Fun Swimming Games

Marco Polo

• One of the classic swimming games, Marco Polo is a game of listening. One person is "it," and is required to keep his eyes shut, relying on his sense of hearing. "It" calls out "Marco." The other players respond by yelling "Polo." The sounds of the players in the water and the vocal replies help "it" to locate and tag the other players. The tagged player then becomes "it."

  Many variations of Marco Polo exist. Some rules require players to keep their heads above the water at all times. There can also be multiple players playing the "it" role at the same time.

Diving Games

• There are a variety of diving games for children and adults able to hold their breath and swim under water. Simple contests feature players all going underwater to see who can hold their breath the longest. More difficult games involve the use of rings, coins or other objects being placed under the water. The players dive down and retrieve as many objects as possible before resurfacing.

  A popular diving game involves taking turns diving. The first diver chooses a specific dive, such as a cannonball. Each subsequent diver must perform the same dive. If they fail to perform the dive, they are given a strike. After three strikes, the diver is out of the game. The divers take turns being the first diver in each round.

Little Swimmers

• Young children often think of swimming pools as huge bathtubs. Spread floating plastic toys in the shallow end of the pool and let the children race to gather up the toys.

  Play a game of "Simon says," incorporating jumping up and down, blowing bubbles in the water and floating. The children can also imitate different animals. For example, toddlers can jump and make frog noises, swim with big arms like tigers and paddle like dogs.

Ball Games

• Beach balls and other smaller inflatable balls can be used for a variety of swimming games. For example, one person can be "it" and the other players can try to keep the ball away from her by batting it through the air.

  Extra equipment, such as volleyball nets, polo goals and basketball goals can be installed to play classic sports in the water. Dodge ball requires no special equipment and follows the same rules inside the pool as it does on the playground.