17 games
Checked October 2026

Rubber Chicken PE Games

Tossing games, tag and relays for a gym, plus a party set, each saying why a chicken beats a ball.

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Chuck the Chicken: Laps Against the Pass Line1. One way to play a throwing and running game. Two teams share a gym or a field. A player on the first team throws the chicken as far from the second team as they can.2. The first team bunches up, and the thrower runs laps around the bunch. The team counts each lap aloud.3. The second team runs to the chicken and lines up behind the first player to reach it. They pass it back down the line, over one head and between the next pair of knees. The last player shouts chicken, and the laps stop.4. That player throws it, and now the second team bunches and laps. Add up the laps for six minutes. The chicken stops dead where it lands, so the chasers run to it and never after it.Ages: 7 to 14. Players: 10 to 40. You need: one rubber chicken.
End Zone Chicken: No Steps While You Hold It1. A passing game to end zones for two teams of five to seven. Mark an end zone across each end of the court. Nobody can throw a chicken the length of a gym, so the whole team has to move up together.2. A player holding the chicken may not take a step and has five seconds to throw. Teammates run to get free.3. A team scores when one of its players catches the chicken inside the end zone it is attacking. A dropped or intercepted throw goes to the other team where it lies.4. Defenders stay an arm's length from the thrower, and nobody pulls the chicken out of a hand.Ages: 9 to 14. Players: 10 to 28. You need: one rubber chicken, cones and pinnies.
Call the Flips: One, Two or Three1. A throwing game of touch for partners. A chicken has a head end and a feet end, so anyone can count how many times it turns. Stand five steps apart.2. Hold the chicken by the feet. Call one, two or three, then throw it underhand so that it turns end over end that many times before it reaches your partner.3. The catcher counts the flips aloud and makes the catch. The right count and a clean catch score a point for the pair.4. Swap jobs every throw. After ten throws, take a step back and try again.Ages: 8 to 14. Players: 2 to 30. You need: a rubber chicken for each pair.

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Tossing and passing games 6

Call the Flips: One, Two or Three 1. A throwing game of touch for partners. A chicken has a head end and a feet end, so anyone can count how many times it turns. Stand five steps apart. 2. Hold the chicken by the feet. Call one, two or three, then throw it underhand so that it turns end over end that many times before it reaches your partner. 3. The catcher counts the flips aloud and makes the catch. The right count and a clean catch score a point for the pair. 4. Swap jobs every throw. After ten throws, take a step back and try again. Ages: 8 to 14. Players: 2 to 30. You need: a rubber chicken for each pair.
Chuck the Chicken: Laps Against the Pass Line 1. One way to play a throwing and running game. Two teams share a gym or a field. A player on the first team throws the chicken as far from the second team as they can. 2. The first team bunches up, and the thrower runs laps around the bunch. The team counts each lap aloud. 3. The second team runs to the chicken and lines up behind the first player to reach it. They pass it back down the line, over one head and between the next pair of knees. The last player shouts chicken, and the laps stop. 4. That player throws it, and now the second team bunches and laps. Add up the laps for six minutes. The chicken stops dead where it lands, so the chasers run to it and never after it. Ages: 7 to 14. Players: 10 to 40. You need: one rubber chicken.
End Zone Chicken: No Steps While You Hold It 1. A passing game to end zones for two teams of five to seven. Mark an end zone across each end of the court. Nobody can throw a chicken the length of a gym, so the whole team has to move up together. 2. A player holding the chicken may not take a step and has five seconds to throw. Teammates run to get free. 3. A team scores when one of its players catches the chicken inside the end zone it is attacking. A dropped or intercepted throw goes to the other team where it lies. 4. Defenders stay an arm's length from the thrower, and nobody pulls the chicken out of a hand. Ages: 9 to 14. Players: 10 to 28. You need: one rubber chicken, cones and pinnies.

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Tossing and passing games, continued

