This game has its origins in a camp setting, so I’ll explain it in that context – though you can easily adapt it to fit your situation.

First, organize everyone in small teams. In a group of 50, go 10 teams of 5. For a group of 100, try teams of 6 – 7.

The rules are simple. There is one person who is in charge of throwing the balloons. One by one he will toss a balloon to each team. The team then attempts to catch the balloon. If the catch it, they get a point and are then allowed to ‘get’ anyone on their team (or a designated target such as the camp speaker). If the team doesn’t make the catch, they get no points, and are likely quite wet.

Even though not everyone is always catching the balloons, everyone has fun watching the other teams trying to catch the balloons and getting gushed.

Typically, you start with the normal water balloon sized balloons, and after throwing about a dozen or so balloons to each team, move onto some bigger balloons (worth more points of course.)

Save the biggest balloons to the end to use for “penalties”. Kids love these. Pick the “Driest Guy” or “Most Vicious Girl” or “The kid that looked at me funny” and sit them in the center of everyone and burst the most giant balloons on them. Of course, be sure to pick people who will take it with a good attitude.

Then, wrap up the game by awarding bonus points to the team that collects the most balloon pieces.

If you’re still not quite sure how this all works, check out the pictures below to see the water balloon game in action.

Trying to catch a balloon

Not catching the balloon

Yours Truly Getting a Penalty

Moments before the penalty…

The Penalty in Action

Here’s how the events are done: Your entire team will participate in a particular order – however you choose. Once everyone has tried the event once, you start back at the beginning and go through the lineup again. So, say the event is to throw the ball in order to knock over a tin can. Bobby throws and misses. John throws, misses. Amy throws, knocks it over. The tin can is setup again, and Lisa throws, misses. That’s the whole team, so back to Bobby throwing again. Then John, etc…. Every time the tin can is knocked down, you add ten points to your point total for that event, set the can up again, and keep going through your line until the three minutes are over.

You can change the number of events or number of teams or length of time per event however you like. Generally speaking, you can estimate about two minutes in between events while the teams tell you their score and move to the next event. So if you do twelve events for three minutes each, plus the two minute wait time, that means this game will take about 60 minutes. So you can adjust things to fit your schedule.

Example Outdoor Events

• From 20 feet away, throw a plastic flamingo into a volleyball net. If it gets stuck in the net, earn ten points.
• Have three metal baseball bats laying close together at different angles. Roll a golf ball at them and listen for the ‘ping’ sound it makes when the bats get hit. If the bats are setup right, you can ricochet the golf ball off them all. For each ping you hear, earn five points.
• Putt a baseball with a broomball stick into a small hoolahoop. With each hole-in-one, earn ten points.
• From 15 feet away, throw a beachball on top of a soccer net. If it lands and stays on top, earn ten points.
• Roll a giant foam dice by bouncing it off your head. Earn ten times the amount shown on the dice – BUT if you roll a ‘one’, you start back at zero for this event.
• Throw a volleyball at a bowling pin on a bucket 15 feet away, if the pin falls off, earn ten points.

Get the idea? You can use whatever you have to make any little game. You will want to do a test run on your event to make sure it’s not too easy or too hard. Regardless of what games you make, the big key in this game is leader enthusiasm. Without it, this (or any other game) will be a dud. With that, here are a few more ideas for indoor events on those rainy days.

Example Indoor Events

• Roll a ball down the length of a slightly tilted table. If it falls into a tin can on the floor at the end, earn ten points.
• From 15 feet away, fly a paper airplane towards a large pail. If it hits it, earn ten points. If if goes in the pail, earn fifty points.
• Using the pieces from a Scrabble game, make as many different five letter words as you can. Each word earns you five points.
• From 10 feet away, roll a football into a hoolahoop on the floor. If it stays inside the hoolahoop, earn ten points.
• With one person from your team standing on a piece of paper, bounce a ping pong ball to them from 10 feet away. If they catch it after just one bounce, and without stepping off the paper, earn ten points.
• Taking turns writing just one letter each, write out the alphabet as many times as you can. For each complete alphabet, earn fifty points.

