Games for Silly Sock Day
Silly sock days are held in schools around the world, including in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Often, they’re used to bring attention to events like Autism Awareness Week in early April and World Down Syndrome Day on March 21. They’re a great opportunity for kids to express themselves and have fun while learning about neurodiversity.
After the kids are kitted out in their brightest, silliest socks, how can you keep the fun rolling? Try our games for silly sock day and have a “darn” good time.
Silly Sock Day Puppet Choir
This is a fun twist on the classic sock puppet and a great way to use silly socks that didn’t make it onto your kids’ feet.
Step one:
Adult: Offer kids an array of silly socks (at least two per child).
Kids: Pick out two silly socks.
Step two:
Adult: Provide construction paper, washable markers, safety scissors, and tape for kids to decorate their puppets with.
Kids: Decorate your sock puppet with eyes and anything else you want to add.
Step three:
Adult: If you have three or more kids, gather them into a circle. If you have two, fill in the third spot in the circle yourself. If it’s just you and one kid, stand opposite each other.
Kids: Pick a song that everyone knows the words to.
Step four:
Adult: Demonstrate how to go around the circle with each sock puppet singing one syllable in the song.
For example:
Kid 1 Right puppet: Twin-
Kid 1 Left puppet: -kle
Kid 2 Right puppet: twin-
Kid 2 Left puppet: -kle
Kid 3 Right puppet: lit-
Kid 3 Left puppet: -tle
Kid 1 Right puppet: star
Kids: Have your puppets sing the song! For extra fun, give each sock puppet a different silly voice.
Sock H-O-R-S-E
This game riffs on the classic playground basketball game H-O-R-S-E. It’s great for kids who enjoy competition or are learning how to win and lose gracefully.
Step one:
Adult: Clear a safe space in a room for kids to toss socks around, then place an empty laundry basket in the middle of it.
Kids: Make a sock ball. Place one sock on top of another and fold the top of the second sock halfway up the first. This will form a little pocket. Tuck the ends of both socks inside it, and you’ve got a ball!
Step two:
Adult: Help the kids choose who goes first, second, third, etc. Holding up a number behind your back on your fingers and asking kids to guess it tends to work well.
Step three:
Adult: Demonstrate the game. Throw your sock ball into the laundry basket from anywhere in the room. If you miss your shot, the first kid in the turn order gets to try. If they miss theirs, the second player goes, and so on.
Once someone makes their shot, the rest of the players try to make a shot from the same place. Any player that misses gets a letter. H for their first miss, O for their second miss, and so on. When a player has spelled out H-O-R-S-E, they’re out until the next round. The game ends when only one player remains.
Kids: Play the game and have fun!
Silly Sock Day Bowling
This simple game works well in homes with a long hallway.
Step one:
Adult: Set up six identical small, lightweight objects (empty cardboard toilet paper tubes are perfect for this) in a triangle to serve as “bowling pins” at the end of a long hallway. Place three objects in the back row, two in the middle, and one at the tip of the triangle, facing the players.
Kids: Make a sock ball the same way you would for Sock H-O-R-S-E.
Step two:
Adult: Pick a starting line five or six feet away from the tip of the triangle. Younger kids may need to start a little closer. Help the kids decide who goes first, second, third, etc.
Kids: Line up in order behind the starting line.
Step three:
Adult: Position yourself behind the bowling pins to catch sock balls and toss them back to the players.
Kids: Roll your sock ball along the floor toward the pins, aiming to knock down as many as possible. Each kid gets two tries, just like in real bowling. Whoever knocks down the most pins, wins!