The Left-Right Gift Exchange Story

This is a game I use each year as an activity for my Youth Group Christmas party. I also used it when I led games in the Nerdling’s fifth grade class. I thought I’d share it with you in case you needed a game idea this season…

Each person starts with an item. For the Youth Group party, I wrap up items from the dollar store. In the Nerdling’s class, we had them each bring in a king-size candy bar. Everyone sits in a circle, holding on to their present. I read the following story and they have to listen to the directions. Each time I say the word “right,” they pass their gift to the right. Each time I say the word “left,” they pass their gift to the left. When I reach the end of the story, they get to open and keep whichever gift they’re holding. Here’s the story:

One Day Left Till Christmas, Alright!

It was Christmas Eve. John Boy Wright sat by his dad in their car, Suzie Q sat to his right.
“Hurry up Mr. Wright!” Suzie Q said. “We need to get to the mall before it closes! Christmas is right around the corner!”
Mr. Wright turned left into the parking lot.
“Don’t worry,” Mr. Wright said, “Santa won’t have left yet.”
He pulled into the only spot left in the lot, right next to a pick-up with a dent on its right fender. They left the car, went right inside and asked a security guard where to find Santa.
He told them to go right at American Eagle, use the escalator to the left of Sears to go down and Santa would be right in front of them.
“Alright!” John Boy said when they got in line, “There’s still time left to see Santa!”
A little girl came up right behind them and stepped right in front of them.
“Hey!” Suzie Q said, “No cuts! You have no right!”
The girl started crying and left the line.
The line moved right along and soon it was their turn. Suzie Q hopped up on Santa’s right knee.
“What do you want left in your stocking this Christmas?” Santa asked.
“I want a DVD left there that teaches me how to read and write!” Suzie Q said.
“I think you’ve been down right good this year,” Santa said. “I’ll see what I can do. Now look right into the camera and smile!”
An elf to Suzie Q’s right snapped a picture. Suzie Q left Santa’s lap, got a candy cane, and went to stand with Mr. Wright. John Boy hopped on Santa’s left knee. He immediately started talking.
“I want a new left ear for my Mr. Potato Head, a model Wright Brothers airplane, a new Luke Skywalker action figure ‘cause I chopped of his right hand playing Empire Strikes Back, a GI Joe with the gun strapped to his right leg, a shirt with a bear on the left pocket that says ‘I have the right to bear arms!’, the right Lego set this year because last year you left the wrong one, a new pen so I can write to my stuffed bunny I left at a hotel last summer, a pickle shaped like…”
“Alright, alright!” Santa said, “I’ll talk to the elves about what we can to with that list. Maybe next year you should write it all down!”
“Okay, Santa, I will,” John Boy said.
“Now look right into the camera and smile!”An elf to John Boy’s right snapped a picture.
John Boy left Santa’s lap and went to his dad and Suzie Q.
“Wait,” Santa said, “You left without your candy cane!”
“Oh, right!,” John Boy said. He got his candy and ran right back to his dad.
The three of them left the mall and drove home.
Both kids went right to sleep that night, excited to see what Santa will have left for them. The next day they got right up and opened their presents…

By this point, the gift they started with should have made it to a different place in the circle. I’ve done it once where the kids all had their original present at the end. I just made them all pass it to the right 8 times (Once for each of Santa’s reindeer).

Ready to host a Christmas party now? Let me know what you think of the game or if you’ve played something similar. My comment section is your comment section…