Flop Shot: Land It Nearest the Cone 1. A target toss for two to four players. A chicken stays where it drops, so the nearest throw is still the nearest when everyone walks up to look. Stand a cone eight steps from a line. 2. In turn, toss underhand from the line so that the chicken comes to rest as near the cone as you can get it. With one chicken between you, mark each landing with a bean bag. 3. The nearest scores a point, and a chicken that lies touching the cone scores three. Measure in shoe lengths if it is close. 4. The winner of a round picks the line for the next one. First to seven. Ages: 6 to 14. Players: 2 to 30. You need: a rubber chicken each, or one chicken and a bean bag each, and a cone.
Neck, Feet or Body: Catch the Part I Call 1. A catching game no ball can play, because a ball has no parts to call. Partners stand four steps apart. 2. The thrower lobs the chicken underhand and calls neck, feet or body while it is in the air. 3. The catcher has to catch it by that part and no other. A right catch scores a point for the pair. 4. Swap jobs every throw. Count the points out of ten throws, then try to beat them. Ages: 7 to 14. Players: 2 to 30. You need: a rubber chicken for each pair.
Over the Shoulder: Nearest Catcher Throws Next 1. A blind toss for a group of six to ten. Everyone but the thrower stands on a floor spot of their own, spread out five to ten steps behind the thrower's back. 2. The thrower faces away and flings the chicken back over one shoulder. It tumbles on the way down, so no catch is certain. 3. Catchers keep one foot on their spot. A catch scores a point. If it lands, nobody scores. 4. The player who caught it, or the one it landed nearest, is the next thrower and hands their spot over. Ages: 7 to 14. Players: 6 to 30. You need: one rubber chicken and a floor spot each for every group.

Tag and relay games 6

Across the Road: Get the Chicken to the Other Side 1. A crossing game named for the old riddle about why the chicken crossed the road. One team starts on an end line with one chicken. Three guards wait in the middle of the gym. 2. The team scores a point each time a player carries the chicken over the far end line. Players may run with it or throw it to a teammate at any time. 3. A guard ends the try by tagging whoever holds the chicken, on the arm or the back, or by catching a throw. Then everyone walks back to the line. 4. After five tries, three new guards come out. The guards who let the fewest chickens across win. Ages: 8 to 14. Players: 8 to 30. You need: one rubber chicken and three pinnies.
Catch It Before It Flops: Run Under the Throw 1. A chasing game for partners, with the chicken as the thing chased. A missed chicken flops down and waits where it fell, so nobody runs after a rolling ball. Partners start side by side on a line. 2. The thrower lobs the chicken high and forward, underhand. The runner sets off as it leaves the hand. 3. A catch before it lands scores a point. Five throws, then swap jobs. 4. In the next round the thrower may send it left, right or straight ahead, and the runner finds out only when it flies. Pairs spread out along the line, with five steps between them. Ages: 7 to 14. Players: 2 to 30. You need: a rubber chicken for each pair.
Feather the Chicken: One Clothespin a Trip 1. A relay that changes how the chicken looks: it has room for a dozen feathers. Each team of four has a chicken lying on a floor spot ten steps away and a cup of twelve clothespins at the start line. 2. One at a time, run a clothespin out, clip it to the chicken as a feather and run back to touch the next runner's hand. 3. A feather found on the floor is clipped back on by the runner who finds it, before their own goes on. 4. When all twelve are on, the last runner carries the chicken home by the feet. A feather that drops on the way goes back on before the team is done. Ages: 6 to 12. Players: 8 to 32. You need: a rubber chicken, twelve clothespins and a cup for each team.
Fling and Follow: A Relay Counted in Throws 1. A relay in which the chicken is thrown and never carried out. It does not roll, so every fling is taken from where the last one truly landed. Teams of four line up behind a line, with a cone fifteen steps away. 2. The first player flings the chicken toward the cone, runs to where it lies and flings again from there, until it has landed past the cone. 3. Then they pick it up, run straight back and hand it over. 4. The team counts every fling. When all four have gone, the lowest count wins, and a tie goes to the team that sat down first. Ages: 6 to 14. Players: 8 to 32. You need: a rubber chicken and a cone for each team.
Neck and Feet: Two Runners, One Chicken 1. A relay for pairs. A chicken has a handle at each end, so one partner holds the neck and the other the feet. 2. Each team sets four cones in a line, three steps apart. The first pair weaves through them and back with the chicken stretched between them. 3. If either hand lets go, the pair stops, takes hold again and carries on from that cone. 4. Hand over to the next pair neck to neck and feet to feet. The team sits when every pair has run twice. Ages: 6 to 12. Players: 8 to 32. You need: a rubber chicken and four cones for each team.
Thaw Toss Tag: A Caught Chicken Frees You 1. Freeze tag with a rescue by air. Three taggers wear pinnies and tag with a touch on the arm or the back. Three runners start with a chicken each. 2. A tagged runner freezes with both hands up. 3. A runner holding a chicken frees a frozen player by tossing it to them underhand from three steps or more. A frozen player can grab a leg, a wing or the neck, so most rescues work. The catcher is free and now carries the chicken. 4. Holding a chicken makes nobody safe. A tagged carrier freezes and lays the chicken down for any runner to pick up. Change the taggers every two minutes. Ages: 7 to 12. Players: 10 to 30. You need: three rubber chickens and three pinnies.

