Back to School Youth Group Game – Controlled Chaos
Back to School Game: Controlled Chaos
Topic: How to Manage Change & Stress
Bible: Read Joshua 1:9; Philippians 4:16-18
Back to school time means a lot of change and stress for preteens.
Remember back to your first day of 4th, 5th or 6th grade – walking in and seeing friends you haven’t seen all summer.
Some of them grew six inches; some of them made new friends and now ignore you.
The first few days you’re being told about upcoming homework, schedules and locker combinations.
You’re being introduced to your homeroom teacher, a math teacher, and a social studies teacher among others.
You head into gym class, and now you have to change in and out of gym clothes. Yikes!
During back to school time, preteens can feel overwhelmed and stressed out.
That’s why it’s important for us to help them go to God for strength and understanding.
Preteens need to know they are not alone. God is always with them.
Here is fun and crazy game to help them start to break down some of the things they are dealing with.
Along with looking at what God has to say to about dealing with all thischange.
Game: Controlled Chaos
Supplies:
1. 3 round trashcans – each one a different color or marked with different colors.
2. Small beach balls or large balloons (a lot of them).
3. Pool noodles or wrapping paper tubes: one for every player.
Directions:
Note: The goal of this game is to create “controlled chaos” and confuse students.
Divide preteens into 3 groups.
Each group will be a different color based on the color of the trashcans.
Spread out your trashcans in a large triangle.
Give each student a pool noodle.
Lay out balloons or beach balls all around the trashcans.
On go, teams will try and get a balloon or beach ball into any of the other teams trashcans.
If they succeed, one player from that team will immediately join the team who just scored on them.
Continue this for 2-3 minutes.
At the 2-3 minute mark yell out change # 1 and rotate trashcan triangle to the left one time.
Change #1: You can only score in the can on the right of your team’s trashcan. If you succeed, your team gets one of their players. If you score in the wrong trashcan, you loose a player onyour team.
Continue playing for another 2-3 minutes.
At the next 2-3 minute mark, yell out change #2 and rotate trashcan triangle to the left one time.
Change #2: Only score in the can on your right. If you succeed, your team gets one of their players. If you score in the wrong trashcan, you loose a player onyour team.
Continue playing for another 2-3 minutes.
At 2-3 minute mark, yell out change #3 and rotate trashcan triangle to the left one time.
Change #3: Only boys can score to the right and girls to the left of their team color. If you succeed, your team gets one of their players. If you score in the wrong trashcan, you loose a player onyour team.
Continue playing for another 2-3 minutes.
At 2-3 minute mark yell out final change: Rotate trash can triangle back to the original position and back to the original rules
If a team runs out of players feel free to draft some from a more powerful team to keep game going.
Feel free to make up any other rule changes. The object of the game is dealing with a lot of changes.
Teach – How to Manage Change & Stress
Say:
Great game guys and girls! Hopefully things didn’t get to confusing and crazy.
Everything seemed to be changing so quickly that I wasn’t sure if you all would be able to finish the game.
I thought maybe you would just give up.
We sometimes want to give up when experiencing a lot of stress and change.
This can happen when we go back to school after a long summer break, cant it?
As preteens you are now entering a crazy time of life.
You experience a lot of change and stress, especially at school.
You are not little kids anymore and you’re not quite teenagers.
Things at school are changing so fast for you; it can make you just want to give up and stop trying.
Ask:
● Who was ready to just give up in the game because of all the rules changing?
● Who had a hard time understanding the rule changes?
● How did you deal with everything changing?
● What some of the changes you are experiencing heading back to school?
Ask:
● Has it been hard to deal with all those changes?
● How are you dealing with the changes?
● Have you ever felt like no one understands?
● When you begin to feel this way where do you turn to?
Say:
Thanks for all your honesty.
Going back to school at this stage of your life can be one of the hardest times of your school life.
However,you are not alone!
Look around this classroom. Everyone has dealt with or is dealing with the same changes.
Also, there is nothing you are dealing with that God does not know about and does not want to help you with.
When you experience a lot of change and stress, you can turn to God for help.
Lets see what he has to say about dealing with change.
Read Joshua 1:9:
“Haven’t I commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Don’t be afraid. Don’t be dismayed, for Yahweh your Godis with you wherever you go.”
Say:
When you are in the middle of dealing with all the crazy changes and stuff going on when you head back to school. Know that you are never alone, God is always there, there is nothing he is afraid of or to tired of to help you with. Have courage to push through the craziness and not give up because God is always with you.
Read Philippians 4:16-18:
“In nothing be anxious, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus.”
Say:
Even here God tells not to be anxious but to pray to Him and let Him know how you are feeling.
He will give you peace, which is greater than anything you can imagine.
No matter how crazy things are or how much is changing and you are freaking out and ready to give up
Ask:
● Now that you know all this how does it make you feel heading back to school?
Have your preteens get back into their original teams.
Ask if any of them want to share something they are dealing with specifically at school and pray students.
Have a leader help each group pray for one another.