Maslenitsa games for children and adults

Games for Maslenitsa are not just a way to cheerfully, with a hitch, say “goodbye” to the tired Winter. They contain echoes of the ritual rites of the ancient Slavs, who greeted the Sun around the same turning points between seasons (hence the tradition of baking round, ruddy “suns”) and called upon Spring to visit. And although the past centuries have not left stone unturned from the former meaning of Maslenitsa festivities, and Epiphany tied Cheese Week to the church calendar, today we, like our ancestors, sincerely rejoice at the holiday, gobble up fluffy pancakes and play noisily with all our hearts. Maslenitsa has arrived!

Rules for organizing the holiday

It's no secret that folk games on Maslenitsa were sometimes a bit rude. Just remember the wall-to-wall fist fights, after which many had to have their black eyes treated and their noses turned to one side straightened! It is characteristic that even before the revolution, hardcore fun was tried more than once to be banned, but they were never able to cope with it: the desire of the Russian men, who dispersed at the end of Maslenitsa week, was very great, to show their prowess, and to stretch the bones of themselves and the enemy.

In our time, battles between one “end” of the city and the other, fortunately, are not practiced. But this does not mean that good fellows who have become naughty (and beautiful girls, by the way, too, it’s not for nothing that we live in the age of emancipation) will not inflict injuries of varying degrees on each other. Therefore, take care to minimize possible risks.

How to organize a holiday without hurting anyone:

There should be no heavy objects among the game equipment. Even a bag of straw can cause painful bruises if you hit with all your heart! Do you want to have a funny fight on a log? Either make sure the shells are not stuffed too tightly, or replace them with old, half-empty down pillows if you find such a rarity. It is even safer to use long balloons for battle, especially when it comes to children and teenagers.
A pillar with gifts - a traditional Maslenitsa fun - should not be additionally watered with water. So you risk being left without a winner, and the spectators will be rewarded with bruises and bumps in memory of unsuccessful attempts to get to the hotel.
It is advisable not to allow drunk people and young ladies in long skirts to jump over fires.
When running in bags, you should choose a rough, non-slip fabric on snow.
A well-organized holiday requires a clear distribution of responsibilities. No matter how dizzy the atmosphere of general fun may be, no matter how much you want to join it, relax and let everything go along the beaten path, remember that such events should always have an organizer (or better yet, several) who keeps a cool head even in the midst of a snowstorm. fortress and burning of Maslenitsa effigy. Sober - in every sense.

Traditional Maslenitsa games and fun

Maslenitsa in Rus' has always been celebrated cheerfully and widely. Maslenitsa week 2020 will last from February 24 to March 1. Nowadays, as in the old days, fairs, sleigh rides and festive festivities are held on these days.

What games could you play on Maslenitsa 2020? Among them are the traditional and well-known ones - taking a snow town, tag, towns, hide and seek.

In the old days, games were held on every day of Maslenitsa. On Tuesday, which was called “flirting,” the fun began. On “Broad Thursday”, fist fights were organized, the participants of which fought “wall to wall” or “one on one”.

Buffoons gave funny performances, and mummers went around singing to neighbors' houses.

What games can you play on Maslenitsa?

These are games that have retained their popularity, such as “dodgeball”, hide and seek, “the sea is rocking”, “deaf telephone”, which we remember from childhood.

Or you can remember the traditional games for every day of Maslenitsa. For example, arrange the capture of a snowy town on Friday.

Participants break into teams and build snow forts. Each team builds its own fortifications, and then prepares charges (snowballs). After the leader's signal, the participants begin to throw them at each other. The team whose fortress is destroyed the fastest is considered the loser.

What do they play on Maslenitsa?

You can arrange a tug-of-war or a sack race. Participants in the next game are divided into pairs. The leader ties their legs with ropes so that the players can move.

Each of the pairs needs to complete a certain task: for example, collect brushwood for a fire, carry a glass of water to the target, trying to spill it as little as possible, etc. The three pairs that complete the tasks faster than others receive prizes.

On these days, traditional Maslenitsa games and fun are held, one of which is “Rucheyok”. Participants become pairs one after another. The first pair runs under the goal from their hands and becomes the last. So a trickle flows until each pair runs under the gate several times. Then the participants sing the song “Burn, Burn Clear.”

Or you can organize modern games and fun for Maslenitsa. In the “Three Legs” game, participants are divided into pairs, and each leg is tied (the right leg of one to the left leg of the other). The pair runs to the turn flag and returns to the start line. The participants who complete the task first win.

