GAMES
It's important to keep active and stay fit. We feel better about ourselves when we are active. Plus it's heaps of fun to get together with friends and play games and sport.
Here are some games you might know!
Dragons tails:
Give each player a scarf, bandanna, or long sock to act as a "tail." Have kids tuck the "tails" into the back of their waistbands. Start by having players scatter across a playing area. When you shout "Go!" players chase each other, trying to grab opponents' tails (while protecting their own tails too). Once a student loses his tail, he must perform a fitness activity (five squats or one quick lap around the playing area), and then he can rejoin the game and try to grab himself a new tail from another player. Play until one player has all the tails, or for a predetermined time period.
Balloon challenge
Keep the balloon in the air the longest and win. Game is played best with two people at a time so that you can have a play off at the end. Each person bounces their balloon on their heads to keep it in the air - no hands, feet or other objects to help. The winner is the one who keeps their balloon up in the air the longest. Make sure where you are playing this game that area is clear so that the kids won't trip over anything.
Stuck in the mud
First choose who is going to be 'It.' The people who are 'It' chase everybody else around the playground trying to tag them. Any player who is tagged becomes stuck in the mud and cannot move. They must stand still with their legs apart and arms stretched out until someone releases them. Players who are stuck in the mud can be released by free players, who must run under stuck players outstretched arms. As the game goes on, more and more players get stuck. The last free player wins the game.
Captains coming
The players assemble in the centre of the playground or in a hall. A leader is chosen who calls out various commands. The commands need explanation
before the game can begin. A game of Captain’s Coming can have any number of commands; the more there are, the more that needs to be memorised, and the harder it is to play.
The group competes with each other to complete the commands. If there is an obvious person or group of people who are last to start a command, they are then out. The game continues until there is only one person left – the winner.
The Commands (you can choose as many or as few as you want):
Captain’s coming – everyone stands tall, salutes
Captains gone – thumb on nose making a raspberry noise
North – everyone races to the front of the room.
South– everyone races to the back of the room.
East– everyone races to the right of the room.
West - everyone races to the left of the room.
Captain’s wife – hands on hips saying ‘wooooooooooooooo woooooooooooo”.
Scrub the decks – mime scrubbing on hands and knees.
Climb the rigging – everyone pretends to climb a rope ladder.
Hit the deck- lay down on your stomach (or if players don't want to get dirty, they can crouch down)
Man the lifeboat – find a partner and hold both hands. Anyone without a partner is out.
Sick turtle Everyone falls onto their backs and waves hands and feet in the air.
There are lots of variations of this game.
Dodge Ball
There are many versions of dodge ball. Here is a great one for more confined spaces. Line up in a large circle. Designate a small circle/square inside. Have one group of kids in that area. Kids in the outer circle try to throw the balls (I advise you use foam balls or even beach balls) at the kids in the inner circle/square. Once a child is hit, they have to leave the game. Hits to the head do not count. Once the first inside group is eliminated (or at set time intervals) put a new group of kids in the center circle.