The end of the school year often brings children’s favorite event: Field Day! It’s an opportunity to spend a day outdoors, hanging out with their friends, while at school. When you’re setting up your event, it’s important to include a selection of field day games that every kid can participate in and enjoy. You’ll find ideas for every age group and power here, so your event will be inclusive and fun for everyone!
Classic Field Day Games
Field days are almost long gone, and some activities have become major. Here are some classic field day games to add to your event list.
- 100-yard dash
- Toss the water balloon
- Wheelbarrow race
- Three-legged race
- Sack race
- Overcoming obstacles
- Egg and spoon race
- Relay – Running
- Tug-of-war
- Long jump
More Field Day games
Want to jazz up a standard list of your games? We love these fun and creative games and so will your students
Pull the blanket
Go on a ride with this fun race. The kids are forced to pull each other across the field on a blanket. Things get out even by dragging a kid down the road, and the rider on the way back.
Learn more: Sweet dreams are made with these
Football toss
This soccer toss game is amazingly easy to assemble. You can just hang hula hoops from a branch or pole — the swinging target makes things even more challenging!
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Frisbee Golf
Frisbee Golf is another of those field day games that is very easy to set up with a cheap supply. Set the round laundry basket in the tomato cage by pushing it to the ground to arrange your course. Decorate the kids with freebies, and you’re ready to play!
Learn more: HomeTalk
Pool Noodle Croquet
Make large crochet hoops from pool noodles and take some light balls. You can hit the balls with more pool noodles, or you can try to kick with the hoops as you walk.
Learn more: Boys joy
Parachute volleyball
A big beach ball and some small parachutes (beach towels work too!). Teams work in pairs to catch the ball and run backwards over the net.
Learn more: TeamLaunchLight / YouTube
Coconut bowling
Coconut balls make this bowling game even more challenging – and ridiculous! The uneven shape of the fruit means it will roll in a way that children would never expect.
Learn more: Have fun one day
Hungry hippopotamus
Turn the popular game Hungry Hungry Hippo into a life size hem! A student is lying on a scooter on his stomach with a basket upside down in front of them. The other student grabs their legs and leads them to grab as many pieces as possible. After each turn, piece by piece to find the winner.
Learn more: Hungry Hungry Hippos / YouTube
Frozen T-shirt race
Buy large T-shirts, soak and fold them, and refrigerate overnight. For the race, each participant works to melt their shirt, take it off and then wear it first. So much fun to watch!
Learn more: A girl and a glue gun — Frozen T-shirt race
Balloon stump
Get ready for some chaos with this one! Tie a balloon around each student’s ankle with a ribbon. Play the flute, and let the kids try to break each other’s balloons on their feet. The last stand is a winner. (Make it a team game by issuing balloons of the same color to each teammate.)
Learn more: How to have it all
Chicken sticks
It’s just plain stupid, but it’s a lot of fun. The kids use pool noodles to pick up the rubber chicken and take it to the finish line. It’s easy to turn into a relay race.
Learn more: Mrs. Russell’s room
Non-Physical Field Day activities
Not every kid likes to run and jump (and some of them can’t). Include some of these non-physical activities to make sure the field day is fun for everyone. Let them all shine!
Cup-stacking race
After a TV show popularized the game, every kid wants to try it out Give each player 21 cups. Their goal is to stack them in a pyramid, then unstack them as quickly as possible.
Learn more: Happy Mom Hacks
Cookie Face
This game is absolutely stupid, and kids will love it! Tip the back of their head, then place a cookie on their forehead. When you shout “Go!” They run to remove cookies from their foreheads to their mouths without using their hands!
Learn more: Happiness is made at home
Ball toss
This game requires some skill, but it’s easy enough for anyone to try. Label cans or other containers with point amounts. Give each student five balls to toss and complete their points at the end.
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Ping-pong tic-tac-toe
Make a 3 x 3 grid of plastic cups, one for each group. Fill the cups with water most of the time. Then give each team a bowl of ping-pong balls and watch the race to get the ball in their cup until they are three in a row.
Learn more: Jeremy Mavis
Giant Carplank
This game is quite easy to make with tomato cage and bamboo square. Each contestant is pulling a stick, trying not to cause the ball to fall!
Learn more: Angela Parker-Pinterest
Flamingo ring toss
You can of course play the simple ring toss, but how much fun is this version? Grab some lawn flamingos (you can also find them in dollar stores) and set them up. Then give each player a set of hoops and let them do their best.
Learn more: Sugar and cloth
Lawn Scrabble
Give your word lovers a chance to show off their skills through a great game of Scrabble! Make tiles from pieces of cardboard or card stock.
Learn more: Continuous lovestroke
Ladder toss
It is very easy to set up this clever tech in binbag toss. Simply label the edge of a staircase with a total of different points. Then let the kids try to step down their binbags to make points for their team.
Learn more: Landeelu
Yard Yahtzi
Buy or make some giant wooden dice, then compete in an outdoor game in Yahtzee. (Don’t tell kids they’re actually practicing their math skills on the field!)
Learn more: Life Saver
Scavenger Hunt
Complete a Scavenger Hunt as a team, or make it a separate event. We’ve got lots of awesome scavenger hunt ideas here, including alphabet hunting. Kids try to be the first to collect an object for each letter of the alphabet!
Water play for field day
If you’re willing to let the kids get a little damp (or, let’s face it, wet), these are the games for you!
Fill the bucket
Here is a classic water game that is easy to set up and always popular. Using the water they can carry in the sponge, the teams run to see who can fill their buckets first.
Learn more: Wealthy mothers
Water passes
As a big team game we like it the best. The kids lined up one by one, each holding a cup. The person in front fills their cup with water, then pours it into the person’s cup next to their head. The game continues until the last person, who pours it into a bucket. Repeat as many times as you need to fill your bucket completely.
Learn more: A girl and a glue gun — Pass the Water
Water Cup Race
Hang the plastic cups on the strings, then use the squirt gun to push to the finish line. (Don’t want to use water? Instead, kids need to be hit with straw to move the cups.)
Learn more: For all boys
Sponge launch
Design each team and build a launcher. Then light a fire in their wet sponge to see which team goes farthest.
Learn more: How is he?
Water Balloon Pinatas
There is no candy in these piñatas… just water! Hang them up high and hit the kids with a stick. Break all their balloons and win the first team or individual!
Learn more: Hello, Wonderful
What are your favorite field day games? Share ideas on the WeAreTeachers HELPLINE group on Facebook!
Also, check out the best kids gym equipment for fun at school and at home.