For the game “Who's Fastest on a Broom,” pins are placed one after another on the court. Each participant needs to ride a broom around them like a snake and not knock them down. The one who knocks down the fewest pins wins.

Outdoor games during Maslenitsa

One of the main conditions that applies to outdoor games on Maslenitsa: they must be as mobile as possible in order to prevent the participants from getting cold. Fortunately, old folk games fully meet this requirement, so you only have to modernize them slightly:

Wall to wall
. A new variation on the theme of hard fun can be a harmless but exciting game. Two opposing teams line up in two rows opposite each other on a wide area with pre-trodden snow. The members of each group clasp their elbows tightly to form a chain, and then, at a signal, both teams step on each other. It is forbidden to open your hands, punching and kicking are also prohibited. Breaking through the enemy's defenses should be done exclusively by force. The winner is the team that manages to push the enemy out of the area or make a hole in his defense - that is, break the chain.
Horse fight
. Participants are divided into horse-rider pairs. If boys and girls play, the horse, according to tradition and logic, becomes the guy, since he will have to hold his rider on his back for a long time. Well, it’s better to choose light, miniature young ladies as riders, so that the “horses” don’t have to strain themselves. At a sign from the leader, the “riders” begin to fight, trying to push each other “out of the saddle.” The couple that lasts the longest is declared the winner.

You can also organize fun relay races. This fun has so many options that it can serve as an excellent Maslenitsa game for adults and children. It all depends on the conditions set for the participants.

Choose according to your taste:

Each of the players must run, or rather jump, from point A to B, putting their feet in the bag;
You need to drive the entire route in a children's sleigh backwards, pushing off the snow with your feet or ski poles;
The relay participants are given a frying pan with a pancake, and they must not only carry it to the end of the route safe and sound, but also toss it along the way, as housewives do when baking;
Players of one team need to stand in pairs back to back, lock elbows and, without opening their arms, hobble to the finish line;
Again, the method for a pairs race is to tie the participants' left and right legs together and send them on their way;
Together, you can not only run, but also drive, when one of the players drags his partner on the ice, trying not to knock over the obstacles placed on the way - plastic bottles with multi-colored water, brooms stuck in a snowdrift, buckets;
For a mass race between two teams, the players of each group need to line up in single file, grab the person in front by the belt and not open their arms until the entire route has been covered.

Note! Interesting Maslenitsa games for adults and teenagers will be the already mentioned jumping over a fire, climbing a pole for gifts, pillow fights, during which fighters stand on a fallen log or one leg, tug of war, throwing snowballs at a target.

According to the old Russian tradition

Fist fights, widely known as “wall to wall,” gained no less fame. According to tradition, they were held on the last day of Maslenitsa. In the old days, there was even a popular joke: “Fist fights knock out pancakes.”

They were set up in open areas, right on the snow, often near some body of water. The participants in the fun lined up opposite each other in two lines and, on command, rushed into hand-to-hand combat. It may seem that such games were not much different from merciless bloody battles without rules. However, regulations for fist fights still existed. According to its provisions, blows to the back of the head, stomach and below the belt were not allowed. The use of any improvised objects was also prohibited. Fighting was only allowed one on one, and group beatings were immediately stopped. In addition, the rule “you don’t hit someone who’s lying down” was strictly observed.

It is noteworthy that fist fights were carried out with gloves and to the cheerful musical accompaniment of balalaikas and accordions. It is also symbolic that they took place on Forgiveness Sunday. And therefore, immediately after a mass fight, regardless of the outcome, the recent rivals reconciled, asked for forgiveness and embraced each other in brotherly embraces.

Homemade fun for Maslenitsa

If the weather is not conducive to having fun or for some other reason you had to celebrate the holiday at home, this does not mean that it was a failure. There are many ways to have a good time within four walls.

A newfangled hobby - quests - has been occupying an honorable place among competitions and games for Maslenitsa for several years now: they very easily fit into the general playful mood of the holiday. Especially with such a rich topic!

