Encourage children to stay active and get exercise with backyard sports games. These games can help children release their pent-up energy after school and sleep better at night. Children should get at least 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous aerobic exercise each day, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Sports games provide a good source of exercise and a good way to practice coordination.
Kick the Cow
This backyard variation on soccer requires four teams of one or more players and a rectangular half-gallon milk carton. Reinforce the carton with Duct Tape, and use a permanent marker to write the numbers one through four on the sides. Set up four goals around the playing area. You can use cones to mark the outside edges of each goal. Each team must defend one goal while trying to score on any of the other three goals. Teams take turns rolling the milk carton to see who gets to kick off. The team that rolls the highest number starts the game by kicking the carton into the playing area. Whenever a team scores a goal, they earn points according to the number written on the side of the carton that lands face-up. The team that let in the goal loses that many points. The first team to reach 12 points wins the game.
Box-Pong
This oversized ping-pong game requires two players and a playground ball. Use chalk to draw a rectangular court measuring 6 feet long and 3 feet wide. Divide the court in half to create two squares of equal size. One player stands behind each square. To serve, one player must hit the ball with one hand into his opponent's square. Players must then hit the ball back and forth into their opponent's square without stepping into their own squares. Players win points whenever the opponent fails to hit the ball back or steps into her own square. One player can keep serving as long as she does not lose a point. When the server loses a point, the other player gets to serve. Play to 21 points.
Wiffle Ball
Wiffle ball requires a plastic bat and a hollow, perforated plastic ball or Wiffle ball. This game allows children to practice the basics of baseball or softball in a small yard without worrying about hitting a real baseball through a window. The Wiffle ball does not travel as far or as fast as a baseball or softball. Use cones or other markers to designate home plate, the pitcher's mound and three hitting zones. Place cones along the imaginary foul lines at regular intervals. The first cones represent the end of the single-hit zone, the second cones represent the end of the double-hit zone and the third cones represent the end of the triple-hit zone and the beginning of the home-run zone. Players earn base runs according to the zone their ball reaches. If a fielder catches a fly ball in the air or a ground ball while it still rolls, the hitter is out. Otherwise, the hitter earns base runs. Players do not actually run the bases in Wiffle ball. Rather, teams must keep track of the imaginary runners on base until the runners reach home to score. Hitters can only strike out by swinging at and missing pitches, not by failing to swing at good pitches. After three outs, the inning ends and the batting team becomes the fielding team. Play 9 innings or play to a previously decided upon point total.
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