Keep Your Children Entertained This Summer by Playing Games From Around the World
The weather has been amazing recently, and we hope it continues for the summer holidays. Many parents will be trying to think of ways to keep their children occupied and happy without resorting to TV or screens too often, so this blog post is full of ideas to do this!
Here are some games that have been passed down through the generations – perhaps you used to play some as a child? − and some games from around the world. Have fun!
Running, Chasing and Hiding Games
Hide and Seek
This needs little explanation! It’s best done outside in a safe environment with boundaries set out by an adult. One person counts to 30 while everyone else hides, then the seeker goes to find everyone. The last one to be caught is the next seeker.
Sardines
This is the opposite of hide and seek. One person hides while the others count, then they all look for the hider. If you find the hidden person, you join them in their hiding place! The first one to find the hiding person hides in the next round.
Tag/Stick in the Mud
A nice chasing game to tire out little legs! One person is ‘it’. They chase everyone else. If you’re caught, you must freeze in position until someone comes to free you (by touching your arm). The last person left is the next ‘it’.
Here are some more ideas for outdoor games.
Quieter Games
Not all children like running-around games, or can play them, and we don’t want to leave anyone out. Here are some ideas for games to play out in nature. Some of these will suit children with physical disabilities or those who prefer sitting-down games. We like Listen Up: find somewhere you can all sit down. Everyone closes their eyes and listens to the world around them. After a few minutes, everyone opens their eyes and takes it in turns to say what they heard. You could even draw what you think you heard!
I Spy
You can play this anywhere, from a car to the beach. The first player says ‘I spy with my little eye, something beginning with … A’ (for example), then the other players have to guess what the first one has spotted. The first one to guess the answer says ‘I spy with my little eye…’ in the next round.
Marbles
Draw a circle on the ground in chalk, about 50 centimetres in diameter. Scatter about ten marbles in the circle. Each person has the same number of marbles. The aim of the game is to roll your marbles into the circle and knock other marbles out. If you knock out a marble, it becomes yours! The winner is the player who has the most marbles after playing an agreed number of rounds. Children under the age of 3 are at most risk of choking: please keep marbles out of reach of babies and toddlers.
Chalking
You can do this outside on a pavement or your drive, if you have one, or on your house wall. Be careful not to chalk on anything that does not belong to you!
All you need is a packet of chalk, then you can let your creativity go wild! You could also play noughts and crosses using chalks … or inside on a rainy day using paper and pen.
Games From Around the World
Some games are enjoyed by children around the world, although the games have different names in different countries. For example, children in India enjoy playing hide and seek (aankh micholi), marbles (goti), and hopscotch (stapoo).
Here’s a game from Pakistan: Ounch Neech. Choose someone to be ‘it’. They choose either ounch (up) or neech (down). If they choose neech, then the ground is not safe; players can be caught unless they are ounch; that is, up off the ground, on something like a fence or a rock. If the catcher chooses ounch, then the ground is safe, so everyone remains on the ground. The first person tagged becomes ‘it’ for the next round.
For some more ideas, why not check out this site?
And here’s one from China, called Catch the Dragon’s Tail. Players line up one behind the other and place their hands on the player in front’s shoulders. The player at the front is the dragon’s head, while the one at the back is the tail. The aim of the game is for the head to tag the tail, but the chain of players must remain intact – no one must let go! The players in the middle must try to stop the head tagging the tail. When the head successfully tags the tail, the head then becomes the tail, and the next player becomes the head of the dragon.
We hope that this blog post has given you some ideas for new games to entertain your children − and you! − over the summer.
Happy holidays!