Minute to Win It — Back to School Edition

Everyone loves minute to win it games. But not everyone loves back to school. To get everyone excited about the return of school, we’ve created Minute to Win It Back to School Edition.

This post may contain affiliate links. I receive a small commission at no cost to you when you make a purchase using my link.

Minute to Win It Back To School Supplies:

• A one minute timer
• Yellow Pencils (lots) with the square sides – unsharpened
• Sturdy cup
• About 5 apples
• Sharpened pencils or pens
• Paper to write on
• Un-popped popcorn, three colored with Sharpie
• Cookies – one per player
• 2 six sided dice
• Goldfish crackers
• plastic soon
• two bowls
• Brown lunch bag
• Several pieces of newspaper
• Alphabet cereal
• Hole punch & paper
• Stack of single colored cups
• One different colored cup
• Elastics
• Big pile of socks or mittens

Minute to Win It Game: Pencil Grab

To start this Minute to Win it school game, you need a stack of pencils. (You can get some here.) Set the pencils on the table and have the player take one and hold it in her first. When the timer begins, she will let go of the pencil and then try to catch it. If she is successful, she takes a second pencil in her fist and tried again. Again she will let go of the pencils and try to re-catch them. As before, if she is successful she adds another pencil. On the other hand, if she drops a pencil at any point she must start over with one. At the end of the minute, the most pencils she has caught is her score. Next, the player moves onto the next player who starts over with one pencil. The winner of this game is the player who has the highest number of pencils caught.

Back to School Game: Pencil Bounce

For the Minute to Win It School game Pencil Bounce you will need the pencils and a sturdy cup or glass. The cup should not be able to be knocked over easily or be too tall; a coffee mug is a good size.
When the timer goes off, the player has one minute to bounce as many pencils into the cup as she can. She does this by tossing the pencil eraser side down onto the table and having it bounce into the cup. Her score is how many she puts in the cup within the minute. The winner is the player who has the most pencil in the cup.

Minute to Win it Back to School Game: Apple Stack

No first day of school would be complete with a back to school apple. You will need about five apples for our next game. Players have one minute to stack the apples one on top of each other and have them stay for three seconds. The player who can stack the most apples wins.

Back to School Game: Subject Recall

In this minute to win it school game, it is best if everyone plays in the same minute. Every player will need a sharpened pencil or pen and a piece of paper. When the timer starts, players have one minute to write down as many school subjects as they can. When time is up, players take turns saying the subjects on their pages. If two or more players have that subject, they get crossed off. If a player has a subject that the group votes is not a valid school subject, it is crossed off. On the other hand, if a player has a subject that no one else has, she gets a point. The player with the most points wins the game.

Minute to Win it Game: Seeds of Wisdom

We go to school to learn. In Seeds of Wisdom, players will search through the seeds to find the wisdom ones. You will need a bin of popcorn seeds. First, colour three seeds with a Sharpie or paint. Next, place the colored seeds in the bin and give it a shake. When the timer starts, players have one minute to find all three seeds of wisdom—without taking any other seeds out of the bin. The player with the most found seeds wins, or if there is more than one player who found all the seeds, the player with the shortest time wins.

Back to School Game: Smart Cookie

This is a classic minute to win it game. Each player gets a cookie. When the timer is started, every player places the cookie on his or hers forehead. Players then have to move the cookie down their face to their mouths without using their hands or letting the cookie fall off their faces. The first player to do so is deemed the Smart Cookie and wins the game.

Minute to Win It Back to School Game: Roll Ten

For this game, you will need two six sided dice. Players have one minute to see how many times they can roll the dice to add up to ten. Each pair that makes ten is a point. The winner is the player who rolled the most points.

Back to School Game: School of Fish

To start this school minute to win it game, you need one bowl of Goldfish crackers and one empty bowl. You will also need a plastic spoon. Players have one minute to see how many Goldfish they can move to their school of fish—the empty bowl. The trick is that they hold the spoon in their mouths. Only one fish can be moved at a time.
This could also be done with chop sticks or toothpicks if you wanted to avoid playing with the mouth.

Minute to Win It Game: Lunch Bag Toss

For Lunch Bag Toss you will need a brown paper lunch bag and several sheets of newspaper crumpled into balls. Place the bag in the middle of the floor and define a throwing line. Players have one minute to see how many paper balls they can get into the lunch bag. The player who gets the most paper in the bag is the winner.
If the balls are too big then rip or cut the papers in half before crumpling. Or use a wastepaper basket instead of the lunch bag.

Back to School Game: Spelling Class

For this Minute to Win It School game, you will need some alphabet cereal. Dump a hand full or two on the table. Each player gets one minute to spell as many words as they can. After that minute, it’s the next player’s turn. After all the players have had a turn, then everyone compares their lists. The player who came up with the most words is the winner.

Minute to Win It Back to School Game: Hole Punch Race

This game needs a hole punch. A single handheld punch works best but players could also use a three punch. Each player will also need a sheet of paper, an index size works great. When the timer starts, players have one minute to punch as many holes in their papers as they can. The player with the most holes wins. (If you need a hole punch you can get one here.)

Back to School Game: Find Your Cup

Find Your Cup is like looking for your name in a pile of papers where your paper is always on the bottom! You will need a stack of one-colored cups plus one of a different colour. Place the different colored cup on the bottom. Players then have to take the top cup and place it on the bottom of the stack. They keep going for one minute. The winner is the player who moved the most cups.
If you have a small stack, see how many times the players can get the colored cup to the top.

Minute to Win It Back to School Game: The Building Blocks of Knowledge

This game uses the cups from Find Your Cup. Players have one minute to stack the cups in a pyramid shape then take them back down. If it is a smaller stack, see how many times players can stack the pyramid. The player with the most cups done (or times) is the winner.

Back to School Game: Knock ‘Em Down

In this Minute to Win it school game you need the stack of cups and a handful of elastics. To play, line up the cups on the edge of the table. Next, players have one minute to shoot down as many of the cups as they can by shooting elastics at them. The player who knocks over the most cups wins.

Minute to Win it Back to school Game: Match ‘Em Up

You need a big pile of mittens or socks for this game. Dump the pile on the table and mix them up. Players then have one minute to make the most matches. For more of a challenge, have players wear oven mitts or socks on their hands. The player would makes the most matches wins.
This could also work if you have a large amount of capped pends that are all different.

The Last Laugh

Are you excited for school yet? Although these Minute to Win it Games might not get you completely ready for back to school, they sure do make for a fun family game night.
Tell us below in the comments what games you like best!

For more Minute to Win It games, read our Minute to Win It Winter Games.
Also, don’t forget to check out our game reviews, dice game and cards games for when all the homework is done.