15 Fun Games to Play on Zoom for Kids & Families

Michele Meleen, M.S.Ed.

Michele is a writer who has been published both locally and internationally.

Published April 2, 2020

When you can't be together in person, it's easy for kids and families to play virtual games through the video communication tool Zoom. You don't need any special materials to play these games, just what's in your house, a webcam, and Zoom. The basic version of Zoom is free, but you'll need to create an account to host a gathering.

Family Charades

Charades is one of the easiest and most fun games for kids and adults of all ages to play on Zoom. This group game needs at least three participants, but more is better.

Game Setup

The host of the Zoom call should choose a few general categories and write each on a separate piece of paper. These categories can be kept in a bowl. Simple kid-friendly Charades categories include:

Animated movies (could be titles, songs, or characters)
Animals
Actions
Things you do in the house
Things you do in the summer

Zoom Features Used

Video
Microphone
Chat
Share Screen

How to Play

Game play will go in alphabetical order of your first name in Zoom.
To start a round, the Zoom host will pull one category out of the bowl.
Each participant (which includes all the family members sharing one webcam) will have a turn to act out something during each round.
The participant whose name is first alphabetically acts first. If there are multiple people on that webcam, they have to choose one actor and secretly choose one thing for him to act out.
The actor clicks on "Share," then chooses the screen option that show what his webcam sees. Make sure your microphone and video are on, but all others should have their microphones off.
He acts out his chosen word or phrase that fits the category pulled by the host.
To guess the word or phrase, all other participants must type their guess into the chat.
Whoever guesses right first in the chat gets a point.
Every participant takes a turn acting out something from the same category for this round.
To play additional rounds, the Zoom host can pull out a new category for each round.
The player(s) with the most points at the end wins.

Whiteboard Hangman

Playing hangman is easy when you use Zoom's whiteboard feature. It allows participants to add text, shapes, and free-hand drawings on the screen. Hangman is typically a two-person game, but you can make it multi-player by taking turns guessing letters. Use single words when playing with younger kids and complete sentences or phrases when playing with older kids.

Zoom Features Used

Screen Share - Whiteboard
Annotation Tools
Microphone

How to Play

Choose one participant to start. This person will choose the hangman phrase.
The person choosing the hangman phrase should click "more options" at the top of their screen, then they can click on the little pen tool.
This person should draw a standard hangman board, add the blank lines for all the letters in their word or phrase, and use the text tool to make a text box that includes all the letters of the alphabet in order.
Go in alphabetical order by name and let each other player guess a letter. To guess a letter, a player needs to unmute their microphone and say the letter.
The person who chose the phrase will then add the letter to a blank line if it fits there, or cross it off and draw part of the stick man.
Players take turns guessing one letter until someone has a guess for the word or phrase. On a turn, instead of guessing a letter, this player can guess the word or phrase by turning their microphone on and saying it or typing it in the chat.
If the stick man is hanged before anyone guesses the word or phrase, no one wins and the person with the next alphabetical name goes next.
The player who guesses the correct answer gets to choose the word or phrase for the next round.
The Zoom host can clear all the text and drawings from the whiteboard at the end of a round.

Find a Match

Younger kids will have fun with this active family matching game. You'll need at least two players, but can have as many as you want. Players will need to find items in their home that match items from other player's homes.

Zoom Features Used

Video
Chat

How to Play

Choose one player to start. This person should be the only one with their video and audio on to start.
The first player finds any object from their home and holds it up for everyone to see for about 30 seconds.
This player shouts "Go!" and all other players have to search their own homes for an item that is as similar to the shown item as possible. For example, if the shown item is a red t-shirt with a flag on it, you'd try to find a red t-shirt or even a t-shirt with a flag on it.
When a player finds a matching item, she turns on her video and holds up the item.
The player who brings back the best match gets a point. If it's too hard to tell who is the winner, ask all players to vote in the chat.
All players take a turn as the one to select an item others have to match.
Play as many rounds as you want. The player with the most points at the end wins.

Family Truth or Dare

Truth or Dare is an easy game kids and families can play anywhere. Set some ground rules to start, like dares must be age appropriate and involve things everyone has or can do in front of their camera. You need at least two players, but the more the merrier.

Zoom Features Used

Video
Microphone
Chat
Screen Share - Whiteboard
Annotation Tools

Game Setup

Use the whiteboard feature to create a list of truth question and a list of dares as a group. Create one column for each and let players take turns adding things.

How to Play

Go in order from youngest to oldest.
The youngest person will start by turning on their microphone and choosing any other player to ask "Truth or Dare?"
If the player chooses Truth, the person who asked gets to choose one question from the Truth list for them to answer.
If the player chooses Dare, the person who asked gets to choose one dare from the Dare list for them to do on camera.
Game play continues as long as you want, or up to 40 minutes because that is the limit for group meetings on the free version of Zoom.

