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15 Games to Play on FaceTime With Grandchildren
Games to play on FaceTime with grandchildren aged 2 to 8: 15 that keep a small child on camera, sorted by age, and what UK screen guidance says.
The games that work on FaceTime give a small child something to do with their body, not just something to say: copy a pose, freeze on a signal, guess an object, draw a picture. Here are 15 to play with grandchildren aged 2 to 8, sorted by age, and every one works just as well on a WhatsApp video call.
None of them needs an app, a board or a second screen. They need a phone propped against the fruit bowl at each end, and a grown-up nearby at the child's.
What do you need before the call starts?
A propped-up phone at each end, turned sideways and far enough back that you can see the child from head to toe. That matters more than anything else here, because most of these games are about moving, and a camera an inch from a nose shows nothing.
Then put together a small call box by your chair: a tea towel, a wooden spoon, a pack of cards, paper, two pens and a teddy. That covers all fifteen games, and the same set-up works for games to play on a WhatsApp video call.
Two things about video calls shape the list. The picture and sound often run a moment behind, and calls cope badly with two people talking at once. So the games below use signals you can see rather than hear, and take turns rather than talking over each other. Pick one game per call, two at most.
15 games to play on FaceTime, by age
Ages 2 to 3: faces and teddies
1. Peekaboo with a tea towel
Hide your face behind a tea towel and pop out at a different corner of the screen each time. Then pass the idea over: their parent holds a towel at their end. Good for ages 2 to 3, and babies can watch from a parent's lap.
2. Where's your nose?
Touch your nose and ask them to find theirs. Then ears, toes, elbows, tummy. Point to your elbow and call it your knee, and wait for the outrage. Good for ages 2 to 3.
3. The teddies' tea party
You bring a teddy, they bring one, and the two teddies talk while you do the voices. Ask what their teddy had for breakfast and let your grandchild run the story. Good for ages 2 to 4.
Ages 3 to 5: games on their feet
4. Copy my pose
Stand back and make a shape, a cat with a round back or a tree on one leg, and they copy it. Then swap. If both houses have the same mat design, call a number instead: on Sun Salutation, 1 is mouse and 13 is eagle; on Freedom Flow, 1 is flower and 13 is happy baby. Good from age 3.
5. Simon says, by video
You're Simon for three rounds, then they are. Every command has to be something you can see on camera: "Simon says hop", "Simon says hands on your head". Our Simon says ideas have sixty more. Good from age 3.
6. Spoon freeze
They dance; when you hold up the wooden spoon, they freeze. Lower it and they're off again. A spoon works better than music, because sound down a call is thin and late, and a raised spoon isn't. Good from age 3.
7. Animal walks
Name an animal, and they go to the far wall and back as that animal: a crab, a bear, a frog, a penguin. Then they name one for you, and you do it in your living room. Good from age 3.
Ages 4 to 6: guessing games
8. Super close-up
Hold something right up to the camera so it fills the screen: a fork, a satsuma, the cat's ear. Pull it back slowly until they guess. Then they find something for you. Good from age 4.
9. Behind my back
Hide an object behind your back and give three clues: "It's in the kitchen. It's round. You eat soup with it." Three guesses, then reveal. Good from age 4.
10. Spy on my screen
I spy, but you can only spy things in the other person's picture. It makes them look properly at your room, and you at theirs. Colours from age 4, first letters from 5.
Ages 5 to 8: paper-and-pencil games
11. Noughts and crosses, two copies
Each of you draws the grid. Call your square, "top left" or "middle", and both of you mark it. Hold the papers up to check every few goes. Good from age 5.
12. Draw what I describe
Describe a simple picture step by step without saying what it is: a big circle, two small circles on top, a smile. They draw as you talk, then both hold up the results. Good from age 5.
13. Higher or lower
You hold the only pack of cards. Turn one over and they guess whether the next will be higher or lower. Count the right guesses in a row on your fingers. Good from age 5.
14. Battleships on squared paper
Both draw a five-by-five grid, letters across and numbers down, and hide three two-square ships. Take turns calling squares: "B3." Hit or miss. Good from age 7.
15. Teach me something
They teach you: a clapping game from the playground, a dance, a joke, a pose. You're the pupil, and you get it slightly wrong so they can put you right. Good from age 6.
