Balloon Night

Equipment

• Bags of Balloons
• Earth Ball
• Prizes
• Shaving or mock cream
• Supper sherbet or alternatives
• Drinks
• String straws
• Sticky tape
• Pins

Running Sheet

Crowd breakers

Ball and Chain

In this activity everyone is given a balloon and a metre of string. Inflate the balloon and tie it to your ankle. On ‘go’ the aim is to stomp on and burst other peoples balloons while preserving yours. If your balloon bursts you immediately sit out of the game. Winner is last one standing or an unbreakable tie between 2 or 3 people. Fill the floor with inflated loose balloons to add to the confusion and decoration as people arrive.

Teams in a Row

Two teams sit on chairs about 1 ½ to 2 metres apart. On ‘go’ helpers toss in up to twenty balloons that are kept circulating by the teams attempting to hit the balloons over the heads of the opposing team. One point per balloon hit beyond the opposing team.

Earth Ball Games

Beg, borrow, buy or steal an earthball [which is after all just a large hard wearing balloon] and play one or two group games lke all lying in a circle on your backs and rolling the ball across your bodies in a circle around the room as fast as you can.

Food/Drinks

Buy whiz fizz sherbet for everyone and a small quantity of bubble gum for those who want it. Pretty soon they’ll be blowing bubbles.
Always provide water, juice and soft drinks [not weak church cordial from the 1970s].

Faith Shaping Input

The Spirit of God
This is an opportunity to talk about the Spirit of God [an object lesson about the energy contained in an inflated balloon] but moreso about the fruits of the Spirit and some songs and stories of evidence of what happens when God gets ‘on the move’ e.g. Berlin Wall, Nelson Mandela, Jubilee Drop the Debt and Make Poverty History.

Songs:
Blowin’ in the Wind [original Dylan performances on youtube]
‘If Everyone Cared’ Nickelback
“Dear Mr President” P!nk
Scenes from the movie ‘Pay It Forward’
Finish with ‘Yahweh’ U2

Activity
Give groups access to sticky tape and scissors, a drinking straw, line of string, a balloon and challenge them to get the balloon from a set point to a finish line in a race. [they need to inflate and hold the balloon, stick it to the straw threaded onto the string, stretch the string the required distance and let go the balloon. But let them work that out.

It’s a very corny distinction between just letting the balloon go.

More Games

Balloon Shave

The same Teams compete in a Balloon Shaving Comp. Can be played by all members in turn or a selected competitor. One balloon per team stuck to a table edge or suspended stick. Leader covers them all with shaving cream or mock cream in a can. On ‘go’ competitors use a sharp disposable razor to shave as much cream off as they can without bursting the balloon. Burst and your out, be last one going and get all the cream off to win.

Treasure Hunt

Hide various prizes and put clues or jokes or dummy papers in balloons. Inflate them all and set the group free to burst them and find clues [or outright prizes if your group is likely to run and search without the balloons].

Balloon Bulldog

One person is ‘it’ and has a pin. Players line up on one wall and on ‘go’ attempt to run, walk, crawl to the end wall without their balloon being burst. You can add extras with pins as required.

Water Bomb Teams

In summer outdoors water bombs will be included like it or not so you might as well add a team challenge of protecting flags or a free for all fight.