One hour of active play helps keep kids healthy and happy, says KidsHealth.org. Kids can play with their friends and burn off energy to help them sleep better at night. Being outside also keeps them away from video games and television, both well-documented as being a cause of today's obese youth. Make the games fun and interesting and kids will be begging you to play again.
Tug of War
All you need is a long rope, a bit of cloth and two teams. Tie the bit of cloth in the middle of the rope and make a mark with your foot on the ground between the two teams. The winning team is the one that manages to pull the cloth over to their side of the mark. They must work together will all their strength, set a competition where it is the best of three, five or nine that win the tournament.
Firefly
This is a great nighttime game; all you need is a flashlight, some space and some friends. The person holding the flashlight is the firefly, that person runs away and counts to 60, then briefly flicks on the flashlight to give the others a clue as to their whereabouts. The other players count to 100, and then try to catch the firefly. The firefly must flash the flashlight every 60 seconds to give hints to the others. Whoever catches the firefly takes his role in the next game.
Obstacle Courses
Make your own obstacle courses by laying out a dual lane of obstacles and race to make your way to the end. If you don't have enough obstacles just make one line and time each other. Obstacles could include, a long-handled brush to put your forehead on and run round 10 times, a net to scramble under, small buckets to attach to your feet with string and walk, running with a spoon and running in a sack.
Capture the Flag
Divide the group into two teams and split the area you'll be playing in into two. Each team has two minutes to hide the flag in their area. If agreed between the teams, they can send spies out to see where the other team is hiding their flag, but these spies can be caught by the lookouts.
After both teams have hidden their flags, then the challenge is on to work together to try and get the other teams'. If you get caught by the other side you have to go to their jail and you can only be freed by a teammate who grabs you when your opponent isn't looking. The first team to successfully grab the opponent's flag and bring it back to their side wins.
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