Setup

This game can be difficult to explain, but it’s easy to set up. All you really need is three buckets, each full of a different colored objects (small squares of colored paper, painted rocks, marbles, or the like). These buckets will be hidden somewhere out in the bush. You will also need some object to represent life in this game – enough for three per person. Since there is so many different characters in this game, you will also want pinnies to know who is who during the game.

Players

There are four classes of players in this game: Plants, Animals, Humans, & Natural Disaster. Each class has different objectives, different enemies, and even different amounts of time to play the game. However, all players start with two lives. If they lose both lives, they can come to a central location and get just one more. After that, they are eliminated from the game. (Players lose lives by being tagged by any player higher in the hierarchy.)

Plants:

Plants are the lowest class. Their job is to find each of the three buckets to collect what they need for survival – nutrients, water, and sunshine. (That’s those colored objects in the buckets!) Once they’ve found each of the three, they simply need to hide or run in order to survive the duration of the game, as they can be eaten by animals and humans, or destroyed by a natural disaster. Choose 60% of your players to be plants.

Animals:

Animals are second lowest in the food chain. They can eat plants, but must flee from humans and natural disasters. They do not collect nutrients, water, or sunshine – they simply eat plants. Choose %25 percent of your players to be animals.

Humans:

Humans are #2 on the food chain and can only be destroyed by natural disasters. They too have no use for nutrients, water, or sunshine – but will eagerly consume both plants and animals. Choose 10% of your players to be humans.

Natural Disasters:

Natural disasters are on the top. Nothing threatens them. They destroy any player they can. One advantage they have is that they will be armed with some sort of weapon so their ability to tag is extended. (Super Soakers on hot days, gator skin balls or pool noodles on cooler days.) Their further advantage is that when they tag a player, they take ALL of their lives – not just one like the others. The destroyed plants, animals, and humans are NOT allowed their third life, but are immediately eliminated from the game. Choose 5% of your players to be natural disasters. (Usually staff)

Game Play

Once the rules are explained and everyone has their two lives, the plants (and only the plants) are sent out to play. they get a 5 minute head start on everyone else to give them a chance to find their resources. Next to be released are the animals. Give them 5 minutes to terrorize the plants before you release the humans. Then after the humans have been released, wait five minutes and let the natural disasters loose. After the natural disasters have had five minutes, the game is ended.

So who wins? Here’s how to score: Each class of players is a team.

For every plant that has all three resources – nutrients, water, and sunshine – and was not eliminated from the game, award 10 points.

For every life that a non-eliminated animal has, award 1 point.

For every life that a non-eliminated human has, award 2 points.

For every life that a natural disaster has, award 4 points.

Then the team with the most points wins!

Notes:

The fairness of this system is very dependent on how the teams are set up, how well the plants resources are hidden, and how big your playing area is. You may need to adjust your point system to fit your particular situation.

When one player tags another and acquires it’s life, the player is allowed to use that life for himself if necessary. Example: If a human tags a plant, but then gets tagged by a natural disaster shortly after, he can give up the plants life or one of his own – there is no difference.

Players are not allowed to tag the same person twice in a row – they must tag someone else in between. Also discourage players from tagging someone who has already been tagged and is in the process of handing over their life.

Setup

On a large playing field, set off five circles with pylons about 20 ft. in diameter. Within each circle place a pin of some sort – plastic bowling pins don’t have much weight and fall over too easy, but empty bleach jugs with a few rocks in the bottom work great!

Divide your players into five even teams and assign each team to a circle. At no time can any team go into any team’s circle – including their own. Each team should wear their team color. You can use pinnies if you have them, or use surveyor’s tape as arm or head bands, or use whatever you have.

Each team chooses a country which they will represent. It can be a real country or a made up one. For an added element, you can have them sing their ‘national anthem’.

A Gator Skin ball is the best for this game – it is easy to grip, doesn’t hurt like other balls when you get hit in the head, and it has enough weigh to be thrown hard. If you’ve never used them, I highly recommend them!

