Pie Face

Whipped cream is the best case scenario.

In the box: Thrower, plastic mask, spinner

I cannot imagine a scenario where I would use this in therapy, but since it is so popular right now, and I got it for 99 cents, I figured I could blog about it.  It is just what you would think it is by looking at the box (above). Load whipped cream or a wet sponge onto the hand, turn the cranks, and hope you don't get hit in the face. No strategy, planning, skill etc., just dumb luck. Or lack thereof. Determine the number of rounds you will play before you start and then score each round as I will specify below. Highest scorer is the winner. There is some assembly required for the "thrower" (snapping pieces together), and there is also a spinner that takes simple assembly. 

 

Back of box.

Set up:

Assemble the game, load the whipped cream onto the hand, put the spinner nearby. Decide how many rounds you will play.

Play:

The first player spins the spinner to determine how many times he will have to turn the cranks on the thrower. He then puts his face into the plastic mask and cranks the thrower. This is how he scores:

• Take full turns matching the number on die and doesn't get pie-faced. Score double the number on the die. (Score a 3, take 3 turns. Get 6 points)
• Take partial turns than the number shown on die and doesn't get pie-faced. Score the number of turns you took. Player must decide before he starts cranking how many turns he will turn. (Score a 3, take 2 turns. Get 2 points.)
• Get pie-faced before you are done cranking. Score no points.

SAFETY FIRST as anything on the hand might get into the eyes.

Jeopardy-style Christmas Game

A Christmas trivia game sprinkled with social-skills discussion questions.

I recently opened a Teachers Pay Teachers (TPT) store. For those who are not familiar, TPT is a large website that hosts individual stores owned by teachers, therapists, counselors and the like. Geared mainly toward school aged kids, each store sells (or gives away) materials and resources that can be used with groups or individuals. I used this website for several years before I realized that I too could open a store, since many of the materials I use in therapy (aside from the games) I make myself. So right now (12/2017) there are not many items in my store, but I plan to fill it up over the next year, and years to come. And since this item is a game, I decided to feature it here on my game blog.

If you have ever watched Jeopardy, it is set up similar to that TV show. It is made on Powerpoint. I just take my computer to therapy and we play it that way. If you are with a big group you can project it onto a screen. To play, you choose a category and a question (A-E) that you want to see. Click on the letter and you will jump to that page. Read and answer the question. Then to return to this category grid, just click on the Christmas cookie icon at the bottom in the left hand corner. Pretty simple. I used letters A-E instead of numbers, like the real jeopardy, because we weren't keeping score and we were just taking turns answering questions, instead of one person who keeps going until they miss. Sometimes if I want to use a score instead, I will use dice. After each turn, the person throws the dice and adds that number to his score. I have added an answer sheet on a separate piece of paper.

Here are the explanations of the categories:

• Christmas Etiquette  -  Are your Christmas manners up to par?
• Jingle All the ___  -  Fill in the blanks to the lyrics of these popular Christmas carols.
• Christmas Quandaries  -  Solve specific problems that may pop up during Christmas.
• Holiday TV & Movies  -  Name the Christmas movie or TV show from the description.
• Christmas Recipes  -  Decide what Christmas treat can be made from each list of ingredients.

IF you are interested in checking out my store, here is the link. 

The Playful Otter TPT