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Recreation Games for Kids

Taking part in recreational activities helps to rejuvenate children's bodies as well as their minds. Feeling the wind blow through their hair as they run around can lighten their moods and give them plenty of exercise. Therefore, to get your kids in a more lively mood, try getting them to play some recreation games.

Octopus
- Assemble the group in a large outdoor area. Select two kids to stand in the middle of the area and become the octopuses. The rest of the group stands on one side of the area about 10 feet away from the middle. Begin the game by calling out "Octopus." The kids on the sidelines rush past the middle, avoiding the octopuses as they head to the other side of the play area. The octopuses try to tag the players as they race past. If a player gets tagged, he becomes a piece of seaweed and sits on the ground in the middle, tagging players as they go by without getting up from his seat. Continue to have the kids race back and forth from one side to the other whenever you call out "Octopus." The last player remaining, having avoided turning into a seaweed, wins the game (See Reference 1).
Boxes for Feet Relay
- Prepare for this game by gathering enough empty shoe boxes for every player. Tape the tops of the boxes to the bottoms and cut out a rectangular shape at the top of the box. Make sure that this hole can give the player enough room to fit his shoe inside, but not enough for his foot to come loose while running. The kids all put on their shoe boxes and head to a starting point. When you say "Go," the kids all race through an obstacle course comprised of balls and boxes until they reach the finish line. The first kid to finish the obstacle course wins the game (See Reference 2).
Sponge Race
- Prior to the game, gather some materials: four buckets and two sponges. Fill two of the buckets with an equal amount of water and place them some feet away from each other at one side of the play area. Place the other, empty, buckets parallel to the filled buckets on the other side of the area. Divide the players into two teams and line each team up next to a filled bucket of water. Give the first players lined up on each team a sponge. When you say "Go," the players have to soak up as much water as they can from the filled bucket and empty the sponge in the other bucket, heading back to their group quickly after this gets accomplished. The teammates all take turns performing this action until one team--the winning team--fills their empty bucket up first with water using only their sponge (See Reference 3).

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