Rubber chicken party games 5

Chicken Charades: Pose the Bird, Not Yourself 1. Charades with a puppet. A rubber chicken bends, so it can sit, dive, wave and sleep. The first player thinks of something a person does: brushing teeth, riding a bike, diving into a pool. 2. Without a word, they move the chicken to act it out. Their own face and body stay still. 3. The first guest to guess right takes the chicken for the next turn. 4. A turn lasts one minute. If nobody guesses, the player says the answer and hands the chicken to someone who has not had a turn. Ages: 6 to 12. Players: 3 to 15. You need: one rubber chicken.
Elbows Only: Pass It Down the Line 1. A passing race for two lines. A chicken bends, so there is always something to pinch. Each team stands shoulder to shoulder with hands clasped behind their backs. 2. The first player of each line starts with the chicken pinched between both elbows. 3. Pass it down the line, elbows to elbows. A player who drops it picks it up by hand, pinches it again and carries on. 4. The line whose chicken reaches the far end first wins. Play again in the other direction. Ages: 6 to 12. Players: 6 to 20. You need: two rubber chickens.
Flip It Into the Pot 1. A target toss for a party. Stand a big cooking pot or a laundry basket on the floor and mark a line five steps away. 2. Each player gets three tosses, holding the chicken by the feet. It has to turn at least one full flip in the air. 3. In the pot scores one point. A chicken that folds over the rim and hangs there scores three, which no ball could do. 4. Play three rounds and keep a tally on paper. Younger children toss from a line two steps closer. Ages: 5 to 12. Players: 2 to 15. You need: one rubber chicken, a big pot or a laundry basket, and tape for the lines.
Frying Pan Flip: Toss, Turn, Catch 1. A flipping contest, one player at a time. The player holds a light frying pan, or a tennis racket, with the chicken lying on it. 2. Toss the chicken up so that it turns over once, and catch it on the pan. It lands with a slap and stays there, where a ball would roll off. 3. Count the clean flips in thirty seconds. A chicken that lands on the floor goes back on the pan by hand, and the count carries on. 4. Everyone has a turn, and the best count picks the next game. Ages: 6 to 12. Players: 2 to 15. You need: one rubber chicken and a light frying pan or a tennis racket.
Name That Squeak: Squeeze Out a Tune 1. A music guessing game with one squeaky chicken. Every note comes out the same, so the rhythm is the only clue. 2. The squeaker thinks of a tune everyone at the party knows, such as the birthday song or a nursery rhyme, and squeaks its rhythm, one squeak for each note. No humming. 3. The first guest to name the tune scores a point and squeaks next. 4. If nobody gets it after two tries, the squeaker hums the first line and picks who goes next. Ages: 6 to 12. Players: 3 to 15. You need: one rubber chicken that squeaks.

How this list was compiled: Our list of games in which a rubber chicken is the thing thrown, passed, chased or carried, for a gym class, a camp or a child's party. The wording, the ages and the player counts are ours. Chuck the Chicken is written as one way to play. A tag is a touch on the arm or the back, every throw is underhand or to a catcher, and nobody is put out. Checked on 12 October 2026: Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Why_did_the_chicken_cross_the_road%3F), for the riddle that Across the Road is named after. Licence: own work

How it works

In these PE games with rubber chickens the chicken is the thing thrown, passed, chased or carried. It flops where it lands and has a neck and feet to catch it by.

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How many chickens

Thaw Toss Tag takes three chickens, the relays one for each team and the partner games one for each pair. End Zone Chicken needs one for each court.

At a party

The party set fits a living room or a yard. Name That Squeak needs a chicken that squeaks, and Elbows Only needs two chickens.

Questions and answers

What is a good rubber chicken party game?

Flip It Into the Pot: three tosses from five steps with at least one flip in the air, one point in the pot and three for a chicken left hanging over the rim. For a quieter game, play Chicken Charades sitting down.

How do you play Chuck the Chicken?

One team throws the chicken, and its thrower runs laps around the bunched team. The other team runs to the chicken, lines up, passes it over and under to the end and shouts chicken to stop the laps. Then the jobs swap.

Which rubber chicken games work with one chicken?

Chuck the Chicken and Across the Road for a whole class, End Zone Chicken for two teams of up to seven, and Flip It Into the Pot, Chicken Charades, Name That Squeak and Frying Pan Flip for a party.