Zoom Family Feud

Adapt the classic game show Family Feud into a fun Zoom game for kids and families. This game works best when you have at least 10 players who can be split into 2 teams.

Zoom Features Used

Chat
Video
Microphone
Screen Share - Whiteboard
Annotation Tools

Game Setup

You'll want to have some simple Family Feud questions ready before the game starts.

Open the whiteboard function by clicking "Share" then choosing the "whiteboard" option.
Draw a Family Feud game board with three blank spaces for the answers and an area to keep score for each team.
It helps to add the names of the players on each team to their score area.
In the top blank space, add the number "20," in the middle space add the number "10," and in the bottom space add the number "5." These are the point values for each answer.

How to Play

One player needs to host each round, so take turns choosing one person from your team to host.
The host will read a question out loud to the group and ask everyone to send a private message to them with the first answer that comes to mind. In the chat section you should see "everyone" above where you can type. If you click the drop-down arrow next to it, you can choose which person to send your message to.
The host will take all the answers and find the top 3 based on the number of players who gave the same answer. If all players gave different answers, the host can choose their own top 3 from those options.
All players besides the host should turn off their video.
The host will ask the question.
The first person to turn on their video gets to answer first.
- If their answer is one of the top 3, their team gets to play the round. The host writes this answer on the game board.
- If their answer is not one of the top 3, the first player from the opposing team who turned on their camera gets to take a guess.
- If neither team guesses an answer on the board, start the round over with everyone's cameras off.
The team who plays the round then takes turns guessing the other two answers on the board. If they guess wrong, they get a strike. If they guess right, it gets written on the board.
- If the team guesses all three answers before they get 3 strikes, they get all 35 points.
- If the team gets 3 strikes before they guess all three answers, the other team can use the chat to come up with one guess from their whole team.
- If the opposing team guesses an answer from the board, they steal all 35 points.
Write the score and choose a new host from the opposing team for the next round.
Play five rounds. The team with the most points at the end wins.

Apples to Apples Backgrounds

Use the cool Zoom feature of virtual backgrounds to play a virtual version of the board game Apples to Apples. Instead of cards, players will have to add a virtual background that best fits with the given word. You need at least three players for this game, but the more, the better.

Game Setup

Each participant will need to have a bunch of images ready on their computer to add as virtual backgrounds. You'll want to have at least 10 images to choose from, and each should have a different theme. The host also needs to make sure they have it set so everyone can use virtual backgrounds. Individual users can login to their Zoom account and check under "My Settings" to make sure they've enabled this feature.

Zoom Features Used

Video
Chat
Virtual Backgrounds

How to Play

Choose one player to host first. This person should turn on their microphone and tell everyone a word, action, or famous person's name.
Every other player will need to click on the upward arrow next to the video camera icon, select "choose virtual background," and click "add image." This allows you to take one of your pre-planned images and add it as a virtual background.
When all players have a virtual background up, the host decides which one best matches the word or name they chose. The player with the best background gets one point.
Each family member takes a turn being the host.
The player with the most points at the end wins.

Name That Song

You can easily play a game of Name That Song on Zoom using only your microphones. This game is best for groups of about five, especially when one or more players don't have a webcam.

Game Setup

Each player will need to have some music ready either on their phone, tablet, computer, radio, or MP3 player. It helps to choose a specific type of music with songs most people in your group will know. If you are playing with little kids, stick to children's songs.

Zoom Features Used

Microphone
Chat

How to Play

Go in order from oldest to youngest.
The first musician plays about 20 seconds of the beginning of one song for everyone to hear.
The first player to type the correct song title in the chat gets a point.
Each player gets at least one turn as the musician.
The player with the most points at the end is the winner.

Wink Assassin

Believe it or not, you can play the classic winking ice breaker game, Wink Assassin on Zoom. This game is best for older kids and large groups.

Zoom Features Used

Video
Chat - Private and Everyone

How to Play

Everyone should keep their camera on at the start of each round.
For each round, choose one moderator. The moderator chooses the assassin for the round and doesn't play.
The moderator should send a private message to the person they designate as the assassin.
The moderator starts a conversation about anything.
During the conversation, the assassin will physically wink, then send a private message to the person they are winking at that says "wink."
Within 5 seconds of receiving a "wink" message, a player must dramatically die then turn off their video.
Other players should add their guess of who the assassin is after each death by typing it in the chat for everyone to see.
The assassin keeps winking at people until someone guesses their identity.
The first player to guess the assassin becomes the next moderator.

Zoomderdash

Play the classic definition guessing game Balderdash without owning the board game. This version of Balderdash is unique to Zoom, so you can call it Zoomerdash. You'll need at least three players, but the game is best with around five. Kids ages eight and up will have the most fun with this game.

Zoom Features Used

Chat
Screen Share - Whiteboard
Annotation Tools

Game Setup

Each player will need access to a dictionary to play. You can use any online dictionary.

