Charades for Kids: 60 Fun Ideas To Act Out

Are you ready for the silliest, quietest crazy-fun game you can play with kids? 

Charades is a beloved, classic game that’s perfect for family game night, even if your family lives far away and your game night has to be virtual.

Charades is a fun activity for kids of all ages, and we’re here to help you get started. We have listed 60 different kid-appropriate words for your next family game of charades. Plus, we’ll cover how you can play charades with your family remotely with the help of Kinoo!

What Is Charades?

Charades is a party game where a person acts out a word or phrase, and their partner tries to guess the word. Traditionally, charades is silent — talking, or even making noises, is usually a strict no-no. 

To play charades, all you need is a word list and two or more people. It's a fantastic game for the whole family because it is easy to adjust the word list and rules to fit the developmental levels and experiences of kids and adults of varying age groups. 

How Can You Play Charades for Different Age Levels?

Unlike board games which usually come with strict rules, charade guidelines aren’t set in stone. The rules may fluctuate to accommodate the players’ skill levels as needed, Luckily, even simple rules help boost a critical childhood developmental skill: learning to follow instructions. 

Younger children may be in earlier developmental stages, and often, there can be many different stages in one family. A five to eight-year-old sibling might have significantly different capabilities than their three to four-year-old sibling. The benefit of charades is you can accommodate different ages, all within a single play session, by varying the rules. 

Playing games like charades promotes socialization skills. Use charades to help socialize younger family members and build a bridge between different generations. This game can also help little ones think critically and foster their creativity — all in a fun way, of course.

When children experience both comfort and challenge in a game or situation, they develop a growth mindset which helps foster a love of learning, playing, and spending time with others.

Let’s discuss how you can get silly in the game of charades, even when you can’t be there in person, with the help of Kinoo’s ever-growing catalog of virtual games, including a virtual game of Charades that is included in the Kinoo app library.

Kinoo’s version of Charades includes tips and tricks for adults (accessed via the “lightbulb” prompt) to help make the game more fun and engaging for kids.

Some of these ideas include those below:

Act It Out With Sounds

Typically, charades are played by acting out the word silently as mimes, but you can create an easy charades variation by introducing the ability to include sound clues.  

For example, perhaps your word is “ribbit.” You could make a “ribbit” sound while you leap around like a frog, allowing little ones to rely on multiple senses to make a critical guess. 

Use Describing Words

Some words, like “painting,” present an intriguing challenge that might mean giving little ones some extra help. In this case, you could suggest acting out describing words, like paper, easel, brush, and art, as you're acting out painting a picture. 

The descriptive word modification is an excellent time to introduce the concept of nouns, verbs, and adjectives to young learners.

Let the Guesser Ask for Clues

Another way to mix up the game of charades is to allow the guesser to ask for clues if they are stuck and need help — think charades meets 20 questions. This charades variation is more advanced, so it’s best suited for older children.

How Can You Play Charades Virtually?

You may love the idea of playing charades to engage with younger players, but maybe you don't live close enough to play in the same room.

With Kinoo, long-distance relatives like grandparents can use the fun, cooperative learning system to take advantage of a wealth of bonding opportunities at their fingertips.

Kinoo is a video calling system that leverages an activity library and active “magic” wand to facilitate play, learning, and bonds between family members who are close in heart but far in distance. Kinoo offers games and activities that engage young minds and make cross-generational communication easier than ever. With Kinoo, families can bake cakes, go to the beach, and paint masterpieces together on their iPads or iPhones.

The childhood-development experts at Kinoo know that younger kids sometimes have trouble staying focused on a stationary video call when the sandbox in their backyard beckons. Kinoo focuses on learning co-play activities with active interactions for kids, and helpful hints that guide older relatives through dynamic activities and age-appropriate conversations. 

How Do You Play Charades with Kinoo?

Kinoo makes playing virtual charades possible. Simply open Kinoo and connect with your loved ones, and choose the Charades activity from the selector. Then, position your device to display your “stage” area and play as if you were together in the same room. 

Creating your own charades cards can be time-consuming and difficult. That’s why Kinoo brings the charades ideas to you. Specialized categories encourage growing minds to practice analogous thinking by focusing on groups, like animals or foods.

What Are Some Fun Charades Ideas for Kids? 

When it comes to kid-friendly play, the words must be within their vocabulary and knowledge. Kinoo’s list is significant and age-appropriate, but if you’d still like to try your own word options, be our guest! When creating your own list, read through our suggestions for some inspiration.

Animal Charade Ideas

Most kids love animals, entranced by animals’ sounds or silly movements. Animal charade words work well with younger children who benefit from simple concepts. 

1. Cat
2. Dog
3. Elephant
4. Lion
5. Frog
6. Monkey
7. Snake
8. Bunny
9. Horse
10. Turtle 

Action Charade Ideas

When choosing from the action list, select words that your little opponents understand — action words are likely more appropriate for older children who have a larger vocabulary and understand verbs.

1. Hula hooping
2. Cooking
3. Making the bed
4. Mowing the grass
5. Swimming
6. Running
7. Getting dressed
8. Fishing
9. Watering plants
10. Playing a video game

Food Charade Ideas

Food can be more challenging to act out. For example, acting out the word “cereal” could look like soup or ice cream. Everyone will have to be creative in finding ways to act out making the cereal, pouring the cereal and milk.

An essential aspect of charades isn’t being perfect. In fact, you’ll likely find yourselves laughing over the miscommunications leading to your new favorite inside joke.

1. Sandwich
2. Eggs
3. Cupcake
4. Icecream cone
5. Pizza
6. Cereal
7. Spaghetti
8. Orange
9. Banana
10. Popcorn

Job Charade Ideas

Pretend play is an essential part of childhood development, not to mention that it’s enjoyable for both kids and adults.

For a truly unique twist, act out your job or the jobs of other family members.

1. Doctor
2. Fireperson
3. Teacher
4. Astronaut
5. Baker
6. Police Officer
7. Librarian
8. Chef
9. Ballerina
10. Pilot

Places Charade Ideas

Of all of the words for charades, places may be the toughest. Like food, the actor must think of different ways to act out the location. 

Adding locations to your words is a fantastic way to get kids to use their critical thinking skills to help them act them out.

1. Beach
2. Park
3. Grocery store
4. Library
5. Museum
6. School
7. Swimming pool
8. Arcade
9. Amusement park
10. Golf course

Feeling Charade Ideas

Kids have a lot of feelings, although they sometimes have trouble articulating them. It's important to have open conversations about feelings with kids. Including feelings in a game like charades can help bring up these conversations in a safe and fun way.

Here are some feeling words to try:

1. Happy
2. Sad
3. Excited
4. Mad
5. Scared
6. Tired
7. Sick 
8. Bored
9. Embarrassed
10. Worried

Kinoo Video Calls Bring Game Ideas to Life

The classic game of charades is perfect for your next family game time, whether you're physically or virtually together. To include even your youngest family members, you can modify the game to keep it engaging for everyone. 

On your next Kinoo call, plan to play charades! With our easy-to-use app, you can elevate the traditional “rainy day” charades game to an exciting experience that keeps children engaged, building new skills and treasured memories.

Sources:

The Games Project | Bing Nursery School | Stanford

The Art of Grandparenting No. 7: Grandparenting at a Distance | NDSU

Talking with preschoolers about emotions — Better Kid Care | Penn State

The Psychology of Following Instructions and Its Implications | NCBI

Handbook of Language and Literacy Development - A Roadmap from 0 to 60 Months - Understanding | The Canadian Language and Literacy Research Network

Children's development of analogical reasoning: Insights from scene analogy problems | University of Chicago