Games to run for a period of one half hour per S.P.E.W. meeting when held on the St Paul’s premises.

The games can take any reasonable form, and you can include as many or as few games as you feel appropriate in this time period.

A useful idea is to run active games near the start of the meeting, and less active games as a leadup to the main teaching element of the evening programme.

Your ultimate responsibility is to ensure that games are organised for the half hour of each at home S.P.E.W. meeting. You are the man, the big cheese, the head honcho the buck stops here, the go to guy.

You have a range of options here.

For example, you could organise all the games personally and run them yourself. This would be what I would consider as the "difficult" approach.

I am hoping that everyone will be able to be involved in running games, as it is an important part of learning to lead in a more general sense. What I have more in mind is that you would approach each member of S.P.E.W. and ask whether they would be interested in running a game/games at all during the term.

Then draw up a roster with the names of each person scheduled for a night clearly written down with an indication of how many games you expect them to run, for how long, what type of game is required etc. You can advise on which games you wish them to run if you like, or simply leave it to their own imagination. If they are short on ideas, give them any material that you can, or refer them to me.

One youth leader I know actually scheduled the names of the games themselves into the program. I have not liked to do this too far ahead, but every one has their own preferences and that’s OK.

These points are for the coordinator AND any willing games roster people.

• Organisation Have a clear of how the game is played and how to explain it to the group. Have an idea up front of where it is to be played, how any teams are to be picked etc. Any props or other gear needed must be organised in advance.
• Variety. Try to play as many different games as possible to avoid boredom.
• Favourite game exception. The exception to the above rule are "hall of fame" favourite games that need to be repeated by popular demand. Best example I can think of is the ol’ "Honey, if you love me smile"
• Democracy. Its important to cater for different group preferences equally in the long run. Guys and girls tend to prefer different games. People are competitive by nature, but to different degrees. They always like to play to their strengths, because the object of most games is to play by a set of rules with the object of winning. If the games are always the same style, the same people will always win, and the same people will always lose. No one enjoys losing anything all the time. The girls don’t appreciate the more physical games that much, but you have to let the blokes let off steam now and again. Some people like the mentally challenging games, others like the team games, others like quiet games, others like messy games, others like "show offy "games.
• Participation, not competition. The challenge is to use games that most of the people can participate it. Games almost by definition infer the use of competition, so competition is hard to avoid. No one should feel like a loser or ostracised in any way as a result of a S.P.E.W. game. Saturday mornings are the time to get serious about winning and losing if people want to.
• Crash Through the Pain Barrier. Teenage kids are notorious for hating everything. Even the best games in the world may evoke derision when first suggested. Don’t be put off trying new stuff. Persevere, and you will convince most people most of the time. If a game doesn’t work, what’s the worst that can happen?
• Lame game syndrome If a game totally dies beyond any hope of recovery, (the previous rule should be considered here, but it’s a judgement call) move on to something else
• Overkill syndrome Just because its going great doesn’t mean we have to play the same game for 3 hours. Kill it while people are begging for more.

Everyone has turned up on Friday and its that time of the night for games. A deathly silence grips the group as it becomes obvious that no one has organised anything. Matt suggests "’Poison Ball’ everybody. I loves that game!". Everybody else moans "not again, - mental note - don’t come next week, these guys are SOOO unorganised"

Everyone has turned up on Friday and its that time of the night for games. As usual, the games coordinator pulls out "Nanna’s favourite parlour games of 1906" book and leads the group into what has become an all too familiar routine of apple bobbing, blind man’s buff etc. etc. Everybody else thinks "This was interesting the first night, now its just plain weird! Can’t somebody else have a go at this for a change?"

Everyone has turned up on Friday and its that time of the night for games. Without prompting, Esmerelda Thomlicksonsenjen jumps up, and runs the most organised game of "chicken hunt madness" that has ever been run. S.P.E.W. members run around, laughing , joining together in a game that brings the group closer together , laying the foundation for a successful night of spiritual enrichment.

(Simon thinks to himself, "remember to give that games coordinator an end of year bonus for a job well done. Whoever thought that a girl like Esmerelda ever would have had the courage to run a game in front of the whole group. Its amazing what being given some responsibility has done for her confidence. What a master stroke it was for the co-ordinator to encourage her to try it")

Not that big brother is watching you, but here is what I will be doing in terms of reviewing your role. I am normally pretty relaxed, so don’t expect anything too heavy from me, but I will be watching what goes on and commenting on what I see from time to time. I will try to be as constructive as possible, and I don’t expect everything to work 100% first up. So don’t be afraid to experiment.

At the end of the term we will talk about whether you want to do it again in term 2.

God bless and Good luck ,