Which games get a four-year-old moving?
Copy my pose, Simon says, spoon freeze and animal walks. A four-year-old won't sit still to chat for long, but they'll stay in front of the camera if the game needs them to stand back and show you something. The movement is what keeps them in the call.
Acting things out helps with talking, too. The NHS suggests acting out parts of a story together with 3 to 5 year olds, pretending to be a tree when the book has one in it, and says interactive story time helps children learn to talk, express themselves and move around. Over a video call, the teddies' tea party and animal walks are both versions of that.
What does the UK screen guidance say about video calls?
The UK government's screen time guidance for under-5s names video calling with family as one of the shared activities it has in mind. That makes a call with a grandparent a different kind of screen time from a child watching a tablet alone, but it is still screen time.
What it says, word for word:
- Under 2: "Avoid screen time other than for shared activities with family that encourage bonding, interaction and conversation."
- 2 to 5: "Try to keep it to 1 hour a day. Less if possible."
- Shared activities: these "could include video calling with friends and family or looking through digital photo albums together."
The guidance also advises against young children using screens alone, against screens at mealtimes and in bedrooms, and against screens in the hour before bed. It was launched by the government on 26 March 2026.
In practice, that points to a call with a parent sitting nearby, and a slot before tea rather than during it or just before bed. Every game in this list has the child doing something with you, which is the kind of shared screen use the guidance describes. Our screen time questions round-up looks at whether a call uses up part of that hour.
How do you make a video call with a small child fun?
Give them a job, keep it short and end it on a high. The call that goes well is usually the one with a game in it and a clear goodbye, rather than a long chat that fades out while they wander off.
A few things that help:
- Let them choose from two games you suggest, so they arrive keen.
- Do the silly part yourself. The grandparent who wobbles in tree pose is the one they ring back.
- Agree the time with the parents, and keep to it.
- Ask for the tour. Small children love carrying the phone to show you the garden, the den or the new shoes, and it gives a restless child a reason to stay on.
Our guide to bonding with grandchildren covers the weekly habit around the call, and our things to do with grandchildren are for when you're in the same room. On a birthday, a call goes well with a card that's written for their age.
What if they walk off after two minutes?
That's normal, and it doesn't mean the call has failed. Small children leave a screen when something more interesting happens in the room, and that's what you'd want them to do.
Follow them rather than calling them back. Ask the parent to carry the phone after them, because whatever pulled them away is usually something they'd happily show you: a tower, the cat, a brother in the bath. If there's nothing to follow, wave, say a cheerful goodbye and save the game for next time. A short call that ends well makes the next one easier to start.
Frequently asked questions
What card games can you play on FaceTime?
Higher or lower is the easiest, because only the grandparent needs a pack: turn a card, and the child guesses whether the next is higher or lower. Go Fish works if each house deals its own hand from its own pack and everyone plays honestly. Snap is hard, because the picture often arrives a moment late.
What games can you play on a video call with a 2-year-old?
Keep it to faces, voices and one object. Peekaboo with a tea towel, where's your nose and the teddies' tea party all work at two, with a parent holding the phone nearby. Expect a few minutes rather than a whole game, so wave goodbye while they're still smiling and try another one next time.
How long should a video call with a toddler be?
There's no official length. As a starting point, try five to ten minutes with a two or three-year-old and around fifteen with a five-year-old who has a game to play, then adjust to your grandchild. End while they're still enjoying it. The guidance doesn't carve calls out of its 1 hour a day for 2 to 5 year olds, so count the call in it.
Can you play games on a WhatsApp video call?
Yes. Every game in this list works the same on WhatsApp as on FaceTime, because none of them uses anything built into the app. All you need is the phone propped up at each end, far enough back to see the child, and the bits each game needs, such as a tea towel, a wooden spoon or a pack of cards.
A pose for each end of the call
Copy my pose is the game most likely to stick, because a pose takes ten seconds and works at any age, including yours. If you'd rather call numbers than names, our kids' yoga mats have fifteen poses laser-engraved into the surface. They're for ages 3 to 8 and full length, so you can try every pose as well.
If you'd rather send something that keeps you in touch between calls, such as a letter kit, our gifts for grandchildren are chosen with that in mind.
