SOURCE: /mnt/d/GoogleDrive/Cercetasi/carti-camp-jocuri/Activities and Games Scouts NZ/Cubs Sense Training Games.pdf
CONVERTED: 2025-01-11
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CUBS – Sense Training Games
Sense Training Games
Introduction
These games are from the “Fun and Games for Cubs” book written by Jack Dowling and first printed by The Scout Association
of New Zealand in 1972 and “Fun and Games 2” for all sections, edited by Diana Balham in 1987. The games have been
updated and sorted into 18 categories, with this category being Sense Training Games. The games are listed alphabetically.
If you have a favourite game in this category that is substantially different from any listed, you may wish to forward the
game instructions to the National Cub Leader care of reception@scouts.org.nz to see if it could be added to this document.
Christmas cards
(observation)
Equipment
 Old Christmas or birthday cards – about twice as many as there are Cubs.
Method
 Cut the cards in half, keeping the two halves in separate piles.
 Place one half of the cards around the room on tables, seats, and benches etc.
 Give the Cubs one of the second half of the cards and have them try and find and collect the
other half of the card.
 When the have a match the Cubs are given a second half card,
 At the end of the allotted time the Cub with the most cards wins.
Coin Game
(touch)
Equipment
 A set of coins currently in circulation for each team.
 Pencil and paper for each team.
Method
 Sit the Cubs in teams of three or four.
 The Cubs sit with their hands out behind them and the leader places one coin in a Cub’s hand.
The Cubs feels it carefully and then passes it on to the next Cub in the team who then does the
same.
 The team confer, decide what the coin was and writes the denomination on the paper.
 Continue as time permits or until all the coins have been passed around.
 Check the Cubs lists to see if they got the names of the items correct.
Coloured cards
(observation)
Equipment
 10 or 12 pieces of cardboard, coloured differently on each face. Try for at least 3 colours if you
can.
Method
 Put the Cubs in teams of six or more.
 Place the cards at random on a table. Make sure that some of the colours vary.
 Allow the team to memorise the pattern for 3 minutes.
 Have the team turn their back for a few second while the leader turns two cards over.
 The Cubs turn back and have to point to the cards that have changed.
 Each Cub that gets it correct gets a point for the team.
July 2015 Cubs Sense Training Games.doc

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Dampeners
(hearing)
Equipment
 Two wet sponges or rags
Method
 Two blindfolded Cubs sit on metre apart but facing each other.
 The Pack lines up and creeps forward between the two blindfold Cubs, passing through as quietly
as possible to a haven on the other side.
 The blindfolded Cubs can call out “freeze” at any time, especially if they sense someone passing
between them. All Cubs must then freeze for a count of 5 (the leader counts out loud). Anyone
not freezing is out.
 The blindfolded Cubs then bring the sponges down in front of them and dampen any Cubs
trapped by the freeze. The Cubs arms go up and down in a similar fashion to traffic arms on a
railway crossing.
 Any Cubs ‘dampened’ during the freeze swap with the blindfolded Cubs.
Direction finder
(spatial awareness)
Equipment
 Chalk
Method
 The leader draws a road on the floor, complete with a corner, an intersection and a railway
crossing.
 The Cubs are given 3 minutes to look at the road.
 They are then blindfolded one at a time and placed at the start of the road by a leader.
 The Cubs walk forward remembering to turn at the corner etc.
 When the Cubs walk off the road they are out and the leader marks the spot with their name.
 The winner is the Cub who walks the longest without walking off the road.
First call
(observation)
Equipment
 One blanket for each team
Method
 The teams go to opposite ends of the playing area.
 A Cub chosen by each team is wrapped in a blanket with only the face showing.
 The two Cubs walk slowly towards each other.
 The first one to correctly call out the other’s name gets a point for the team.
Guess who
(observation)
Equipment
 Blanket or screen
Method
 Two leaders hold up a blanket to make a screen.
 One Six or team hold their hands out so the rest of the pack can view them.
 The Six or team go behind the screen and line up in random order. On “Go” one of the Cubs holds
his or her hands above the screen for the pack to try and identify.
 The pack call out who they think it is.
 Then the next Cub holds up his or her hands and so on.
 At the end the leaders says how many identified the hands correctly.
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Hidden object
(observation)
Equipment
 Some small object such as a cotton reel, thimble, flash drive etc.
Method
 Place the object in full view of the Cubs but do so when they are not paying attention. E.g. On a
windowsill or a table etc.
 Explain to the Cubs what you want them to find.
 When they find it, they sit down near the leader and wait.
 When the allotted time is reached ask the first Cub to find the object to point out where it is. If
the Cub is wrong ask the next Cub and so on.
If you can’t do this…
(observation)
Equipment
 Nil
Method
 Stand the Cubs in a circle with the leader as part of the circle.
 The leader explains to the Cubs that they have to do the same as he or she does.
 The leader clears his or her throat and then says “If you can’t do this, you can’t do anything”.
 The leader points to a Cub who then has to do the same including the clearing of the throat.
 If the Cub get’s it correct the leader says so and selects another Cub, telling each if they got it
right or wrong.
 Instead of clearing the throat the leader could sit everyone and then cross one leg over the other
etc.
Kim’s Game
(taste version)
Equipment
 Pencil and paper for each six or team
 10 objects with obvious tastes (e.g. tomato sauce, mild mustard, soy sauce, salt, pepper, onion
sliver, lemon juice, orange juice, chocolate sauce, half a jelly bean, golden syrup etc.
 A table with a cover over the items so the Cubs cannot see them.
 Scarves or blindfolds.
 Lollipop sticks or plastic teaspoons (large quantity)
 Rubbish bag to collect the spoons or lollipop sticks.
Method
 Play as individuals or in teams, all blindfolded. One adult with each team.