Game Play

The object of the game is to take over the world. Each team must try to knock over the pin in all of the other teams’ circles. If they do, the defeated team joins the winning team and they work together to take over the rest of the world. For example, if the red team knocks over the blue team’s pin, the blue team is assimilated into the red team. With twice the size, the new red team has a much better change of defeating the other teams. If the new red team then takes out the green team, the new red team will now have three times the players of any other team. But if the green team manages to defeat the new red team, both red and blue teams are assimilated into the green team. It may sound a little complicated, but it’s not really too difficult.

The ball is moved in the same way as in team handball – you can hold the ball for three seconds and/or take three steps with it. After this you must pass the ball or throw it in order to knock over the pin. Breaking this rules results in a loss of possession.

Notes

One thing you might want to do on a hot day is to have each team appoint a ‘general’ of their country. When defeated, the losing general gets doused with a bucket of water by the winning general. Alternatively, you have have both generals give a short speech concerning their loss or victory.

Notes:

Here are a few helpful hints that you may want to take into consideration.

1. Don’t fill the nylon with too much flour. You just need enough to give it enough weight for momentum sake. Too much flour at a high speed could be slightly painful – but just a small amount is harmless.
2. Watch out for the eyes. It’s not too much fun to get flour in the eyes. This can be avoided simply by a ‘no head shots’ rule. Another way around this problem is to have the kids wear sunglasses or goggles.
3. One last caution – you might not want to use this variation in any water games, as water and flour don’t mix. Well, actually they do mix – quite well, in fact. But they could create quite a mess. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Setup

You will need a large playing area including both field and bush. This area will be divided into two equal halves with pylons. Within each half, you will mark off two squares about 20 ft. sq. each. One square should be in the field, the other in the bush. Within each square there will be a bucket of gold (yellow painted rocks) – enough for about 1 per player per bucket. You will also need super soakers (or some other type of water shooting device) and bucket of water for refilling.

Playing the Game

The objective is to have the most gold at the end of the game. Divide your players into two teams – one for each half. Once the game starts, each team will try to cross into enemy territory and get into the other team’s square without being tagged. Although each team is allowed to guard their own squares, they are not allowed to go into them at all. Once a player makes it into the square, they are safe within it and can take one piece of gold. However, they must still leave the square and make it safely back to their own side without getting tagged. If a player is tagged, they must simply go back to center, touch a pylon, and try again. If they have a piece of gold when they are tagged, that gold goes back to the other team’s square. If they make it back to their own side safely, they deposit the gold in one of their own squares.

There are also wildcards (about 1 to every 20 players). These people (usually the leaders) are not after anyone’s gold – they simply want to get them wet and send them to touch a pylon. Armed with supersoakers (or the like), they can go anywhere they want to and soak anyone they want to – sending them away to touch a pylon. This is useful for evening out the game if the teams seem lopsided. The super soakers can ward off attackers or eliminate the defense. They can even soak someone who has returned with a gold rock, is safe on their own side – but has not yet make it back to their own bucket.

Once the time for the game runs out, the gold is counted up and whichever team has the most wins the game.

Variation

For an added element of fun, have both teams select a captain and a treasurer at the beginning of the game. The objective of the game is to steal and then use the gold to buy objects for their captain so he can drench the other team’s captain. As the team collects gold, instead of putting it back in their bucket, they give it to their treasurer. The treasurer then takes the gold to a store (just to the side of the field) and uses it to buy certain predetermined items for their captain – such as a hat, a coat, sunglasses, a super soaker, and a bucket of water. Once the team has purchased all of the necessary items, the captain uses those items to chase after the other team’s captain (without fear of being tagged). Once wet, the losing team’s captain surrenders and the game is over.

You can find other great wide games in Six Wide Games Kids Love.

Setup

All you need is two soccer nets and a ball. (You may also want pylons to mark the goalie’s crease.) A ‘gator skin’ ball works best: it’s soft and squishy so head shots don’t hurt so much, but it has enough weight that you can throw it with power. The distance you place the nets apart depend on the size of your group. Try 75 feet for 20 people and 200 feet for 100 people. The goalie’s crease should be a half-circle around the net with 15 foot radius – maybe a bit smaller if you have younger players. You will need two teams – each with a goalie.

