[For Preschoolers] Get Fired Up at the Sports Day! Fun Parent-Child Activity Ideas That Everyone Will Enjoy
Here are some recommended parent-child events for sports day that young children can enjoy together with their guardians! In this collection, you’ll find playful activities that really liven things up, such as hide-and-seek using newspaper, a musical chairs-style game with a large hula hoop, and a ball-toss game featuring a mischievous character.
These events are perfect for first-time participants—easy to join and great for strengthening bonds between children and their guardians.
Find ideas here to create a fun sports day full of smiles and happy memories.
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[For Preschoolers] Get Fired Up at Sports Day! 10 Fun Parent-Child Event Ideas (51–60)
Kicking Sniper
How about incorporating a “Kicking Sniper” event, modeled after soccer—one of the Olympic sports? In this game, you kick a ball at targets, and the person who knocks down the most wins.
You can use softer balls suited to the participants’ ages, and making the targets popular characters could add extra fun.
For infants, you might intentionally place the targets in an unstable way so they topple easily, while for preschoolers, adding mechanisms that make the targets move would make it even more exciting.
Give it a try together as a parent-child team!
Caterpillar race
It’s a race where you make a large caterpillar track big enough for one or two people using long cardboard or mats, then crawl inside and move forward.
You can’t see ahead and it’s hard to move, so it’s tough—but a lot of fun! A parent and child can get in together and race as a team, too! If you’re going solo, doing forward rolls as you go can be a viable strategy.
After the race, you’ll probably become friends with the people you ran with in the caterpillar, regardless of who won or lost!
Dancing Tamaire
Switch your moves to the music! Here’s an idea for Dancing Tamaire.
Dancing Tamaire is a fun, exciting, and unique twist on the traditional ball-toss game, with a dance element added.
While it follows the familiar rules of classic Tamaire, the key point is that participants toss balls while dancing to the music.
Parents might enjoy practicing the dance together with their children! It’s a great way to deepen bonds through the activity.
Cardboard Car Race
A cardboard car race where parents and children ride in cars made of cardboard and compete while overcoming obstacles.
Because you have to move in sync like playing “pretend train,” it’s a competition that tests parent-child teamwork.
Obstacles themed to match the cardboard cars—such as police cars and fire engines—also appear, so both children and adults are likely to enjoy it.
In addition, having the preschoolers make the cardboard cars themselves makes the preparation stage exciting, making it a fun event for kindergartens and nursery schools to organize.
[Preschoolers] Get Excited for Sports Day! Fun Parent–Child Game Ideas (61–70)
Flag Race
How about a flag race for your sports day? In the video, infants use flags featuring their favorite characters.
After starting, they choose the flag they like and head to the finish line.
It’s such a cute event, especially when they’re thinking, “Which one should I pick?” For preschoolers, you could adapt it to use a single flag like beach flags, with a clear win/lose rule—the first person to grab the flag wins—which would make it even more exciting.
It also works well as a parent–child activity, so please use it as a reference.
Plastic Bottle Bowling
Let us introduce PET bottle bowling, an easy game to enjoy at parties and more.
Line up plastic bottles like bowling pins, then throw a ball and try to knock them down.
Compete by seeing how many bottles you can topple.
It’s a good idea to adjust the weight of the ball according to the players’ ages.
You can also put a little water in the bottles for added challenge and excitement.
Writing point values on the bottles and competing for scores, or playing in teams, can make it even more fun!
Ball-carrying relay
The “Ball-Carrying Relay” is an event that gets everyone excited at sports day while deepening the parent-child bond.
The rules are simple: a parent and child work together to carry a single ball.
However, if you’re not in sync, it’s hard to carry the ball smoothly.
Be careful—if you drop the ball or touch it with your hands along the way, you’re out! You can get creative by placing the ball on top of your joined hands, or by using a towel or two sticks.
Using a balloon instead of a ball works great too.
It’s an event that really calls for parent-child communication.
