know everyone.
All you need are the baby photos of attendees, a bulletin board, and sticky notes. You can also just let the audience come with their baby pictures ready to be used during the game. Place all the photos on a bulletin board and number them so that they each have a number.
Organise the sticky notes and pose the participants a question about who they think each of the babies is. This is a game, so let people make their choices, and then you can tell them the right answers. This way, the new members of the family get to get along in a fun way.
They might be surprised to see what their partner or friend looked like as a baby. It is a good way to feel nostalgic and bring back happy memories from the past.
4. Two Truths and a Lie: Family Edition
It’s a classic game where everyone tells two truths and one lie about themselves. The other members unanimously have to determine which of the said statements is the lie. For instance, Aunt Mary might say, “I have met a superstar, I have taken a leap of faith, and I do not like chocolates”, and all the nephews and nieces get to guess which one is the lie.
It is humorous because family members get to know unknown facts about one another and also get to know how creatively they can shape a lie about their personality. This game is all about simplicity of play, no need for props, and a conversation opener.
5. Scavenger Hunt
You might have been to many scavenger hunts, but this time, it was with the family gang. All you need for this hunt is a list of items or clues. Make up a scavenger hunt based on your family or the reunion’s locale.
These may include ‘Find someone wearing blue’ up to ‘There is a family heirloom in the room’. More people require creating subgroups or teams in which participants engage in the competition to make it more exciting and relevant.
This game is energetic, dynamic, fun, and engaging for children and adults, and best of all, it makes everyone navigate through the space and come into contact with each other.
6. Family Trivia
Make up family trivia questions that are in the form of questions, for example, ‘In the year 1965, which family member was born?’ and ‘Who hosted the first family reunion in the family?’
Organize small team competitions and puzzles in order for the members to determine who amongst them knows the family best. It is a fun, informative game and a great way to start the reunion by getting to know more about the family history and events.
It can be a good game if you have elderly people in the house whose stories you can take for these questions.
7. Who Am I?
It’s another guessing game, but make it a fun family edition. Take sticky notes and label them with the names of popular historical personalities, movie characters, or even relatives. Since every participant must be aware of the two categories, stick one on each participant’s forehead so that the other contender cannot see it.
The objective is to know who they are while using only questions which can be answered with yes or no. For instance, “Do I Exist?” or “Are I from a movie?” It is a fun, quick game and always ensures that you have a good laugh.
8. Family Tree Puzzle
Take a printed family tree in a big size and cut it into pieces to create a large pedigree chart, which they rip into puzzle pieces and distribute among participants. The objective of this game is to reconstruct the tree by coming together and fitting all the pieces appropriately.
This activity also serves as a chance to pass history regarding their lineage to the young members of the family. It is quite an intimate and cooperative approach, which gives extra positive meaning to the relationship within families. In terms of helping other family members to fit the puzzle, everyone ends up interacting with each other.
9. Musical Chairs: Generations Edition
If you want to bring out the kid inside you, play musical chairs with your family and enjoy.
Circularly design the chairs (reducing the number of chairs by one as the number of players). The second activity is to continue playing the chosen music, and after it is over, they have to sit on a chair.
The person that is left standing has to go out, and one chair is tipped over for the next round. A twist here could be achieved by placing related individuals of different generations together and formally assigning them to be team members. It is a classic game which joins the best of the past with the cheerful events of the present.
10. Pass the Story
One of the most hilarious games of all time is the pass-the-story game. You just need a piece of paper and a pen for it. Select any first line of your choice, for example: “One day we, the family, thought it was about time that we should embark on a road trip.” after each line, pass around the pen and paper to the next member for the next sentence.
In such games, everyone unleashes their inner storyteller and creative writer and ends up creating the most hilarious family story. By the end of this project, you will have a funny and innovative story to share with your family. This game guarantees unlimited laughter and relaxation in the environment.
Final Thoughts
If you think all your reunions will start with a bang, you are wrong to assume. These icebreaker games might not be really energetic, but they are the best way to get everyone in the room to start talking. These activities end up releasing all the tension in the room and making each other comfortable.
And once everyone starts to match the pace, bring in the energetic games. In this way, the actual games of the night won’t end up being boring and dull.
A bonus tip is to get the fighting members of the family more involved in these activities, hoping that conversations might resolve past issues and that this festival becomes their beacon of revival.