The best ideas for St. Andrew's Day games for children

Traditionally, at the end of November, we celebrate St. Andrew's Day. The mysterious St. Andrew's Day evening is a time full of magic, fortune-telling, and divination. Despite the growing popularity of Halloween, it's worth maintaining this indigenous folk tradition and introducing it to young children. Discover proven ideas for fortune-telling and St. Andrew's Day games for children!

See also How to make a DIY magic ball lantern?

The most popular St. Andrew's Day games for children

Pouring wax

This is the most well-known and anticipated St. Andrew's Day fortune-telling activity, which evokes a lot of excitement in all children. Before playing, prepare a bowl of water and melted wax – you can use a candle insert, for example. Then, pour some wax into the water. Traditionally, the wax was poured through a keyhole. If you don't have a large key, you can cut one out of cardboard or construction paper. In addition to the fortune-telling, there's an interesting experiment. Children can observe how hot wax changes state in cool water, from liquid to solid. It's time to interpret the shapes. We remove them from the water, illuminate them with a flashlight, and try to read the shapes from the shadows.

Shoe Race

All participants take their shoes. They then alternate placing them one behind the other. The race begins from the farthest point in the apartment towards the door. The first person whose shoe crosses the threshold will be the first to leave the house.

Fortune telling with apple peels

To perform this fortune telling, all you need is an apple, preferably the largest possible, and a peeler. Peel the apple so that the peel is as long as possible. Then, throw it over your left shoulder. Examine the resulting shape and try to guess which letter of the alphabet it resembles. This will be the first letter of your future husband or wife's name.

Mystery bag - Who will I be in the future?

We put objects symbolizing different professions in a bag or box. Children draw one item at a time. The selected item represents the profession they will pursue in the future. An interesting variation of this game is for the children not to reveal the profession they drew immediately, but instead to show it to the rest of the group through puns.

Examples of attributes that may be included in the bag:

• brush/comb - hairdresser
• stethoscope - doctor
• syringe - nurse
• car keys - driver
• microphone - singer
• brush - painter
• pen - writer
• newspaper - journalist
• ruler - architect
• ball - football player

Balloon fortune telling

Preparing balloons with hidden fortunes is a tried-and-true trick for all children's parties. Popping balloons always generates a lot of excitement and delights everyone involved. What can we hide in a balloon? These can be funny names/nicknames for the children that will be used during the party, such as Hermione or Dobby. They can also be the names of a future husband or wife. You can also include funny slogans or predictions about future activities, such as "you'll be darning socks." ;)

St. Andrew's Day games for children - art tasks

Mysterious blots

This is a simple task that can be prepared in just a few minutes. You'll need a blank sheet of paper and a tube of ink or black paint (or any other color). Fold the paper in half, apply a thick layer of paint to one side, and then stamp your design on the other side. Unfold the paper and examine the resulting blob. Just as with pouring wax, everyone tries to interpret what the resulting, mysterious shape reminds them of.

Friendship boats

For this game, we need a bowl of water and walnut shells, which will serve as our little boats. Children float the shells in the water and observe. If any of the boats touch, it means that the owners of those boats are very fond of each other or will live a long-term friendship. Another variation of the game is a boat race. Children blow on their shells to reach the other shore as quickly as possible. The first person to reach shore will receive a pleasant surprise. Before the game begins, children can decorate their boats – paint the shell with markers, glue the inside with modeling clay, or add a sail from a toothpick and colored paper.