Contests and quizzes are an essential attribute of any children's holiday. But the children's interest in them, the positive emotions they will receive by completing the assignments, largely depend on how carefully and thoughtfully the preparation of this fun event is carried out.
Subject
Any children's competition or quiz will be much more interesting if it is not held by itself, but organically woven into the fabric of a common holiday or event. If this is a game part of the holiday, then the competition task should be logically connected with the theme of the main event.
If a quiz or a series of contests is the backbone of the event, it's a good idea if all tasks are also thematically related.
When choosing a topic, you need to take into account the age of the participants. It will be interesting for kids to participate in a quiz dedicated to their favorite fairy tales or cartoons, to play pirates or princesses, and older children can be offered more serious problems up to the solution of “eternal questions”. Of course, age is not the only thing to consider when choosing a topic for a competition program. Here both the social status and the intellectual level of the participants play a role, and whether the groups will be mixed, or consist only of boys or girls.
In a word, the more factors are taken into account, the more interesting the topic will be for the participants and the more willing they will be to complete the competition tasks.
Props
Having decided on the topic, you need to think about what you need to hold the competition. Of course, many items can be very conventional: a box covered with colored paper will perfectly suit the role of a pirate chest, balls will replace magic apples, and fishing boots will "turn" into running boots. In a word, you can show your imagination and use what is at hand - children perfectly accept the conventions of the game. But you can't do without props at all.
Even if an intellectual quiz is being held, you will have to make sure that the participants, at a minimum, have pens and sheets of paper.
It's also nice to somehow designate the costumes of the participants. It is not always possible to make complex costumes, but just a few details will help children get into the game faster: a crown for a princess, an eye patch and a bandana for a pirate, etc. The younger the participants in the event, the more important external attributes are for them.
Safety
During the preparation of the competition tasks, especially the sports ones, it is necessary to take care of the safety of the participants, think over what traumatic situations may arise and try to prevent them. The inventory used in competitions must also be safe.
If tasks require demonstration of athletic skills, it is necessary that the children are dressed in the appropriate uniform. If the holiday takes place in nature or on a playground, the area for conducting active competition tasks must be pre-checked for safety.
Methodology
The younger the participants of the quiz or competition, the more tasks should be in the program that require movement, active actions. For the elders, calm intellectual games can also be envisaged. But, in any case, it is necessary to remember that it is better to alternate activities: alternate outdoor games with quieter activities, and alternate creative and logical tasks with tasks that enable the children to move around and have fun. In this case, the interest and energy of the participants will be kept at the proper level for a long time.
Awards
And, of course, in any competition or quiz there should be winners who need to be noted somehow. It is possible to purchase or make diplomas, medals and even cups for the organizers themselves, but nevertheless it is necessary to remember that it is important for children to receive not only nominal recognition of their successes, but also something material, interesting and useful for them: small toys, notebooks, sweet prizes - all of these are suitable as gifts for the winners. Of course, the prizes can be more serious and expensive, but this depends on the overall budget of the event.
Do not offend the losers either: they should also receive incentive or consolation prizes so as not to feel left out.
