Games to Play with your Latino Family
Having trouble finding activities or games to play with your Latino family? Well I did too! Below is a list of activities that family at our large get-togethers actually played and ended up enjoying.
DOMINÓ. Domino
Dominó is a classic Latino game in which I saw my aunts and uncles play lots of in my childhood. Adults love playing it and the rules are simple enough that children can easily learn it. A traditional game of Dominó only accommodates 4 players, but if you play by house rules you can squeeze up to 8 players. And if you want to try something new, you could always purchase a set of Mexican Train Dominoes where up to 8 players can play (and again, up to 16 if you play by house rules!)
DIBUJA Y ADIVINA. Pictionary.
Any guess-what-I-draw game is popular in large family events. The main challenge is how to set the image up so all players can see what is drawn. The way we managed to do this is by downloading a drawing app onto a tablet, then casting the image onto a TV. This does take a bit to figure out, but once you manage it you are all set without spending a dime. Alternatively, you could always purchase a large white board or pad of paper.
A second challenge was coming up with words that people can draw. If you are hosting this event for a special occasion, you are welcome to take inspiration from our list of Spanish words we made for our Loterías: Cute, Navidad, Invierno, and more!
TROMPO Y BALERO. Spinning Top & Cup-and-Ball Toy.
I was never an expert on playing the trompo and balero, but I always tried. These oldies but goodies never fail to bring us together at our joint failed attempts to make the trompo spin and the balero fall into place. And if you are lucky enough to have an expert in your family, well enjoy the show and contemplate how long it took them to master these colorful wood instruments.
BANANAGRAMS EN ESPAÑOL. Spanish Bananagrams.
Did you know that there is a Spanish version of Bananagrams? This special set includes the letters Ñ, LL, RR, CH, Qu, and lots of vowels. It also has one K and one W. Even if your Spanish spelling skills are rusty, trust me when I say that friends and family will help you out so they can flex their skills. In my experience, when we first brought this game to a family get-together only 3 people wanted to play (in which one was me). After a couple rounds, family members would crowd behind us shouting words. Younger players would continuously ask the adults if what they spelled is an actual word. And other players would sneak in suspiciously-English words because what in the Spanish-speaking-world has a W? Web, wifi, whisky?
¡BASTA! Enough!
When I was a child I loved playing BASTA, a scattergories-like game, and I still do! It’s super simple. On a notebook draw a table and write your chosen categories on the top. My go-to categories were: Letter, First Name, Last Name, City or Country, Flower or Fruit (veggies count too), Animal (including insects), Object, and Total. To start, one player recites the alphabet inside their head and stops until another player says “BASTA!.” The last letter recited is the letter everything must start with on all the categories. The first player to write one word in all categories must say: “BASTA! Basta 1, Basta 2….“ until they count to Basta 10! Then, everyone must stop writing. At the end of each round, players must share what they wrote in each category and tally their points: if no one guessed the word you chose you got 100 points, but if two or more people guessed the same words those players got 50 points each. Player with the most points wins!
LOTERÍA.
Lotería is always a hit at any family event! You can always play the classic version of the game, but nowadays there are a lot of spin-offs: modern loteria, kids loteria, holiday version, etc. You can even create your own Lotería set for a fun personalized touch. Add family members, pets, favorite foods, and even inside jokes! You can use our Loteria maker to get started!
