How to Play Pass the Parcel

Musical pass the parcel #1

Prepare your parcel. Place a gift at the center of the parcel. Use a small box if you want an even shape or to make it look larger than it is. Wrap as many layers as players, with some to spare in case more players turn up. The parcel should be large enough for at least a 5 minute game, so add more layers even when you have only a few players; it just means they get more turns.

Begin the game.

Sit in a circle. All the players should be seated comfortably and close enough to the person each side of them that they can pass the parcel quickly.

Select the music-keeper. This person will be responsible for turning the music on and off. It should be someone who is able to keep an eye on the players and stop the music in a fair way that allows everyone a turn at unwrapping. It is a little tricky because the music-keeper must be able to both see the players but at the same time, players should not be able to see the movements of the music-keeper getting ready to stop the music.

Stop the music. The music-keeper plays the music and stops it when least expected. The player holding the parcel unwraps a layer. If the parcel was midway in the air between exchanges, the parcel goes to the player it was being passed to.

Restart after each layer is unwrapped. The music-keeper starts the music again. This continues until all the layers have been removed.

Continue playing until the last layer is unwrapped. The player who unwraps the last layer keeps the item.

Musical pass the parcel # 2

Prepare the parcel. This is the part that varies from method one. Instead of placing a gift at the centre of the parcel alone, also place a smaller gift on every layer of the parcel. This is the best way of preparing the parcel for children ages 3 - 8, as then each child receives a prize no matter who wins the prize wrapped in the middle of the parcel.

Begin the game.

Sit in a circle. All the players should be seated comfortably and close enough to the person each side of them that they can pass the parcel quickly.

Select the music-keeper. This person will be responsible for turning the music on and off. It should be someone who is able to keep an eye on the players and stop the music in a fair way that allows everyone a turn at unwrapping. It is a little tricky because the music-keeper must be able to both see the players but at the same time, players should not be able to see the movements of the music-keeper getting ready to stop the music.

Stop the music. The music-keeper plays the music and stops it when least expected. The player holding the parcel unwraps a layer. If the parcel was midway in the air between exchanges, the parcel goes to the player it was being passed to.

Restart after each layer is unwrapped. The music-keeper starts the music again. This continues until all the layers have been removed.

Continue playing until the last layer is unwrapped. The player who unwraps the last layer keeps the item.

Descriptive pass the parcel

Place a gift at the centre of the parcel. Only this time, you have extra work to do. Instead of a gift on each layer, you leave a label. The label should state "For the person who...". Add reasons such as: "is wearing green", "has a pink ribbon", "likes penguins", "got an A in math this week" etc. The labels should be more descriptive the better you know the children, and less descriptive for parties where you aren't very familiar with the children. Colors, hairstyles, types of clothing and shoes are always a safe bet. Read "Tips" for how to make this more fun for adults.

Begin the game. This version does not require music. Rather, each player reads out the labels and everyone in the group has to guess who the parcel is meant for. The person who made the parcel should act as the umpire if there is any disagreement. Everyone should still sit in a circle; it makes seeing each other a lot easier. If it's for adults, everyone can be seated on couches and chairs in a sort-of circular way around the room.

Continue reading out descriptions and choosing unwrappers until all the layers have been unwrapped. The last unwrap is the winner; sometimes it can be nice to make sure that this goes to a particular person, such as the birthday girl/boy or the kid who never wins anything.

Hot potato pass the parcel

Put a small shareable gift in a paper bag. Wrap many extra layers over it, writing a silly activity for the player to perform on every layer outside the first one, up until the second last. An activity example: Jump on one foot while clapping your hands over your head and sing the alphabet backwards. That's a good one for older children and adults; don't make the activities too difficult for young children or they'll lose interest. Make enough layers and activities for at least two per person. A bag of candies, balloons, plastic toys, etc. makes a good shareable choice.

Sing hot potato. Pass the parcel around the circle while singing it, passing it as fast as possible.

Perform the activity. When the song ends, the player holding the parcel removes a layer and does the activity written underneath.

Continue until the last layer. The shared prize should be shared around by the last person to unwrap.