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CHALYMPICS ARE BACK!!!!
What are the CHALYMPICS?
The CHALYMPICS is an 8 day long, 7 event series we partake in every year of Chanukah (we take a break friday night for shabbos!).
Every night, after we light the menorah, instead of opening presents, we set up a game, using inexpensive materials that are easily purchased or that are already lying around the house, and all the kids compete.
Like the real Olympics, we start off with a torch lighting ceremony (CLICK HERE to see how to DIY your own CHALYMPIC torches!), the winners stand on appropriate leveled chairs and receive their award at the end of each night, and of course we end the games with another torch lighting ceremony.
Through out the 8 days, we keep track of the winners on a giant score card and at the end of the CHALYMPICS there is a final champion who wins the ultimate prize…BRAGGING RIGHTS!
Onto the final and most vital piece of all this:
The events and their rules:
These are the 7 events my children will be competing in this year. If some of these games are not suitable for your children, you can watch our videos from years past for some other ideas. You can also come up with your own games that are more appropriate for your family!
*A few things to know:
-All games are based on 5 contestants. Adjust accordingly.
-Games are chosen specifically to avoid judges having to “choose” winners. This keeps emotions a little more at bay. We find that having to choose, who built the “best” menorah can cause more problems than ‘who replicated the menorah the fastest or who got the most blind tastes correct”. If you do choose to incorporate your own games into the CHALYMPICS (which I do highly suggest because no one knows your family better than you!), I would suggest you keep this aspect of the games in mind.
NEW THIS YEAR: BONUS CHALLENGES
Due to having a wider age range of children competing in this years CHALYMPICS we have added a BONUS CHALLENGE ELEMENT. Players ages 9 and up will be required to do a few minor extra steps in certain challenges to level the playing field.
BONUS CHALLENGES will be italicized and in this color!
NOW, LET THE GAMES BEGIN!!!!!
OPENING CEREMONIES + LIVE MEMORY
WHAT YOU WILL NEED:
The homemade torches
12 sets of identical shekel store prizes. (2 key chains, 2 silly patty’s…)
24 aluminum 9×13 pans (or any size, you just want to make sure that the prices fit fully underneath them)
For the opening ceremony, play Olympic music, and have the contestants line up in age order. Light the oldest ones torch and then he lights the persons next to him. Continue until all torches are lit and then take a ceremonious walk around the living room.
(Blow out torches and save for closing ceremony)
HOW TO PLAY:
Send the children out of the room.
Arrange the prizes on a large space on the floor, separating identical prizes, in a grid like pattern.
Cover each prize with an aluminum pan.
Call the children back into the room.
Now play memory….
Give each a child a chance to uncover two prizes. If the prizes are not the same, replace the pan over the prize and it is the next Childs turn.
When someone uncovers identical prizes they keep it.
Play until all prizes have been accounted for.
We like to end this game with a prize swap. No one can keep two prizes and they must trade. Sometimes they need our help to facilitate this but usually it goes smoothly since they are all equally small, 1 shekel (=prizes!
COOKING RELAY: Lasagna Roll Ups
6 boiled lasagna noodles,
12-14 tbsp ricotta cheese,
1&1/4 cup tomato sauce,
1 &1/2 cup shredded cheese,
salt, pepper,
small rectangle tin,
plastic cutting board,
2 spoons
Set up a cutting board in front of each station where player will stand.
Add all the tools and ingredients around the cutting board.
Demonstrate how to make one lasagna roll up, then tell each player they must make 6, place then in the tin, add a little more sauce and cheese on too and the first player to scream done wins!
*For younger players: reduce the amount to 4
**Of course be clear that roll up must in fact be rolled in a decent manner.
GO FISH
bucket or bowl,
large kitchen spoons (must have the same spoon for all players),
blindfold
TOOLS (for everyone):
200 cotton balls
Place players around a large table.
In front of each player place a bucket or basket and hand them a spoon. Blindfold them.
Pour cotton balls onto the table.
Put 2 min on the clock, blast some music and tell them to collect as many cotton balls with their spoons as possible and place them in their bucket.
At the end of the two min when the buzzer goes off, count the cotton balls in everyone’s basket. The player with the most cotton balls, is the winner.
COOKIE STACKING RELAY
Lots of cookies
This is a timed event!
Send children out of the room for 5 minutes.
Create a tower, or series of towers using cookies.
Bring out children and give them each 3 minutes to replicate the tower you’ve built.
The child that does it the fastest, or gets farthest along in the given time is the winner.
LEANING TOWER OF GELT
30 Chanukah gelts
Players are each given a stack of gelt.
Set 2 min on the timer.
Each player has to build the highest stack possible.
Strategy: players can decide when to stop building and wait out the clock. That is their choice! Or they can risk it and keep building! All up to them!
CONNECT 4
16 pieces of white bread,
peanut butter,
6/7 ping pong or bouncy balls,
painters tape
Create a 4×4 grid with painters tape.
Each square should be large enough to hold a slice of bread.
Spread each piece of bread with peanut butter and place in the grid.
Have players stand at the other end of the table and try to bounce the ping pong ball on to the bread so that it sticks to the slice.
When a player gets 4 balls to stick to 4 slices in a straight line or diagonal line their turn is iver.
The player to do this in the least amount of turns is the winner!
THE BLIND TASTE TEST + CLOSING CEREMONY
Object of the game: To identify as many foods as possible by simply tasting them while blindfolded.
blindfold, or scarf
a cookie sheet (to contain any spills)
20 different foods that can fit into small bowls or cups
20 small bowls or cups
a kitchen towel
Send the kids out of the kitchen.
Place the cups on the cookie sheet and fill each one with as different edible product. (can be food, drink, snack, condiment, spice…)
Place a kitchen towel over the filled bowls so that no one can see whats underneath.
Call each child one at a time into the kitchen.
Cover their eyes with the blind and remove the kitchen towel.
Help them guide their hand into each bowl one at a time.
They must taste each item and identify it.
Only first answers are accepted to remind them to take their time.
The child that guesses the most right is the winner.
Examples of tasters: Ketchup, Mayo, Honey, Croutons, Salt, Chopped hard boiled egg, Chocolate chips, Captain crunch, Cut up string cheese, Butter, Cucumbers, Red sufganiya jelly, Lemon wedges, Pickles, Plain yogurt, Franks hot sauce, Soda, Peanut butter, Craisins, Pesto, Salad dressing…
CLOSING CEREMONY
Tally up all the medals on the scoreboard.
The person with the most golds, is the overall winner, the person with the second most is the silver medal winner and so on and so forth.
Repeat the torch lighting ceremony only this time the overall winner goes first!
UNTIL NEXT YEAR, THE END.
Keep up with Chalympics and what's happening at PeasLoveNCarrots!
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