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Kiddie Carnival Games

Kids carnivals are a source of fun and excitement. Equally appropriate for schools, civic organizations and parties, carnival games are simple to set up and operate. Games such as Fish Pond have been around forever, but kids still love them. Updated variations on standard games are a way to keep activities fresh and lively. Including older children and teens in booth planning and decoration increases their involvement and generates ideas that adults may have overlooked.

Mix Games and Activities
- Balloons add to the festive carnival feel.
  
  Kiddie carnivals are at their best when they have just the right blend of games and activities. Face painting is simple and always popular. Helium balloons add a festive air. Cotton candy machines draw young and old alike. Photo booths are perfect for capturing the good times. Rental games such as jungle bouncers add excitement, but traditional carnival games will always be a draw too. Include a blend of target games, races and games of chance. Keep in mind the age range of the attendees and offer games that can adapt to different skill levels.
Fish Pond
- Fishing games are a sure-fire winner for carnivals.
  
  Fish Pond is a simple game with a wealth of possibilities for variations. Stretch a clothesline across a room or between two trees, about 6 feet in the air. Drape a sheet over the line so the sheet touches the ground. Use can poles with string and a clothes pin "hook" for fishing poles. The child suspends the line over the sheet and a volunteer clips a prize to the line. For decoration, tape cut-out fish to the sheet or paint an underwater scene on it. Glow-in-the-dark paints add excitement for night carnivals.
Target-Toss Booths
- Everyone wants to try their hand at target toss games.
  
  To make a target-toss booth, paint a cardboard box and cut a hole in it to serve as the target. The child stands behind a tape line and tosses an object toward the hole. The distance can be lengthened or shortened, depending on the age of the child. Toss games can be built around many themes. The box may be painted as an animal, a clown, the school mascot or simply as a target. Beanbags are standard issue projectiles but following the theme of your carnival makes the game even more fun. Toss plastic fish at the gaping mouth of a whale or glow-in-the-dark balls at a luminescent solar system.
Water Games
- Rubber duckies are welcome at any carnival.
  
  A kiddie pool filled with water can be the basis for several games. Release a flotilla of rubber duckies with numbers painted on the bottom. The child selects a duck and receives a prize that correlates to the number. A variation of this can be played with plastic fish. The child scoops a fish out with a net to win the matching prize.

Kids Games