Silent Animal Circle

This game gets difficult with more than 20 people; it's better for groups of 15 or so. Everyone gets in a circle and is given an animal in which they are assigned a hand motion that represents that animal.

Hand Motions (a few examples):

• Elephant- hang one arm down with your other arm wrapped around it, holding your nose (like a trunk)


• Mosquito- with your left hand hold up a peace sign with the inside of your hand facing you, with your right hand poke your index finger pointing forward and place it in the middle of the peace sign in your left hand; now bring your hands to your face like you have a mosquito nose.


• Cow- put your hand at your stomach with your fingers sticking out like an udder.


• Deer- point a finger on each hand upward, placing your hands on top of your head (like single horns)


• Moose- open your hands with fingers spread wide and place hands on your head with thumbs touching the top of your head (moose antlers)

How To Play:
Let's say that 12 people are playing this game. They are all in a circle. The Elephant is in the 12 o'clock position of the circle and is the leader. Then in the 11 o'clock position the mosquito then whatever order you like. The animal is always in the same position- as people move, they assume the animal in that particular seat or place in the circle. The object is to get to be the elephant. As people mess up in this game, they have to move back to the one o'clock position and work their way up again as others mess up.

The elephant starts the game by doing his own signal then another animal's signal, such as the cow. The cow must then do his own signal and another animal's signal immediately. A certain rhythm or speed is set by the elephant (by how fast he or she does the signals). Everyone must keep that rhythm- no hesitations. If an individual pauses, forgets to do their signal, or messes up the signal in any way, then he or she must go back to the one o'clock position, and everyone below the seat they were sitting in moves up and assumes their new positions.

Also see King Elephant (Click Here).