 Once blindfolded, give each Cub a taste of one item using a stick or spoon for each Cub.
 Once they have all had a taste of the items, they go to a team corner and write down all the
flavours they tasted.
 The team with the items all written in the correct order gets 5 points, with 3 points if they
identify all the flavours.
Note: Be aware of allergies.
Minefields
(hearing)
Equipment
 Nil
Method
 Divide the pack into two teams. One are ‘submarines’ and the other are ‘mines’.
 The ‘mines’ are scattered around the playing area. They make quiet swishing noises every 10 or
15 seconds.
 The ‘submarines’ are blindfolded and have to sail through the minefield to get to the harbour at
the far end of the playing area.
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 If the ‘submarine’ brushes against a ‘mine’ it is out and leaves the area.
Pelmanism
Equipment
 One pack of playing cards per team of four to six.
Method
 The playing cards are spread out face down in front of the team who are sitting in a circle around
the cards.
 One Cub leans forward and turns over any two cards. If they are the same value the Cub keeps
them and the next cub has a turn.
 If the cards are not a pair they are turned face down again and the Cub returns to his or her
place.
 The skill is to remember where the numbers are and claim them when the Cub next has a turn.
 The Cub with the most pairs at the end of the allotted time wins.
Rummage
(touch)
Equipment
 One shopping bag per team (must be cloth or similar and not see through.
 8 or 10 small items per team (matchbox, toy vehicle, marble, bolt, nut, nail, flashdrive, pecan
nut, walnut, old toothpaste tube, old lipstick tube etc.
Method
 Place a set of the items in each bag and place down one end of the playing area.
 Line the Cubs up in their teams at the other end of the hall.
 The leader calls out the name of an object and a Cub has to run to the bag, feel for the item, take
it back to the team.
 Make sure there are more items in the bag than there are people in the team.
Note: Be aware allergies particularly in respect of nuts.
Sleeping Pirate
(hearing and dexterity)
Equipment
 A set of keys, a chair and blindfold
 A water pistol (or a torch if playing outside)
Method
 The Cubs sit around the walls or the outside of the playing area.
 A Cub is blindfolded and sits on the chair in the middle of the area.
 A set of keys that jangle when moved is placed under the chair.
 Absolute silence is required for this game.
 The leader points to one or more Cubs who have to creep up as quietly as possible, gently pick
up the keys and creep back to their place.
 If the Sleeping Pirate hears or senses anything, he or she can use the water pistol, a torch beam
or just point to the sound. The water jet, torch beam or arm pointing must be focussed and
steady to achieve a hit.
 If a Cub is detected and ‘hit’, he or she is out and the keys are placed back under the chair.
 If the Cub collects the keys and gets back to his or her place undetected he or she then becomes
the ‘Sleeping Pirate’.
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Shapes
(touch)
Equipment
 Cardboard silhouettes of common objects (car, truck, ball, tree, mushroom, square, rectangle,
knife, spoon, arrow, man, woman etc.)
 Blindfolds or scarves.
Method
 Blindfold a team of say three.
 Have them feel the silhouettes and try and remember what they are.
 The team returns to their corner and writes down what they believe the objects were and the
order they were given them.
 3 points for identifying all the objects correctly, 5 points if they are in the right order.
Stamp it out
(spatial awareness)
Equipment
 Balloons and a blindfold
Method
 The team stands facing a wall or out of the playing area.
 A balloon is placed about 5 metres behind them.
 The team turns to see where the balloon is and then turn back.
 The team is blindfolded and then turn, walk to where they think the balloon is and stamp on it to
burst it.
Stranger
(observation)
Method
 The stranger enters the hall while an activity is happening, goes up to the leader and asks for a
fictitious person. On the way out the stranger picks up a bag placed near the door by the leader
earlier.
 After 10 mins the bag is ‘found to be missing’ and the Cubs are asked if they have seen the bag,
did they seen anyone take it, ask them for a description of the stranger, what was said, to whom,
and what did the stranger do?.
Tick tock
(hearing)
Equipment
 A loud ticking alarm clock, a metronome or an old egg timer.
Method
 The Cubs are blindfolded and sit in a circle about 3 metres in diameter.
 Once the Cubs are blindfolded the ticking object is placed near the middle of the playing area
where it can be touched.
 The leader may need to move the object as the game progresses.
 On “Go” the Cubs must quietly move towards the ticking object and touch it.
 Once the ticking object is touched, the Cub removes the blindfold and quietly steps away from it.
 As an alternative the leader could call out the names of three or four Cubs at a time so the space
is not so cluttered with people.
Whispering message
(hearing)
Equipment
 Nil
Method
 Divide the Pack into two or three teams with one adult to each team. Spread the Cubs out so
they are in a line about two metres apart.
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 The Adult whispers a message such as “Chicken and Chips for dinner tonight, bring 50 cents” to
the first Cub in the team
 That Cub then whispers the message to the next Cub. And so on.
 The Adult walks to the end of the line and waits for the message to arrive.
 The Adults announces the message that arrived and compares it to the original message.
 At the end of the game is would be appropriate for the Leader to comment on the importance of
listening very carefully to the message.
 You could play the game again but this time get each Cub to repeat the message back to the Cub
giving it and make sure it is correct, before passing it on to the next Cub. See if there is an
improvement by doing this.
Who’s Missing
(observation)
Equipment
 Nil
Method
 Have all the Cubs march around in a circle about 1 metre apart.
 On the command “eyes shut” the Leader pulls one Cub out of the circle and puts him or her out
of sight.
 Once that is done the Leaders call out “turn inwards and mix up” and the Cubs still with their
eyes shut, turn inwards and take one or two paces forward.
 On the command “eye open” the Cubs open their eyes and try to work out who is missing. The
first one to get it correct wins.
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