An example script might look like this:

Monday-Meeting
. The teams are given the task: how to celebrate Maslenitsa and list 7 items each, one way or another connected with it. Comical and resourceful answers are welcome, for example: “Napkins - because on Maslenitsa everyone eats pancakes and wipes their mouths” or “Scales, because after the holiday everyone will need them.”
Tuesday-Flirting
. Since in Rus' on this day guys tried in every possible way to attract the attention of girls, and they willingly responded to advances and tried to dress up one another more beautifully, the participants of the competition will also have to bring beauty. True, the participants in the game will dress up not themselves, but Maslenitsa. Players are divided into 2 or more teams. Each is given a set of various items of clothing: scarves, beads, felt boots, skirts, vests, mittens - the main thing is that all this is bright and easy to put on. Then each team chooses Maslenitsa and begins to dress it up at speed. Whose “stuffed animal” ends up being the most elegant and funniest, wins. In a competition for adults or teenagers, you can use cosmetics to make the colored Maslenitsa even more elegant. But it’s better not to take risks with kids, otherwise, in a hurry, distracted young artists may hit their model in the eye with a brush and cause tears instead of laughter.
Wednesday-Gourmand
. Without a doubt, pancake competitions are not only one of the most fun, but also the most delicious indoor Maslenitsa games. For the competition you will need 2 stacks of ready-made thin pancakes and several bowls with fillings: cheese, ham, caviar, pickles, fruit, jam, etc. Players are divided into 2 teams, receive their own set of products and quickly wrap the fillings in pancakes. The one who completed the task first, did not tear the pancakes in the chaos, or came up with the most delicious filling is the winner.
Thursday-Revelry
. The real fun begins! Offer the players to go through a relay race, and since there won’t be enough space to properly walk around in even the largest apartment, compensate for the lack of length of the route by making it difficult to complete. Let the participants of each team split into pairs, in which one will “run” to the set mark on his hands, and the second will hold his legs. Or they will try to gallop a measured distance on one leg. Or, while running, they carry an egg in front of them in a spoon (boiled, otherwise you will be tortured to wash the floor!).
Friday - Mother-in-law's party
. And again pancakes! This time, the competitors take turns approaching the table with the pancakes prepared at Sreda-Lakomku, pick up a delicious envelope with filling and try to bite off the largest piece of it. While they are chewing, they say some adjective that characterizes pancakes (delicious, fluffy, rosy), Maslenitsa (fun, riotous, noisy), spring (warm, early, sunny). Since Friday is called Mother-in-Law, all married men come up with adjectives addressed to their beloved mother-in-law during the game.
Saturday - sister-in-law's gatherings
. The sister-in-law, the husband’s sister, also wants to be beautiful, so you need to help her get herself in order, namely, braid her hair like a girl. To complete the task, all players are divided into groups of 4 people and receive at their disposal 3 long (about 2-3 m) ribbons, tied at one end with a knot. One person from the group, usually a girl, stands motionless, holding the knot at the back of her head with her hand, and the other three, holding the free ends of the ribbons, begin to braid the braid. Believe me, they will have to work hard to figure out who should move and where! Whose braid turns out neater and longer wins.
Forgiveness Sunday
. In the end, it’s worth choosing a quieter task in order to calm down the noisy revelers. Play a “Question and Answer” game with them on the Maslenitsa theme: what does the pancake (the sun) symbolize, what kind of flour are pancakes made from (wheat, rye, oatmeal, rice, buckwheat), what kind of pancakes are there (thin, fluffy, openwork, with baking, with filling), how the first pancake turns out (lumpy), which pancakes cannot be eaten (pancakes on a bar), which of the heroes of Russian fairy tales said: “Here’s your pancake, but don’t bark” (the Evil Stepmother from the fairy tale “Morozko”), and in what poem “The crocodile stewed the blue sea with pies and pancakes and dried mushrooms” (Chukovsky’s poem “Confusion”), what do French crepes, American pancakes, Dutch pannekoken, Scandinavian lefse and Indian DOS (all these are pancakes) have in common?

Note! It is not difficult to guess that during the existence of the Maslenitsa holiday, a great variety of games with pancakes were invented. If you want to make the action more fun, consider this option: one of the players is tied with his hands behind his back, and the other with his eyes, after which the “blind” must feed the “armless” at random. As soon as the first pancake is eaten, the place of the pair that completed the task is taken by a new one and the competition continues until all team members are at the table. Whose group finishes first wins.

Using the tips collected above as a basis, you can write your own script for Maslenitsa with games and competitions. And don’t forget to sum up the results at the end of the quest and give out comic prizes.

Maslenitsa competitions on the street and games for children

Since the pleasant time of thaw has arrived, everyone goes outside, everyone has more vital energy. Accordingly, it needs to be directed in a pleasant direction, which is why games for children and competitions for Maslenitsa are organized, here are a few of them:

“Handkerchief” - handkerchiefs tied at different heights are torn from the jump by the boys, after which they give them to the girls they like.
“Cockerels” - in a drawn circle, guys, standing on one leg, try to push each other beyond its limits without using their hands.

