Game: Freshly Squeezed

Type/Purpose: Food/Messy

Materials:

• An orange for each participant (or clementine, satsuma, tangerine, etc.)
• Baby wipes or towels for each participant

Set-Up: Find a location where everyone can have access to the floor, and enough room to spread themselves out.

Play:

• Direct the participants to roll the oranges around in their hand to loosen the skin, then to peel it off.
• Have the participants sit with their hands behind them, and their feet flat. They are to select one hand to place the orange under, with their palm open and flat on top of it. Tell the participants that they are going to slowly balance themselves upon the orange. If at any time they squish the object, making orange juice, they get to watch the remainder of the group (and they get to clean themselves up). Additionally, if at any point in time, a body part that has been eliminated touches the ground, the participant is also eliminated.
• The following is a sequence of progression to eliminate participants:
  • Raise your bodies so that the only part touching is your feet, 1 hand, and 1 hand with the orange under it.
  • Raise the same foot as your orange hand (so if your right hand is on the orange, raise your right foot).
  • Raise the palm of the hand not touching the orange.
  • Put your palm down, and only raise your fingers.
  • Remove the hand not on the orange.
  • Balance on the heel of your foot.
  • If somehow, you still have members competing, it’s a waiting game to see who loses balance first.

Extra Ideas:

• In place of oranges, you can use eggs or water balloons. Or if you’re trying to have a non-wasteful approach, use those water soaked mesh balls.
• For a different positioning of the orange, have all the participants stand with a table near them. Have them place 1 hand on an orange on the table, and lift 1 leg. Then have them stand on their toes, and wait it out.

Teachable Moment: Talk about stress.

• As the orange is stressed, the result is a squishy, sticky mess.
• What are some stressors for you?
• What do you need to balance?
• The result of a stressed orange is something valuable, if it can be contained: orange juice!
• Are there any benefits of being stressed?