How to Play: Octopus Tag
You're it! Credit: Getty Images
What you need: You need a large grassy area with ropes, trees or buildings to serve as boundaries.
How to play: One player is chosen to be "it." The other players line up at one end of the playing field, while "it" stands in the middle of the field.
The rules: At the starting signal, the players must run to the other side of the playing field. "It" tries to tag as many people as possible. Any players he tags must join him to help tag other players. Players who have been tagged and are helping "it" must sit down and can only use their arms to tag players.
How to win: The last person remaining untagged is the winner.
What else you need to know: Players who are helping "it" can sit anywhere in the middle of the field. "It" can chase players towards the seated "it" helpers.
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How to Play: Build a Chair
Activities Babies, Kids' Games
Hammer away, one chair at a time! Credit: Getty Images
How to play: Divide the players into teams of eight. For each team, place the wood and nails at the other end of the playing field. Teams must build a chair one person at a time.
The rules: The first person on each team will be given a hammer and safety goggles, and will run to the wood once the starting signal is given. He will hammer together two pieces of wood with one nail. Once the nail has been completely driven into the board, he will race back to his team and hand the hammer and safety goggles to the next player. Play continues until all players have gone.
How to win: The first team to complete the chair building is the winner.
What else you need to know: The first four players will build the seat of the chair, and the last four will add the legs.
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How to Play: Ducks and Hens
Activities Babies, Kids' Games
QUACK! Credit: Uli Deck, AFP/ Getty Images
How to play: Have players sit in a circle. Give one player the two objects. One object represents a duck, and the other represents a hen. The person with the two objects is the vendor, and it is his job to sell the duck and the hen.
The rules: To start the game, the vendor passes the first item to his right, and says, "Do you want to buy a duck?" The buyer says, "Does it quack?" The vendor says, "Yes it quacks." The duck continues to be passed to the right with the question and answer session going all the way back to the original vendor. Immediately after the duck is sold, the original vendor turns to his left with the hen, and says, "Do you want to buy a hen?" The buyer asks, "Does it cackle?" "Yes it cackles." Same deal with the hen, the question and answer session goes all the way back to the original vendor.
How to Play: Balloon Head Race
Activities Babies, Kids' Games
Balloonheads! Credit: Wyrmworld, Flickr
What you need: You need balloons.
How to play: Establish a starting line and a finish line. Divide the kids up into pairs, and give each pair a partially inflated balloon.
The rules: At the starting signal, pairs must race to the finish line holding the balloon between their heads. They cannot use their hands unless the balloon falls and they need to pick it up. If their balloon does fall, they must go back to the starting line and start over.
How to Play: Dizzy Basketball
Activities Babies, Kids' Games
I'm seeing double! Credit: paolo.demarchi, Flickr
How to play: Divide the players into equally numbered teams. Give each team a basketball and a baseball bat.
The rules: One player at a time from each team will go to his baseball bat, bend over, put his head on the bat end, and circle it for five times while remaining bent over. Then he will pick up his basketball, dribble to the hoop, shoot a basket, and rebound the ball to bring back to his team. He tags the next player to go. This continues until all players have gone.
How to Play: Poison Pool Toss
Activities Babies, Kids' Games
Flying noodle! Credit: Marcus Q, Flickr
How to play: Divide the pool in half with a rope or net. Divide the children into two teams and have each team get in the pool -- one team on one side of the rope and the other team on the other side. Make sure each basket has the same number of pool toys. Dump the baskets of toys into the pool (one basket for one side and the other basket for the other side).
The rules: At the starting signal, each team will try to throw all of their pool toys into the opposing team's side. The object is to clear its side of the pool.
How to win: Whichever team has the least amount of pool toys in its side at the stopping signal wins.
What else you need to know: You can put a time limit of five to 10 minutes for this game.
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How to Play: What's the Time, Mr. Wolf?
Activities Babies, Kids' Games
Is it dinnertime yet, Mr. Wolf? Credit: Getty Images
What you need: You need at least four players and something to serve as home base (a tree, a porch or a patio).
How to play: Choose one player to be "Mr. Wolf." All other players stand at a designated home base. Mr. Wolf stands about 20 feet away from the other players with his back to them.
The rules: The players shout out, "What's the time, Mr. Wolf?" Mr. Wolf turns around to face them and says a time. The players take the same number of steps forward towards Mr. Wolf as the number of the time. For example, if Mr. Wolf says, "10:00," the players must take 10 steps towards him. Mr. Wolf then again turns his back to the group, and they ask again, "What's the time, Mr. Wolf?" Mr. Wolf says another time, and the players take that number of steps towards him. Once the players get close to Mr. Wolf, he will answer "Dinner time!" when they ask him the time. When he says this, all players will run back to home base as he tries to catch them. Any players he catches are out of the game. Play continues until only one player remains.
How to win: The last player remaining in the game is the winner.
What else you need to know: Another option you can do with this game is whoever gets caught by Mr. Wolf has to be Mr. Wolf in the next round.
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How to Play: Dead Box
Activities Babies, Kids' Games
Enter the dead box and you're out! Credit: Leo Reynolds, flickr
What you need: You need a concrete surface outdoors, chalk, and bottle caps.
How to play: Draw a large box with the chalk on the concrete surface. In the middle of the box, draw a small box with a skull and cross bones inside it. This is the dead box. Then you will draw and number 13 small boxes around the deadbox. You will use the bottle caps as playing pieces.
The rules: The object of the game is to flick the bottle caps into each of the 13 numbered boxes. If your bottle cap lands in the dead box in the center, you are out of the game.
How to win: The player who is able to flick bottle caps into all 13 boxes and avoid the dead box is the winner.
What else you need to know: You can change the dead box rule from the player being out of the game to the player having to remove all his previously landed bottle caps and start over.
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How to Play: Hole in the Bucket
Activities Babies, Kids' Games
Holes in the coffee cans ensure that extra bit of fun! Credit: vfowler, Flickr
What you need: You need two large coffee cans, three large trash cans or 30-gallon tubs, and a water source.
How to play: To prep the coffee cans for the game, you will punch several holes in the sides and bottoms of the cans using a hammer and nails. Be sure to hammer from the outside of the cans to prevent sharp edges on the outside of the cans. To make sure there are no sharp edges around the top of the cans, hammer around the inside edge against a hard surface. To play the game, divide the children into two teams. Fill up one of the large trash cans or 30-gallon tubs up with water and place at the starting line. At the finish line, place the other two large trash cans or 30-gallon tubs as receiving containers for the two teams.
The rules: The first people on each team go to the container filled with water, dip their cans into it, put their cans on their heads or carry them, and go down to their team's receiving container and dump in whatever water is left in their cans. Then they run back to the starting line and pass the cans on to the next players. This continues until a receiving bucket is filled.
How to win: The first team to fill their receiving bucket wins.
What else you need to know: You can spray paint the cans, if you wish, to differentiate between the two teams' cans.
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How to Play: Time to Search
Activities Babies, Kids' Games
What's behind that tree?? Credit: cdsessums, Flickr
What you need: You need some sort of tokens to hide. You can use Matchbox cars, dolls, ping pong balls, or even sticks and rocks.
How to play: Choose one player to be the leader. Establish a starting point and a finish line. While the rest of the players stand with their back to the game's course, the leader will hide the tokens throughout the game's course. Hiding places include behind trees, under rocks, in the dirt, etc.
The rules: Once all are hidden, the leader will say "Time to search!" Players will turn around and run from the starting line to hunt for the hidden tokens. Once a player has found a token, she will run for the finish line.














