outdoor activities for kids
Playing outdoors for kids is perhaps the most reassuring way of spending free time. However, this has come to change with today’s modern technologies keeping kids indoors for long periods.
Listed below are some of the non-tech games that can be enjoyed by your kid. We made sure to collect ideas for the most popular activities.
Before heading out to these fun activities, though, make sure that your child is safely strapped in the car seat. It’s easy to rush and forget safety. No matter your child’s age, convertible car seats are great for newborns, as well as kids up to 12 years old.
25 Simple Outdoor Activities for Kids
Hide and seek
Number of players: ideally approximately three players
Equipment: none required
Hiding and finding is a common interest in most small kids. Count to ten, twenty when a person closes his/her eyes and hide. He/she then tries to find the others.
Kick the can
Number of players: at least three
Equipment: a metal can
A slight variation of the hide and seek. A can is placed at the center of the playing area and hides and seek is played. If one is found by the seeker, the other players try to kick the can before the seeker to release the captured person.
Capture the flag
Number of players: a large group
Equipment: two flags
The team is split into two groups, with each group having a flag and a base. The objective is to invade the other team’s base, steal the flag, and return safely to your territory.
Parachute
Number of player: eight to ten
Equipment: play parachute
This is a simulation of the real-life parachuting experience but is done by kids.
Traffic cop
Number of players: small group
Equipment: bikes, scooters, wagons
Requires a street with no traffic. One person directs the traffic ensuring that the kids don’t run into each other.
Four square
Number of players: four
Equipment: four-square court
Is a ball game played on a four-squared court divided into small squares numbered one to four? One is the highest-ranked, and four is the lowest. Bounce the ball in the squares, bouncing once in the other persons’ square before the owner catches it.
Hopscotch
Number of players: one at a time
Equipment: hopscotch grid, rock
Make hopscotch using sidewalk chalk and number the squares. Pick a good rock for tossing and start tossing from the first square.
Jump rope and double dutch
Number of players: one for single jumping, three for double jumping
Equipment; jump rope
This activity is self-explanatory. You can incorporate jump-rope rhymes to liven the exercise.
Chinese jump rope
Number of players: three
Equipment: stretchy type rope
Two people put their feet inside the rope and stretch out far apart as the other person jumps in between.
Playing with Chalk
Number of players: Any
Equipment: Chalk & creativity
Get your child interested in chalk by checking out these ideas. You can even add to the fun by getting one of these cool chalk backpacks!
Jacks
Number of players: any number, taking turns
Equipment: set of jacks and ball
Played on any flat surface. The player scatters the jacks, tosses the ball up, and tries to scoop all the jacks and catch the ball with one hand before it bounces.
Red light, green light
Number of players: a small group
Equipment: none
One person controls the traffic light and the other players at the other end. Red light requires all players to freeze, and green allows them to move closer. Anyone found moving with the red light goes back to the starting zone.
Marbles
Number of players: minimum of two
Equipment: chalk, a set of marbles
Draw a circle in the sand or sidewalk, take turns trying to knock each other’s marbles.
outdoor activities for kids
Mother, May I
Number of player: a small group
Equipment;: none
Has the same set up as red light, green light. Rules change depending on individual customizations. However, the basic idea is one person places a request and the other grants.
Simon says
Number of players: a small group
Equipment: none
Just like the previous game, one person says, “Simon says, “insert action here” and everyone does the action. If Simon makes the request without the beginner’s words and anyone does the action, he/she is eliminated.
Tag
Number of players: any number
Equipment: none
The group decides who becomes “it”. The “it” chases the others around and tags one who becomes the new “it.”
Shadow Tag
Number of players: small group
Equipment: none
It is a fun version of the Tag where you tag each other’s shadow with your feet instead of their body.
Freeze tag
Number of players: small group
Equipment: none
A variation of the Tag, where if the “It” person tags you, you freeze where you are until another person tags you to unfreeze you.
TV tag
Number of players: small group
Equipment: none
Another variation of the freeze tag where the person unfreezing the frozen person has to call out any title of a TV show.
Marco Polo
Number of players: small group
Equipment: swimming pool
Yet another variation of the tag, it is played in a swimming pool. The “it” closes their eyes and yells “Marco”. Other players then yell “Polo”.
Red Rover
Number of players: any group
Equipment: none
The group is divided into two teams, each facing each other, holding hands. The teams take turns calling out “red rover, red rover, let “ insert child’s name” come over. The named child leaves your line and runs to the other line and tries to break through the held hands.
outdoor activities for kids
Head up, seven up
Number of players: minimum of 14
Equipment: deck to sit on
For each round, 1 person is the caller. They will call out “Heads up, seven up!” or “Heads up, stand up!” All children raise their heads and the children whose thumbs were pressed stand up. Each in turn names the person they think pressed their thumb or tapped their head.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heads_Up,_Seven_Up
Spud
Number of players; any size
Equipment: a button
This wikiHow explains with pictures on how to play this fun outdoor activity of kids.
Cat’s cradle
Number of players: one or two
Equipment: 36-inch long string
Check out this great guide on how to play Cat’s Cradle.
Hand-clap games
Number of players: usually two, but with creativity even three or four
Equipment: none
Get your kids outdoor with these activities
There are so many options when it comes to games to play with your kids. We hope this list has given you a great start for playing outdoors this summer! Which one of these simple outdoor activities for kids was your favorite? Let us know in the comments below!
I played so many of those games as a kid and had completely forgotten about many of them. Thank you for the reminder!