Minute to Win It

45 minutes

Intended for 20 guests, grades 4-7

Based on that popular NBC show, Minute to Win It!  There are challenges that you try to complete, and it may seem simple, but the trick is, you only have one minute to win it!  The best thing about this program is that it can be done on a low budget because most of the items are simple house hold items that are already owned. 

The NBC website is very helpful.  It has all of the Minute to Win It activities listed, the supplies needed, and a video clip of how each activity should be played. 

We picked six different activities for the kids to do, and set up six different centers around the room.  Depending on the activity, there could be 2-4 stations per activity center.  We tried to keep as many kids busy with an activity as we could. The librarian in charge had a timer and clocked one minute.  Once the minute was up, the kids then rotated to try and complete another activity.

Activities we tried:

Breakfast Scramble

3 stations.
Supplies
3 cereal boxes
Scissors
Ruler
For Each Station
Take the front of a cereal box and cut it into 16 even rectangles, like a puzzle.  The fact that all the pieces are the same size and shape makes this tricky.  Scramble the pieces.  The children then need to reassemble the picture in less than a minute. 

Gettin' Juggy With It

1 station

Supplies

4 5 gallon jugs (water cooler jugs)

For Each Station

The child must stack the 4 jugs ontop of one another to make a very tall free standing jug pillar, so to speak. 

Coffee Topper

2 stations
Supplies
6 paper coffee cups
Old CDs (the more you have the better)
For Each Station
Place the 3 cups on the ground.  From a height of about 3 feet, the children have to drop a CD and try to get it to land on top of each cup.  A lot harder than you think...

Defying Gravity

2 stations
Supplies
6 balloons
For Each Station
Place 3 blown up balloons (not helium, just the sweet air from your lungs) at each station.  When the time begins, the child has to try and keep all 3 balloons in the air for the full minute.  You will need a good sized space for this one. 

 

Face the Cookie

4 stations
Supplies
1 package of sandwich cookies
1 table
For Each Station
Place the package of cookies on the table.  Have 4 kids stand around the table.  At the start of the activity, have the kids place a cookie on their forehead.  They then have to wiggle, squirm and contort their face to move the cookie from the forehead to the mouth.  Sure you could probably do one, but in order to complete this activity you have to get 3. 

A Bit Dicey

2 stations

Supplies

12 dice

24 popsicle sticks

1 table

For Each Station

Place 6 dice and a pile of popsicle sticks.  The child must then place the stick in their mouth and balance a vertical stack of 6 dice atop the stick.  

 

Shoe Fly Shoe

1 station
Supplies
1 table
Kids with shoes on their feet
For Each Station
You will need a good amount of room for this one.  Place the table about a foot away from a wall.  Have the child stand about 20 feet from the table.  The child needs to remove his/her shoe from his/her foot, and using his/her foot, try to flick the shoe onto the table.  Only one kid at a time otherwise shoes will by flying in people's faces. 

Stack Attack

2 stations
Supplies
2 tables
72 plastic solo cups
For Each Station
On a table, have a stack of 36 cups.  The child must then stack the cups in a pyramid pattern, having 8 cups on the bottom row, and then 7 cups on top of those, then 6 cups on top of those, then 5, then 4 and so on till there is one cup at the top.  After the pyramid is complete, the child must then take down the pyramid.  Don't.  Bump.  The.  Table.

You can have as many stations as you would like.  Feel free to mix it up and even use other activities.  If you feel the challenge is too hard and the kids will get frustrated trying to accomplish it, feel free to modify it.  For A Bit Dicey, 6 dice was waaaay too hard.  We found 3 to be more reasonable.  Above all, have fun!