Summer holiday games for children..
Uh oh – the long summer holidays are almost upon us, and if you have children at home, you know what’s headed your way… Muu-uum – I’m bored! Daa-aad – play with me!
You are not alone. You’re also not alone if you’re wondering how to fill these golden hours of summer without it costing you a fortune. Here are our top games ideas for a low cost, fun-packed summer!
First, here are a couple of ideas for games to play with your child.
Scavenger Hunt
A scavenger hunt is when you ask your child, or children, to go off and find a specific object. For example, you might ask them to go and find a daisy, or a single pink petal, or a purple flower. If you have a small child, one object at a time works well. For older children, create a list and get them to bring each item on the list. It’s a fun way to teach them what’s in the garden, the names of plants or flowers, or even minibeasts if you want to set a real challenge. Assess your garden first, of course – you don’t want to ask a small child to bring you a pink flower if you have foxgloves, as they can be poisonous.
You can find loads of pre-designed scavenger hunt ideas online with just a quick search.
What time is it, Mr Wolf?
A true classic and adored by younger children. You will take the part of the wolf and your child or children must stand some distance away, in a line. You will turn your back and they all shout: “What time is it, Mr Wolf?” You respond with a time, such as “It’s four o’clock!” Then the children all take four paces towards you and ask again. Once you think they are pretty close, next time they ask the time, you cry “It’s dinner time!” and chase them all around the garden. They will keep on coming back for more on this one, so be prepared!
Badminton
If your children are a little older, invest in a pop-up badminton set for hours of fun. You can find pretty low cost sets now, all contained in a single box, and some vigorous exercise is good for everybody!
Here are a couple of games your child can play solo:
Hop Scotch
Grab a piece of chalk and mark out a hopscotch court. First one square, then two more singles, then a double, then a single, another double, then two singles. Number them one to 10. Find a pebble and throw it to land in one of the squares. The aim is to get to that square, bend to pick up the stone and get back again just by hopping. It can be played in groups, or solo.
Sand pit
Oh, it’s a classic! A sand pit can provide a never-ending source of fun and don’t cost a great deal. One key thing is to make sure you get a sand pit with a lid – cats love sand pits and will use them as a litter tray. Yuk. If you don’t want to invest in a sandpit, there’s a lot to be said for old fashioned mud pies! Simply choose a portion of a flower bed, make sure it’s not been used by cats (they get around, these cats!) and soak it, really soak it, with water. Set your child the challenge of finding a worm, or mixing mud with other ‘ingredients’ such as leaves or grass, to make mud pies. If you really love the idea of some proper messy play, you could buy or build a mud kitchen – just Google for guidance.
Here are a couple of games for children to play in groups:
Capture the flag
Split the group into two teams and designate half of your garden to each team. Each team is given a flag – a dishcloth or tea towel is fine – to hide somewhere in their half. Once you shout go, or blow the whistle, the aim is to find, retrieve and bring the other team’s flag to their own half of the garden. If they are caught with an enemy flag, they have to return it and the game is paused while that team hides it again. It can get a bit rowdy, so you should definitely put some rules in place first, and stay supervising!
Monkey monkey
You will need ten small toys all of the same kind, such as bouncy balls, golf balls, small packs of Haribo, etc. Before the children arrive, hide the toys around the garden, choosing spots where they won’t do any damage to themselves or your garden! Split your group of children into two, with just two on one team and the rest on the other. Create a stockade (an area marked with skipping ropes or scarves). Next, tell them the story: a troop of monkey has escaped from the local zoo. The larger team’s task is to go and find the monkeys (the toys you hid earlier) and bring them back to the stockade. The team of two are monkey freedom fighters, and must sneak into the stockade and remove the monkeys and re-hide them. Set a time limit, and at the end of the game count the monkeys in the stockade versus those that are out of the stockade. The winning team is the team with the most monkeys.
Parachute
Perfect for toddlers! You will need to buy a parachute for kids for this game, we suggest a quick search on Amazon. They’re not expensive and will last and last. The ones with handles to hold onto around the edge work best. There are so many games you can play with small children and a parachute! One is to have each child hold a handle, then to place two different coloured soft balls in the centre of the parachute. Then you all raise the parachute fast and bop it around until one of the balls falls out. It’s just silly fun, but they love it. Another is to all hold a handle and lift the parachute up and down while each child takes a turn to run underneath and back again. One that requires some skill is to roll a ball around the edge of the parachute without it falling off, moving from child to child as it circles the ring. Search up parachute games on Google – and have fun!
Eddie – Friday 23rd June 2023. (Picture used from Hortree Road, Stretford).
