Baby Names from A-Z Game

Baby Names from A-Z Game
Supplies: Sheet with letter of the alphabet, pens and babies names

Babies names are precious and it seems like it would be easy to write down a baby’s name for every letter in the alphabet, right? Well Baby Names A-Z game challenges your guess to write down as many names as the can in just a few minutes.

DIY Baby Names from A-Z Game Prep & Play
a. Create a game sheet with a space for a name at the top and each letter of the alphabet with a space beside it, large enough to write a name down. In most cases you’ll need three columns. Once complete, print out a game sheet for each guest attending the shower.

b. Hand out the game sheet and pens, and make sure guests have flat surface / something to write on for the Baby Names A-Z game.

c. Let guests know they will have 3 minutes to write down as many first names as they can complete on the list. Reminder, names must be real names and not peoples nicknames, made-up or random words placed in the blank to complete the sheet.

d. Start the game and let the guests fill in their answers. At 3 minutes, ask guests to put down their pens. It is time to score the Baby Names A-Z game sheets.

e. Now comes the one little detail you didn’t mention prior to the game starting. You only score points if you are the only one to write down a unique name! If someone else also has that name you don’t get points for it.

Some would say that you should share this information before the game start, however we found that we often would get names that weren’t names, like Tonka and other words with no vowels. By keeping it a secret people use real names and game twist makes it interesting and it is kind of like Boggle and Scattergories as more than two of the same answer means no points.

f. Now score your A-Z game sheets, by asking someone to give their answer and after they say it ask “Does anyone else have that answer? – Raise your hands, sorry no points. Any other answers and continue until you are through than letter, then move on to the next.

Sample: (Five players list a name for A.)
Sarah: Adam – zero points, she had the same name listed as Ashley
Joan: Arnold
Ashley: Adam – zero points, she had the same name listed as Sarah
Betty: Aaron
Tonya: Alex

In this sample Joan, Betty and Tonya would receive 1 point and Sarah and Ashley would get zero because they submitted the same name.

Other Baby Names from A-Z Game Options
a. Have the names be Only Boys Names or Only Girls Names base don the sex of the baby.

b. Instead of giving players 3 minutes to write down names, play until the first person has a name for each letter. This is a quicker way to play, but we have seen times when people write Queen for Q, Zen for Z and make-up words for X and Y.