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Cup Games for Children

Entertaining children sometimes seems like a difficult task, but it does not have to be. Whether you are a parent, a teacher or a caregiver, if you are looking for something to keep kids occupied, just use a few cups, some basic supplies and a little creativity to make some simple games that kids will enjoy playing -- and perhaps they will learn something, too.

Counting Cups
- Use cups to make a game that helps teach children one-to-one correspondence. Use a marker to print different numbers on the front of a collection of cups. Set the cups on a flat surface and provide children with small manipulatives, such as candies or coins. Children must identify the number on each cup and fill the cups with an amount of manipulatives that correspond to the numbers printed on them. This non-competitive game is ideal for children in preschool through first grade.
Transfer Race
- Promote fine motor skill development with this cup game. Fill cups with pieces of yarn, cotton balls, beads or any other small objects. Give one filled cup and one empty cup to each child playing, as well as a pair of tweezers. On your mark, children use the tweezers to grab the items inside the cup and transfer them to the empty cup. The first child to transfer all of the items from one cup to the other wins.
Ball Toss
- Children compete to try to earn the most points in this cup game. Line three cups in a vertical line on table on the ground. Use a marker to write numbers on each of the cups: two on the first cup, five on the second cup and 10 on the third cup. These numbers represent the number of points awarded if a child lands a ball in a cup. Provide kids with three pieces of paper and have them wad them into balls. One at a time, children toss their paper balls at the cups. The child who earns the most points wins the game.
Tower Building Relay
- This relay game involves children building towers out of cups. Split the group of children up into two teams and provide each child with a paper cup. Have the teams form single-file lines and on your mark, one child from each team runs to the other side of the room and places her cup on the ground. Once the first player on each team places her cup on the ground, the next player on the team runs to the other side of the room and stacks his cup on top of the cup that is already there. If the tower gets knocked over, the teams must start the race over again. The first team to successfully build a cup tower wins.

Kids Games