Playing the Game

The objective is to throw the ball into the other teams net. The game is started with a jump ball in the center. Once a player has possession of the ball, the player may take three steps and/or hold the ball for three seconds. After that the player must either pass the ball to a team member or throw the ball at the net. No players from either team are allowed within the goalie’s crease – with the exception of the goalie (who is not allowed out of the crease).

Depending on how rough you want to play the game, you can allow or disallow players from ripping the ball out of the another player’s hands. If you disallow it, players must only try to intercept or block the other team’s passes – they are not to touch the other players.

For the Ref

Most infractions result in the loss of possession, however, you may want to award penalty shots if the defending team breaks a rule during a scoring opportunity (such as being within the goalie’s crease). If the game ends in a tie, a shoot out will decide the winner.

Variations

Team Diceball

This variation is better with smaller groups (20 – 30). The rules and gameplay are the same, just the setup is different. The field is smaller (75 ft), the nets are hockey nets face down with the bottom end open towards the field (and the goalie crease is removed), and the ball is a large foam dice (about 8 inches square). Whenever the dice is thrown in the net, whatever number on the dice is showing up, that’s how many points are awarded.

Bucketball

Just slightly different from the original, replace the nets with large buckets (plastic garbage cans work great). The goalie no longer tries to prevent goals, but goes to the other team’s side, stands on a chair, and holds the bucket up so his team can put the ball in his bucket. There is no goalie crease, but players are not allowed to interfere with the goalie.

Indoor Team Handball

If you are playing indoors, place hockey nets upright, facing the end wall about 2 ft away from it. There is no goalie, but still a goalie crease. To score, the players will need to bounce the ball (or dice as mentioned above) off the wall.

You can find other great wide games in Six Wide Games Kids Love.

Setup

You will need a large area in which to play the game – preferably with a large open area surrounded by woods. Somewhere in there you need a bank. I’ve used a cabin, a shed – just any structure that can hold the weight of a few people safely. You will also need a home base for the two teams. In the way of supplies, you will need three containers (for the gold), gold painted rocks, several glow sticks, some pool noodles, and a few powerful flashlights.

Place an empty container at each of the home bases for the two teams, which should be a good distance from the bank. For groups of about 20, around 75 feet away is sufficient. For larger groups of 50 or more, you’ll want the bases more like 200 feet away. And it depends also on how close the bank is to bush. The closer it is to the bush, the closer you can put the base. (There’s no sense in sending them 200 feet away into the bush when you can’t even see them until they are within 20 feet of the bank.) At the base of the bank, place a container full of gold rocks (or whatever else you want to use.) You’ll need enough rocks for an average of 2 or 3 rocks per person. On the roof of the bank, station 2 or 3 guard (usually adults) with flashlights and the glowsticks. Station 1 or 2 guards at the base of the bank with the pool noodles.

Playing the Game

Divide the players into two teams, guys vs girls. Each team starts at it’s respective home base. Once the game begins everyone will try to sneak up to the bank to get one gold rock and bring it back to their home base – putting it in the container. As they do this the guards on the top of the bank will try to find them with their flashlights and identify them. This is done by simply shining the light on them and calling out ‘guy’ or ‘girl’. If the guards accurately identify them, they must return to their home base and then try again. Depending on how you want to play, you can give a free walk to the bank for an incorrect identification, or you can allow the guards to guess twice. If they make it to the bank safely without being identified, they can take one gold rock and have a free walk back to their home base. The exception to this rule is the guards with the noodles can hit anyone at any time. If they do, the player must return any gold they have and go back to their home base empty-handed.

Every so often throughout the game, the roof-top guards will throw out a glowstick – they are worth five points to the gold rock’s one. Any player can pick it up and try to get it to their home base, however, if they are identified or hit with a noodle, they must drop the glowstick immediately where it is and are not allowed to touch it again until they’ve returned to their home base. Other team members must try to continue bringing the glowstick back to their base before the other team does.

Usually the game goes for about 15 minutes – you can honk a horn or shoot a flare to end the game. Have the teams count up their gold – remembering that the glowsticks are worth five points – and see who wins.

