Fun And Safe Games For Children

These great tips on safe and fun games from www.essortment.com for indoor/outdoor use are a sure hit with both parents and kiddos. "Children tend to gravitate towards the outdoors, searching for something to do or some game to play. If there is a group of children, typically someone creates something for everyone else to do. While playing in a group can be a lot of fun for everyone involved, there can also be dangers if the activities the children participate in aren't very safe. You can make sure your children are having a fun and safe time by suggesting a few games for them to play. These games will work the best if they are played by children who are relatively close in age. If you have a large age difference among the children, you might want to consider dividing the children into groups separated by ages. Each group could play a different game. You could also pair children into teams that consist of an older child and a younger child. Of course, one of the most popular children's games is Hide and Seek. There are several variations of this game. The typical hide and seek involves all the children hiding except one child. That child will be it, and he or she will try to find the other children. Once everyone has been found, a new person is it. Every person should take a turn at being it during this game. Hide and Seek Tag is another version of this game. This version will be more physical, so you may want to monitor your children to make sure they don't get too rough, especially if younger children are playing with older children. When the person who is it finds a child, he must tag that child before that child reaches a safe base that has been predetermined. Flashlight Hide and Seek is another popular game for children to play at night. Again, you should monitor your children to make sure that they hide in safe, designated areas in your yard. The person who is it uses a flashlight when searching for those who are hiding. He finds all of the other children by flashing them with his light. There are several simple games that younger children especially love to play. Mother, May I? is an easy game. One person is the mother, and he or she will give the other children commands individually. They must say, "Mother, may I?" before they complete the assigned command, or they are out of the game. Another similar game is Simon Says. In this game, one child plays the role of Simon. The other children will be standing five to ten feet away from this child. Simon will then tell the children to take a large or small step, a bunny hop, a frog hop, or a giant step towards him. He can tell them to take more than one step or hop, also. If, however, he doesn't say, "Simon says take a"¦.", and merely says, "Take a "¦." , and the child does what is commanded, the child must go back to the starting point. The child is only allowed to move if the person playing Simon uses the words, "Simon says"¦" before the command. The first person to get to Simon wins. Scavenger hunts are a lot of fun for children of all ages. You will need to make a scavenger list, and you can vary the list as much as you like. Scavenger hunt items may include such things as a pink rock, a ladybug, an orange leaf, a four-leaf clover"¦etc. You should give each child a bag, and the first child who finds all of the items wins. What child doesn't enjoy playing in the water? You can set several small wading pools in your yard and create an obstacle course. Place poster paper close to the pool with instructions for what each child should do at each pool. Water gun battles are fun, too. Give each child a water gun, divide them into teams, and let them battle it out. Why not play a game of Frisbee golf? You can set several buckets around the yard. Place some of them on the ground, and hang some from tree branches. The children can then attempt to land their Frisbees into the buckets. Don't forget the fun game of limbo! Drag out a cd or tape player, and put on some lively music. Set up a limbo using some kind of stick. You can even use a broom! As the children try to get under the limbo stick, continue to lower it at each round. There are many wonderful games that you, your children, and their friends can play outside. If you guide and monitor your children, they can spend a safe and fun afternoon playing with their friends."