4 fun Hanukkah party games to liven up the holiday spirit

Planning a party or carnival for Hanukkah? Keep your guests happy and entertained with these fun holiday games.

Once everyone has mingled and had plenty to eat or drink, they'll enjoy playing a few games designed just for the Hanukkah season. Below are four fun game ideas for your next Hanukkah party.

Fishing for dreidels can be a great game to play if younger kids are attending the party. You'll need mini-fishing rods, cotton string, small wooden dreidels, metal washers and magnets. Tie the string to the fishing rod and attach the ring magnet to the other end. Fit a metal washer around the stem of the dreidel and glue it in place to secure it. Place the dreidels in a large bucket of water. The children can then use the rods to fish around for the dreidels.

If you have a checker board, replace the pieces with silver and gold Hanukkah gelt to represent different teams. Players can play the games just like they would checkers, but using gelt coins will give the games a special holiday flair.

Menorah ring toss is a fun and festive game that doesn't require much planning. All you'll need to make the game are wooden or plastic rings. You can even use the curtain rings from your shower. Ask the kids to stand a few feet away from the menorah and tell them to try to toss the rings so that they land around one of the arms of the menorah. Once the kids get better at tossing the rings, ask them to back up and toss a few rings from further and further distances.

Latkes are a traditional food consumed on Hanukkah, so it's fun to make a game that revolves around cooking them. Players stand at the counter and try to flip the latkes into the air. The objective of the game is to have the latkes land on their reverse sides when players flip them. Players must avoid dropping the latkes, which can be difficult. Award extra points to the players who can keep their latkes in one piece. You can substitute small beanbags for the latkes if you don't want the kids to cook real latkes.