Duck, Duck, Goose
"Duck, Duck, Goose" is a simple and fun game for young children encouraging their listening and gross motor skills. Children can play several rounds of "Duck, Duck, Goose!" and then take turns changing the game to a different animal such as "Cat, Cat, Dog!" or "Mouse, Mouse, Rabbit!" Each time the name of the game is changed, children can make the animal noises, or when chosen, run like the animal would, such as on all fours like a dog.
Jack be Nimble
"Jack be Nimble" can be read with children and then turned into a fun game honing children's jumping skills. Read the nursery rhyme, "Jack be Nimble" with children and discuss what Jack does. Place pictures of candles on the floor of an open area and see how many candles children can jump over while counting. When a child miscounts or misses a candle, another child takes a turn. See which child can count and jump the highest.
Hot and Cold
Play "Hot and Cold" with children by selecting an item to hide in the room. By picking an item children are fond of, such as a favorite toy, they are more apt to stay on task while playing the game. Have children close their eyes while another child hides the toy. When ready, the children can open their eyes and try to find the hidden item. The child that hid the toy helps direct the others by saying "hot" when someone is close to the hiding spot or "cold" when they are far away.
Online Games
Use a computer to play educational games with children online. Nursery school children benefit from using a computer and learning more about technology through experimenting with it. Kaboose.com offers different games for children as young as two, such as coloring pages and matching games. Children can play on their own or with adult supervision.
Ring Toss
Create a ring toss game for children using two hula-hoops and three small beanbags. Position the hula-hoops ten feet from each other and have each child taking a turn standing in one hula-hoop and throwing the beanbags into the other hula-hoop. When a beanbag lands in the hula-hoop, they score a point. Allow each child to take a turn until one reaches 10 points.