101 Simon Says Ideas

If you’re looking for plenty of Simon Says ideas to enjoy with the kids then you’ve come to the right place! The game Simon Says is a classic activity that children will always enjoy, and it has many educational benefits that most of us don’t even realise. Many of us remember playing the Simon Says children’s game when we were young, but it wasn’t just a bit of fun to keep us out of trouble. Playing a Simon Says activity can help kids become more focused and attentive and helps to wake up the connection between their brains and their bodies.

One of the best things about Simon Says for kids is that it can be played with a group of children or just your child, and it’s suitable for multiple ages from pre-school upwards. You can also play a simple Simon Says game almost anywhere, whether you’re indoors or outdoors.

Simon Says is a fun and easy game that doesn’t require any additional materials, but sometimes it can be tricky to think of Simon Says ideas off the top of your head. If you’re looking for inspiration for creative Simon Says actions we’ve got you covered with 101 fantastic Simon Says Ideas to print off.

What Is The Simon Say Game?

Simon Says is an action game where one player has the role of Simon. This player gives instructions (usually physical actions such as ‘stand on one leg’ or ‘touch your toes’) to the other players, but they should only follow the instructions if they include the phrase “Simon says”. If someone performs an action and the leader did not say “Simon says”, they are out of the game.

Fun Fact: In the UK and United States we call the leader of the game Simon, but in other countries, the leader has different names. In France, the leader of the game is called Jacques, and in Sweden the leader is called John ( View details here )

What's Included In Our Simon Says Game Ideas?

We’ve created a bumper list of 101 fun and creative Simon Says Ideas that are sure to be a big hit with the children. There are some silly Simon Says ideas, some simple actions to perform, and other more physical actions to keep the game exciting and fun.

Our funny Simon Says ideas include actions such as ‘Pull a funny face’, ‘Poke your nose’, ‘Make yourself scary’, ‘Wiggle your bum’ and ‘Pose for a Selfie’. The list also contains lots of physical ideas for Simon Says commands such as ‘Stand on one leg’, ‘Hands in the air’ and ‘Stamp like a giant’.

Children love animals, so we’ve included lots of animal-themed ideas for Simon Says including ‘Hop like a Bunny’, ‘Creep like a rat’, ‘Scratch like a monkey’ and ‘Flap like a duck’. You can also help fire your child’s imagination with creative Simon Says ideas such as ‘Walk out in space’, ‘Climb the mountain’ and ‘Surf a wave’. We’ve even included references to a few popular children’s characters to encourage the kids to get involved in the game, including Simon Says ‘Twirl a lasso like Woody’ or Simon Says ‘Shoot Spiderman webs’.

The Simon Says game might be centuries-old, but we’ve also added some modern actions to our fun list that are bound to appeal to older kids, including ‘Pose for a selfie’ and ‘Do the floss’.

Printable 101 Simon Says Idea PDF List

Our printable list of 101 Simon Says Ideas prints onto two pages of A4 paper, or you can print the list double sided so that all of the great ideas are together on one page.

Sample Ideas:
Dig a hole
Walk out in space
Go for a walk
Swat a fly
Put on a funny face

101 Printable Simon Says Idea Cards

We’ve also made our list of Simon Says actions into a fantastic set of printable Simon Says activity cards. There are 12 Simon Says cards on each A4 page. Print out each of the pages onto white card or paper then carefully cut out each card. Mix them up and put them in a pile, then pick up one Simon Says activity card at a time to ask your child to perform. You could also use the cards with a group of children – each time someone performs an activity correctly they get to keep the card. The player with the most cards at the end wins

How Do You Play Simon Says?

To play Simon Says:

Choose one person as ‘Simon’, the leader. Simon calls out the actions.
Everyone must follow Simon and do the action, but only when Simon says to do it. For example, if the leader gives the command “Simon says stand on one leg”, everyone must stand on one leg.
If Simon says a command without saying “Simon says” first, the players must not do the action. If they do, then the player is out until the next game.

When Should I Play Simon Says?

Simon Says is a classic game that can be played at almost any time or anywhere! It can be great fun as a simple ice breaker at sleepovers or parties, and even adults can join in if they like. It can be great fun to speed up the game as you go along and see who can keep up! If you need to get the children up and moving, try some physical Simon Says activities such as ‘Do the twist’ or ‘Run up the stairs’. If you’re keeping everyone occupied on a long car journey, try some fun Simon Says activities that the children can perform sat down, like ‘Tickle your ears’ or an eating action like ‘Eat a burger’.

You can start playing Simon Says with your child at a very young age, especially if you start with simple commands. Our list has lots of suitable Simon Says ideas for preschoolers, such as ‘Jump in puddles’, ‘Wave goodbye’ and ‘Clap your hands’.

Benefits of playing Simon Says Game

Simon Says is lots of fun for children to play and it’s a brilliant boredom buster that can be played indoors or outdoors. As well as being a fun way to get your kids active and away from the TV and electronic devices, it’s also a great way to help your youngster’s development and to improve a variety of their skills. Here are some of the benefits of playing the game Simon Says with your child:

Body Awareness Skills and Physical Literacy

Simon Says is an excellent game for teaching children to become more aware of their bodies, which is an important part of their physical development. It can also help them learn how each part of their body works and how it functions.

Simon Says is a game that helps improve physical literacy – the ability to move our body efficiently, confidently and easily. Children with well-developed physical literacy skills often take part in more exercise and physical activity for the rest of their lives, which helps lower the risks of many diseases, strengthens their mental health and boosts their self-esteem.

Listening Skills and Following Directions

Simon Says is a perfect game for teaching your child good listening skills and how to follow directions. When they listen to the Simon Says directions they need to pay attention to important details, and then identify whether or not they follow the command.

Gross Motor Skills

Children use the larger muscles in their bodies every day for jumping, running, climbing, and more. Gross motor skills involve movements that use these muscles, and it’s important that your child learns how to use them to help them develop good strength and balance. Simon Says commands such as “Spin Like a Washing Machine” or “Run Up the Stairs” are perfect for helping practice these vital skills. Simon Says is also perfect for children practising fundamental movement patterns such as moving unilaterally (touching one side of the body)

Self-Regulation

Children who play games like Simon Says have been shown to develop stronger impulse control, a greater understanding of expectations and better emotional stability.

Sportsmanship

Playing a game like Simon Says in a safe environment helps children learn how to both win and lose calmly and with grace, and helps builds their resilience.

Final Thoughts

Simon Says is a classic game that many of us remember from our own childhoods. It’s the perfect game to play indoors or outdoors and doesn’t require any special equipment or materials. Children will have so much fun jumping about, pulling silly faces or pretending to be an animal they’ll not even realise how long they’ve been playing for.

For children, a lot of learning requires an example to watch then a chance to try something themselves, and Simon Says lets them do just that.

If you enjoyed our fabulous list of ideas for Simon Says with your child, why not try another fun activity with your little one? We’ve got lots of great activities for entertaining your youngster whilst they learn and improve their skills. Our fun scavenger hunts are a great way to keep your child’s mind and body busy (View Scavenger Hunts Here), and there are lots more activities on our website to explore together.