Outdoor Games to Play With Kids Aged 8 and Up

Tag

• This classic outdoor kids' game is a must know. Have your child invite over several friends or neighborhood kids. Allow the kids to decide who will be "it" first and where the base will be. The child who is "it" chases the other kids until she can tag one. When someone is tagged he becomes "it" and begins chasing the other kids. The base is used as a safe place to rest. A kid on base cannot be tagged as "it". A variation on this version of tag is Freeze Tag. The child who is "it" chases and takes other players. When someone is tagged she must stand frozen in place. When the kid who is "it" has frozen all the other players then the last player frozen becomes the new "it".

Capture the Flag

• For Capture the Flag, you will need two teams of kids and two flags placed on opposite sides of the yard. Flags can be made from old scraps of cloth or ribbons. The goal of the game is for one team to take the flag of the other and return it to their own home base. Kids must defend their flag by chasing off kids who come near. The game involves strategy and teamwork to distract the other team from defending its flag.

Hide and Seek

• Hide and Seek is another classic game. Be certain you note any off limits or out of bounds areas so that kids don't try to hide in unsafe places. One child counts to a predetermined number while the other kids hide. The child counting must then find the other players. The first player found can be the next person who has to count and search for people. For slumber parties or late summer evenings, try Flashlight Tag. In this version of the game, kids still hide while one child searches for them. The child doing the searching uses a flashlight to find the other kids. Anyone caught in the flashlight's beam has been found.

Chalk

• Channel your child's artistic talents by getting them out of the house and onto the sidewalk with colored chalk. With a group of kids, you can assign each child one sidewalk square to draw in and then you present awards for most creative, colorful and original. Help your kids draw an outline for a game of hopscotch to add an element of physical activity to the play time.