How to Play

Choose one player as the host. The host can choose any weird word from the dictionary.
The host should write their word on the whiteboard.
Each player should make up a definition for that word and send it privately to the host.
Once the host has a definition from each player, he should add all the definitions, including the real definition, to the whiteboard.
Each player should type in the group chat their guess about which definition is correct.
Anyone who guesses the right definition gets a point.
Play as many rounds as you'd like with a new host each round.
The player with the most points is the winner.

I Spy

One of the easiest games for young kids to play on Zoom is I Spy. Players will have to scour each other's backgrounds to find named items. The more players you have, the more things you'll have to look at.

Game Setup

This game works best if you make sure your camera points toward a background that includes a lot of objects. If you want, you can even create a busy background by adding a crazy virtual background to your screen or pinning images and items to a large bulletin board placed behind you.

Zoom Features Used

Video
Microphone

How to Play

One player says "I spy" and describes something they see on any other player's screen.
Players can take turns calling out guesses.
The player who guesses the answer first gets to spy something next.

Twenty Questions

Anyone can play a classic game of Twenty Questions on Zoom. You need at least two players, but you can play as a group.

Zoom Features Used

Microphone
Chat
Optional - Screen Share/whiteboard

How to Play

One player thinks of a person, place, or thing.
All other players can ask up to 20 yes or no questions to guess this person, place, or thing.
Players should take turns typing questions into the group chat. When you ask a question, number it to show what number question it is. You can use the whiteboard for this instead of the chat if you want.
The person who thought of the item types "yes" or "no" after each question.
If a player has a guess, they can type that on their turn instead of a question.
Whoever guesses the correct answer gets to come up with the next item.

Fashion Frenzy

If your kids love dressing up or playing the ROBLOX game Fashion Frenzy, they'll love this live version. You'll want to play from home so you have access to clothing and accessories. The bigger the group, the more fun the game.

Zoom Features Used

Video
Microphone
Chat

How to Play

Choose one person to host the round. The host gives everyone a category, like "magic," or a place you might go such as "camping in the woods."
All other players have to find things around their house to wear that go with the host's directive.
When a player is dressed and back to their camera, take turns modeling your outfits. Each person can share their screen by choosing the camera view, so they become the biggest image on the screen.
After everyone has modeled, each player has 30 seconds to vote in the chat for the person they think had the best outfit. You can't vote for yourself.
The host tallies the votes and announces the winner.
The winner of each round becomes the host of the next round.

On-Screen Memory

Challenge your family members to a quick game of Memory in Zoom. This group game works well for groups of any size.

Game Setup

Each player needs to make a tray of random items before you get on Zoom. You can use a plate, tray of any size, or even a flat box to hold your collection of items. If you're playing with young kids, keep the collections to 7 or fewer items. If you're playing with older kids, you can have up to 15 items on your trays.

Zoom Features Used

Video
Chat

How to Play

Choose one player to display their collection first.
This player should make sure their video is large by choosing the screen sharing option that shows their camera view.
The player will then hold up their tray for one minute so everyone can see what's on it.
When one minute is up, the player will hide their tray. All other players will privately message them with the items they remember from the tray.
The player who remembers the most items is the winner.
For an added challenge, let each player show their tray for one minute, then try to remember what was on each separate tray.

Family Names Scrabble

You can play Scrabble without the points on Zoom using the letters of your names as your tiles. This game is best for older kids and groups of four or five.

Zoom Features Used

Video
Screen Share - Whiteboard
Annotation Tools

How to Play

Open the whiteboard feature by clicking on "Share" then choosing "Whiteboard."
Each player should choose a different color for their pen or text from the "format" section on the annotations tool bar.
Each player should write their first name along one edge of the whiteboard. These are the letter tiles each person starts with. You want to have at least 7 letters, so you can add letters from your middle and last name if needed.
The youngest player goes first and writes a word in the center of the whiteboard using only letters from their name. They cross off each letter as they use it.
Players take turns trying to create words that connect to each other.
On your second turn, you can take the number of letters you used from the name of any person next to you in the arrangement of video screens. You can only have 7 letters at a time.
Play continues until no one can make a new word.

Zoomword Puzzle

This game is basically a mashup of Scattergories and Scrabble. People of all ages can play, but this game is best for smaller groups.

Zoom Features Used

Video
Audio
Screen Share - Whiteboard
Annotation Tools

How to Play

One player chooses a broad category for the game, like "animals."
Another player starts the game by using the whiteboard feature to write any word they can think of related to the category.
Players take turns adding category words that connect to any of the words already written on the whiteboard.
See how many words you can add to your Zoom word puzzle.

Play With Zoom

Keeping in touch with family and friends through group video calls like the ones offered by Zoom is fun and good for the soul. The free version of Zoom is easy for anyone to get on any device with internet capabilities and it has lots of great basic features. Think of all the games you could play on Zoom!