Gameshow Inspired Tasks to Keep Your Kids Entertained

**Collaborative post**

We are coming up to the summer holidays, which means your kids will be home more often. Naturally, there is going to come a time when you have to entertain them. This year, it’s going to be a little more difficult to keep them entertained than usual, with the threat of the coronavirus.

Luckily there are plenty of things you can do indoors that are safe and free. One of these things is playing gameshows. Everyone loves British shows – from The Chase to Pointless, there’s always at least one that will keep you entertained.

But have you ever dreamed of going on one? Have you ever seen someone give the wrong answer when you know the right one and thought: ‘I’d be better at this than them!’

Well, now you can. Playing gameshows at home is a great way to keep your kids entertained because the fun of gameshows affects all ages. In addition, it’s inexpensive, time-consuming, and can teach your kids some great skills, even when they aren’t at school.

But which gameshows should you attempt at home, and how can you do it?

Taskmaster

One of the most popular game shows on television right now, Taskmaster, is a show in which five comedians are asked to complete ridiculous tasks, then are scored on how well they do them. For example, in the last series, the contestants were asked to ‘Create the best new way to remember how many days each month has.’ One contestant made up a sentence to help, another connected each month to a part of the body, and one left a voicemail on the Taskmaster’s phone.

This is quite an easy one to recreate at home because you can make the game as easy or as hard as you like, depending on how old your children are. You can come up with your own tasks to suit your family, or look online, where there are plenty of packs of pre-made tasks for people to use at home.

Over lockdown, the crew behind the show, notably Alex Horne, the creator, started a thing called ‘Hometasking,’ which you might want to look at for inspiration.

Bake Off

Now, the Great British Bake Off might not be your first thought when you hear the word ‘gameshow,’ but it is a competition, and it is a great one to recreate at home.

For those who might not know, Bake Off is a baking competition in which a group of bakers are set three challenges. First, the Signature Challenge sees bakers make their versions of a typical baked good, like a brownie or a ginger biscuit. Then, the Technical Challenge, where bakers have to bake something spontaneously, following a recipe they’ve only just seen. Finally, the Showstopper, where bakers make something big and magnificent, like a scene out of bread or a building out of gingerbread.  

Once again, depending on your needs as a family, you can make this as easy or difficult as you like, with one round or the traditional three rounds that a Bake Off episode comes with. You can choose easy recipes or more difficult ones. This can also benefit you if you name yourself judge because it means you get to eat all the cake!

Bake Off at home is a great way to teach kids cooking skills, as well as some knowledge about scientific reactions – i.e., why cakes rise. It can, however, get quite messy, so prepare yourself for lots of cleaning up.

Conveyor Belt (the Generation Game)

The Generation Game is a great one that parents will remember but might be unheard of for kids. In particular, the conveyor belt game was a great round of the Generation Game in which items went down a conveyor belt, and contestants had to remember as many of them as they could.

This is a great one to play at home because it’s easy to source and develops your children’s memories – a great skill to return to school with after the summer.

You don’t need a conveyor belt to play this game. Instead, you can just grab a tray – or even just put your items on the table – and fill it with items, then get a cloth to cover them up with. You can make the game fun by making the items interesting and funny.

Gameshows at home!

Hopefully, this has provided you with some ideas for gameshow games at home and that they keep your kids entertained and having fun. Who knows, you might end up having some fun too!