How to Play Babysitting Games

Games

• 1

  Play boardgames with the children. Make sure it is a game that will include all the kids. For example, do not play checkers when you are watching more than one child. Board games such as Candyland, Monopoly, Trouble and Snakes and Ladders are classic favorites that most children enjoy.

• 2

  Play tag or hide and "go seek." If the weather is nice, do this outdoors to get the children fresh air. Make sure to establish rules and boundaries with the children if playing outside so that no one goes too far or gets lost.

• 3

  Play card games such as Go Fish, Crazy Eights or Memory.

• 4

  Play peekaboo if you are watching a baby. Babies also love to play with balls so try rolling one back and forth.

• 5

  Play Twenty Questions or I Spy. This game is especially good if you need to take the children on a car ride.

Winning Vs. Losing

• 6

  Winning is a great booster for children's self-confidence but children also need to learn how to lose gracefully. Let the children you are playing with win the first few times in order to encourage them but do not let them win every time. It is an important life lesson that you cannot always win and must be a good sport in such circumstances.

• 7

  Explain that not winning is okay. If the child is upset about losing, reaffirm that games can be about joy and learning, rather than who earns the most points.

• 8

  Make sure to set a good example by being happy for the winner when you lose.