Playing outdoor games is part of growing up. We all have childhood memories of playing our favorite outdoor games with the kids from the neighborhood and our best friends from school. Now it is up to us to pass down the legacy to our children. Show them that playing outside is fun and teach them that physical activity is essential to their wellbeing.
Below is a list of five classic outdoor games your children are sure to love.
1) Hopscotch
Hopscotch is a simple jumping game that is easy to set-up and easy to learn. To play outdoors, all you need is a package of colored or plain white chalk, child-safe items like colored stones for the players to use as their markers, and a patch of concrete to draw the hopscotch board on.
Since there are a number of ways to draw a hopscotch board, experiment with a few different patterns and use the version your children like best.
The classic, old school way to create a hopscotch board is to use chalk on concrete to outline eight blocks in the shape of a lowercase letter “t.” Masking tape can be used as a substitute if chalk is not available or if you are playing indoors. Every player will need to find a small object that can be used as a marker. This is where you can get creative! Just make sure you don’t pick your mom’s favorite breakable figurine. Think more along the lines of a button, beanbag, or bottle cap.
Each player takes turns tossing his or her marker in block number one. The objective is to keep your balance as you hop over block one standing on one foot, then onto block two, three, four, etc. until you have reached the eighth block. To complete your turn, you must jump back through each number back to block two, bend over (still on one foot!) pick up your marker, and jump into block one and out of the hopscotch board. This completes the turn of one player. It is then time for the other players to take each of their turns.
There are a quite a few factors that determine whether a player is out and loses a turn. These things include failure to place your marker in the proper block for that particular turn, stepping into the block your marker is in, and losing your balance while attempting to pick up your marker. A player is also considered out if he or she steps on a line or uses both feet to hop into the next block. That player then loses his or her turn and must leave the marker in the block to try again after all the other players have taken their turn.
2) Red Rover
This game is fun when you have a big group of kids involved. Pick teams of equal size. Each team member holds hands tightly to create a chain. One side starts by picking someone on the opposing team to invite over to their team. Everyone shouts, “Red Rover, Red Rover, send Emily right over!” Emily then breaks free and runs toward the other team. The goal is to break the link of the other team. If Emily is successful, she gets to pick someone from that team to join her team. If Emily is unsuccessful, she has to join the opposing team. This continues until one side has all of the team members. The best thing about this game is that everyone is a winner in the end!
3) Four Square
Much like hopscotch you can create your own four square arena by drawing one with chalk or using masking tape. You will also need a rubber ball, or any ball that is good for bouncing. Draw or lay out a large square that is divided into four inner squares. There is one person per square. The first player in the top square bounces the ball to the player in the square to the left of his or herself. This sets off the play. Everyone has to use hands to bounce the ball, in one bounce, around the square until someone fumbles and is out. The players rotate bringing a new player into the square to replace the person who fumbled. A person is out if they catch the ball, if it takes more than one tap to bounce the ball to the next person, or if a person steps out of his or her designated square. The goal is to move up into the top square. Like Red Rover, in this game, everyone is a winner.
4) Tag
Tag is one of the oldest and most exciting outdoor games for children. An added benefit of playing tag is the level of physical activity – it is a great source of exercise! While there are many variations of this classic chasing game, two remain the most common with kids today: traditional tag and freeze tag.
In traditional tag, one person is chosen to be “it,” the person who must try to catch the others. When the person who is “it” touches another person, that person must chase after another and the game continues.
Another variation of tag is freeze tag. The player who starts out as “it” can tag as many people as he or she likes. When the person who is “it” tags a player, that player must stands still or “freeze.” The frozen players can only be unfrozen once a free player crawls in between their legs. The object of the game? For the “it” player to freeze all other players. As you can imagine, freeze tag can go on for quite some time if players are fast!
5) Duck Duck Goose
This is an all time favorite. All the players sit in a circle. The “it” player walks around the outside of the circle tapping the other players on the head saying, “duck, duck, duck, etc.” When he or she gets to the person they choose to be the new “it” person, they say “Goose!” The “goose” then has to chase the other player and tag them before he is able to sit down in the goose’s spot. If the “it” player gets to the seat before being tagged the “goose” is the new “it” and the game continues.
These are five classic old-school games that every child should know. While a playground with swings and slides and monkey bars is always fun, nothing beats these basic games you can play almost anywhere. With spring in the air, now is the perfect time to take your kids and their friends outside and show them how to have a good time. Get going!
Alicia Randall is a full-time nanny living in Santa Fe, New Mexico, who writes about topics related to children’s play in her spare time. For more information on playground equipment, please visit www.swingset.com.