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White Elephant Sign up Sheet Template
What Is a White Elephant Sign Up Sheet?
A White Elephant Sign Up Sheet is used during the festive period for individuals who are interested in taking part in a White Elephant Gift Exchange. It is intended more of as a game and a chance for the people taking part to amuse each other by purchasing funny and impractical presents.
Alternate Name:
- White Elephant Gift Exchange Sheet.
The basic White Elephant Gift Exchange rules involve all signed up people bringing in a wrapped present and one by one, the individuals begin opening a present. The following individual does not necessarily have to open a second present; they can opt to take the present of the first person and so on. In the end, nobody really knows what present they will be left with until the game is over. In most cases, there is a limit on how many times one gift can be taken (this is usually two times) in order to make the game more interesting and fair. We would suggest explaining the rules thoroughly to all individuals after they have signed up to the exchange as to avoid confusion.
By using a Sign Up sheet you will have a definite idea of how many people want to take part in the game and this will make it much easier to organize and keep track of.
A White Elephant Sign Up Sheet template can be downloaded by clicking the link below.
How to Do a White Elephant Gift Exchange?
This game can actually be a great deal of fun providing that everyone sticks to the rules and is aware of them. When organizing the White Elephant Gift Exchange you should take into account the following points:
- Ensure that all gifts are wrapped otherwise it takes the fun out of the game if everyone can see the presents;
- Make sure that nobody signs who the gift is from, this must remain a secret until the game ends;
- Decide on a theme and a budget for the gifts and make sure that everyone sticks to these rules;
- Install a limit on the number of times that a gift can be stolen otherwise you face a potential situation where the same gift is stolen over and over again;
- Introduce a deadline for bringing in gifts and maybe even delegate a host to keep control of this. The downside is, the host will not be able to play and receive gifts;
- Once you have all of the presents, find a suitable date and time that is convenient for all players to complete the game;
- Decide on an order (who will start and who will be last to open or steal a gift);
- Have the first person open the present and then let the subsequent individual decide whether they want to open another present or take the present from the first person. Continue this until all of the presents are opened and all individuals taking part have a present.
How to Do a Virtual White Elephant Gift Exchange?
At first glance it may seem impossible, but there is definitely a way around hosting a Virtual White Elephant Gift Exchange. Although the concept and rules remains the same as detailed above, the format will of course vary:
- Select a convenient date and time that all signed up individuals can attend;
- Inform them of which online platform you will be using to hold your Virtual White Elephant Gift Exchange. This can be done via Skype, Zoom, Google Meet, Discord or any other software that is convenient for all members;
- Once in the video call, ask all individuals to put their present in view of the camera and then proceed to play as usual. We would also recommend using a tracker sheet to keep track of who has taken what present - otherwise things can get confusing;
- After the game has concluded and all individuals have a present they can proceed to mailing out the gift to the newly deserved owner of each present.
Still looking for a particular template? Take a look at the related templates below:
- Secret Santa Sign Up Sheet Template;
- Christmas Party Sign Up Sheet Template;
- Karaoke Sign Up Sheet Template.