Other Notes

It won’t take long for people to start swapping coats and hats and everything else in order to fool the guards. For lots of kids, trying to fooling the guards is their favorite part of the game. Sometimes the staff bring along wigs or other costumes. Sometimes a blob of kids sneak up all under a tarp. It’s up to you how far you will allow them to go.

Another element you can add is to allow the guards to shout out “Ten Free Seconds” – and then allow anyone to take gold from the bank without stopping them for ten seconds. (After they get use to this, call out ‘ten seconds’ and then proceed to catch them all since you didn’t say they were ‘free seconds’.)

You can find other great wide games in Six Wide Games Kids Love.

#1. Mission Really Difficult

This night game works best in an area that has both bush and a large clearing. Played guys against girls, both teams try to sneak up to the bank (some small building) and take whatever it is you’re collection (money, gold, bottle caps, whatever…). The challenge is not to be caught doing it. On the top of the bank are flashlight carrying guards who only must identify you as either a guy or girl when they see you. If seen and correctly identified, the intruder must return to his home base and try again. There is also guards on the ground carrying pool noodles. If you get smacked with a noodle – back you go. The team with the most (points, money, bottle caps, whatever) wins.

#2. Team Handball

It’s a very simple game really – but the kids love it. On a soccer field with soccer nets, divide the players into two teams. The idea is to throw the ball into the soccer net. Each player may only hold the ball for three seconds and may only take three steps while holding the ball. The player must then throw the ball to a teammate. The net has a crease that no one but the goalie can enter. You may want to divide the teams into shifts (perhaps girls vs girls and guys vs guys) if you have lots of players.

#3. Counselor Hunt

The game is divided into two rounds. In round one, the first team (counselors) goes out to hide within a predetermined boundary. After sufficient time to hide, the other team (kids) try to find as many of them as they can within an aloted time. Anyone that isn’t found is worth a point. Then in round two reverse the roles and do the same. The team with the most points wins!

#4. Steal the Gold

This bush/field game is great for hot summer days. The playing area is divided into two sides. On each side there are two buckets of gold (yellow rocks) in different areas with a small crease around them both. The objective is to cross into the other teams side to take one of the gold pieces and make it safely back to your side without being tagged. As your team collects gold, they are giving to your ‘treasurer’ who will then buy certain items with that gold from the trading post. Once your team has bought all five items (such as a coat, a hat, sunglasses, a water gun, and a bucket of water), they use the items to spray a certain person – signaling the win. But beware of the renegades! They can travel anywhere with their water guns and soak anyone they want – stealing their gold.

#5. Predator & Prey

In this game there are four classes of players. There is the plant, the animal, the human, and the natural disaster. You can use any theme (like dinosaurs, aliens, fish, etc…) as long as there is some sort of hierarchy. Each class has their own objectives and threats.

The plant class players try to find three items hidden in the woods – food, water, sunshine. They must find and collect one of each of the three items and then hide to survive until the end of the game. They can be eaten (tagged) by animals, humans, and natural disasters.

The animal class players are released to play a few minutes after the plants and their job is to eat as many plants as possible, while escaping from the humans and natural disasters.

The human class players are release a few minutes after the animals and their job is to eat as many plants and animals as possible, while escaping from the natural disasters.

The natural disaster class players are released last and their job is to destroy everything with no fear of anyone.

At the end of the game, the team with the most remaining players wins.

#6. World Domination

Divide your field and your teams into four to eight parts. Assign a section and a color to each team. In each section there is a bowling pin with a large crease around it. The objective is to knock over that pin by throwing a ball at it. Each player may only hold the ball for three seconds and may only take three steps while holding the ball. The player must then throw the ball to a teammate or at the pin. If a team’s pin gets knocked over, they become part of the the team that threw the ball a the pin. For example if the green team knocked over the red team’s pin, the green team and the red team will now work together. You keep going until one team has taken over the world.

You probably need at least 20 players for a successful wide game, but you can have hundreds or even thousands if you have the space for them. The most I’ve ever played with is about 300 – and in the case of wide games, it really is the more the merrier.

What’s been your wide game experience? What the biggest group you’ve played in? Send me your comments – I’d love to hear from you.