There comes a time in every home celebration when those gathered need a little mental stimulation — a diversion from food, drink, chocolates and candy — and a chance to interact as a group. For some, that diversion is a long walk, but for others something around the Christmas tree with everyone sitting comfortably is preferred. Party games are perfect for such times, so here are some fun choices to keep the party spirit going.

Santa’s Helpers

You will need party favours, box, wrapping paper, tape and yarn. How to play:

1. To set up, put out two party favours, one box, a sheet of wrapping paper, tape and yarn for each pair.

2. Each team must race to wrap the favours in the box and tie a bow. The catch? Each player must hold one hand behind his or her back, an impediment that makes it necessary for partners to communicate and work together. The first team to finish wins the gift.

Swap or no swap> Gift exchanges where participants don’t know who is giving what. Try these variations:

Variation 1: Have the gifts numbered (one per guest) then ask participants to draw numbers, and the number the person gets is the gift they keep.

Variation 2: Participants place all wrapped gifts in a basket or box.

1. The first person chooses which gift they would like and opens it so that all have a chance to see what it is.

2. The second participant has the option of taking a gift from those remaining in the basket, or taking the first gift away from the first person.

3. The third person then gets their choice of a gift from the basket, or separating participant one or two from their gift. This option should only be done with good friends who have a good sense of humour, and works best when you have all decided on gag gifts.

Left Right Left Foot, Right Fo$>: For children.

The younger the children, the more the fun, as long as they are old enough to have a clear understanding of left and right. An adult is the “caller”. Play have some fun background music during the game. The caller instructs the children which foot to put into the circle and when to take that foot out. Any child who doesn’t follow instructions correctly is called “out”. The last child, or several children remaining, is/are declared to be the winners.

Left Right Gift Exchange: Request that all the guests bring wrapped gifts that would be suitable for any other guest at the party. Then create a story that uses the words “left” and “right” as many times as possible. For example, the story might begin, “We left the party right after the dinner was served—.”

Have each guest select a gift from the pile and sit in a circle together. As the story is read, whenever the word “left” is used, the gift they are holding must be passed to the left. When “right” is used, they must pass the gift to the right. At the end of the story, whatever gift each guest ends up holding is the one they are to ope

Christmas charades: <$>Compose a list of Christmas carols, Christmas movies or Christmas items and let the drama begin. (Note: Prepare these lists ahead of time) Have guests act them out.

Yes and <$>Give each player five pennies. Have the players pair off and engage in conversation with each other. Players must trick their conversation partners into saying either ‘Yes’ or ‘No’. The first of the pair to say ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ is given a penny by his opponent. The players then split up and move to different partners. The first player to get rid of all five of his pennies wins.

Pan tapping: One player is sent out of the room. The remaining players then choose a task they would like this player to perform when he returns (e.g. pick up and open a particular book, remove another player’s shoes, sit on a particular chair). When the outside player returns he is guided towards the task he must perform by one of the players who has been given a pan and a spoon. This player taps faster and louder as the outsider gets closer to the object he needs to use for the task and taps slower and softer as the outsider moves away from it. This continues until the outsider has found the object and performed the task required. It then becomes the pan-tapper’s turn to leave the room while a new task is cho.

Small object hunt:<$> Everyone is sent out of the room except the person whose turn it is to hide a small object (e.g. thimble). That person must then hide it in a place where it can be seen without moving anything. When the players are called back into the room, they are instructed to hunt for the small object without moving or touching anything. The player who finds the small object will be the next one to hide it.

In the frame: Each player takes turns holding an empty picture frame in front of his face, through which he can look at the other players. He must keep his face completely immobile for a period of 60 seconds (except for the odd blink) while the other players make as many silly, distorted sounds and faces as possible to get him to laugh, smile, or move his face. Kudos to the player who can actually last for 60 secs.

Pass the Stocking: Have all players sit in a relatively tight circle. Pick a player to sit in the centre of the circle with closed eyes. Pass stocking from player to player behind their backs. At a time of his choosing, the centre person opens his eyes and the passing stops immediately. The centre person must then guess who has the stocking. If he guesses right he trades places with that player. If he guesses wrong he closes his eyes and the passing begins again.

Odd oven:<$> Each player is given ten cents. A player puts any amount of those coins in one hand, chooses an opponent, holds out his clenched fist to that opponent and asks ‘Odd or Even?’ If the opponent guesses correctly he hands over one of his coins to his challenger. If he guesses incorrectly he is handed a coin by the opponent who just challenged him. These two players then reverse roles, going through the same challenge. Next, the two players split up and seek new opponents. The first player to get rid of all his coins wins.