Throwing felt boots

The essence of the game is in the name. Like, goodbye, felt boots! Throwing at a distance, accuracy, closeness of the fall of the second felt boot from the first. Suitable for a large hall, but better, of course, for the street.

Running with obstacles

Two guys are participating in the relay race. Stages:

Put on a Russian shirt
Belt yourself with a sash
Eat a banana
Whistle
Kiss the beauty

One beauty. She is kissed by the one who completed the previous stages first.

Option: This kind of relay race can be held in the summer, say, in a camp. On the beach, guys need to run to the water: take off their baseball cap, jacket, shirt, sneakers, trousers, and dive into the water. Who is first?

"Burners"

The players stand in pairs, one after another. In front of everyone, at a distance of two steps, stands the driver - the burner. Those playing say the words in a chant:

“Burn, burn clearly, so that it doesn’t go out. Stay a little longer, Look into the field, The trumpeters are riding there and eating the rolls. Look at the sky: The stars are shining, The cranes are shouting: - Gu, gu, I’ll run away. One, two, don’t be a crow, but run like fire!” After the last words, the children standing in the last pair run from both sides along the column. The burner tries to stain one of them. If the running players managed to take each other’s hands before the burner stains one of them, then they stand in front of the first pair, and the burner lights up again. The game is repeated. If the burner manages to stain one of those running in a pair, then he stands with him in front of the entire column, and the one who is left without a pair burns. Rules of the game: The burner must not look back. He catches up with the fleeing players as soon as they run past him.

"Wattle"

All participants are divided into two teams and lined up in two lines opposite each other. Participants braid a “braid” - they hold hands through one another, crosswise. The members of the first team step towards the other team, which is standing still at that time, and say: “We all congratulate Masha and wish her health!” They say the second half of the sentence while walking backwards. Then the other team does the same. Then everyone lines up at the back and follows the leader, who tries to walk in such a way that everyone gets confused. As soon as the leader claps his hands, both teams take their places and are again braided into the “net.” Usually after this “extra” hands appear.

"The Owl and the Birds"

Before the competition begins, children choose for themselves the names of those birds whose voice they can imitate. For example, a dove, a crow, a jackdaw, a sparrow, a tit, a goose, a duck, a crane, etc. The players choose an eagle owl. He goes to his nest, and those playing quietly, so that the eagle owl does not hear, figure out what kind of birds they will be in the game. Birds fly, scream, stop and crouch. Each player imitates the cry and movements of the bird he has chosen. At the signal “Owl!” all birds try to quickly take a place in their home. If the eagle owl manages to catch someone, then he must guess what kind of bird it is. Only a correctly named bird becomes an eagle owl. Bird houses and the eagle owl's house should be located on a hill. Birds fly to the nest on a signal or as soon as the eagle owl catches one of them.

"Broom on the forehead"

Now try wearing a broom on your forehead for as long as possible.

"Zarya"

Children stand in a circle, hold their hands behind their backs, and one of the players - Zarya - walks behind with a ribbon and says: Zarya-lightning, Red maiden, Walked across the field, Dropped the keys, Golden keys, Blue ribbons, Entwined rings - She went for water . With the last words, the driver carefully places the ribbon on the shoulder of one of the players, who, noticing this, quickly takes the ribbon, and they both run in different directions in a circle. The one who is left without a place becomes the dawn. The game repeats itself.

"Korchaga"

The driver and the driver are selected by lot. The korchaga is covered with a scarf and placed in the center of the circle formed by the participants in the game. The driver, in secret from the pot, gives all the players names: “bird”, “flower”, etc. Then he stands near the pot and calls each of the players in turn, pronouncing his new name. The person called approaches the person sitting, lightly hits him with his hand and, returning to his place, claps his hands. After this, the driver takes the handkerchief from the pot and asks who hit him. If the driver guesses correctly, the one who struck sits in his place; if not, the pot remains in the center of the circle, and the game continues.

Magic cube

The game involves 3 guys and 3 girls. Everyone gets their own number. The first one rolls a dice with numbers from 1 to 6. The number that appears shows what he will do:

kiss
suck
chew
compress
bite
lick

The same player rolls the die a second time. The number drawn shows which part of the body he will do this with:

lips
nose
forehead
cheek
right ear
left ear

The player rolls the die a third time. The number drawn shows which person he will do this with - the number corresponds to the player’s number. After all actions have been completed, the second player takes the cube, etc.

"Three Legs"

The players are divided into pairs, each pair's legs are tied (the right leg of one to the left leg of the other). Parana “on three legs” runs to the turning flag and returns to the starting line.