For 3-Year-Olds! Indoor & Outdoor Physical Play and Game Ideas

freeze tag

[For Childcare Workers] Arrange Ice Oni [Teacher Rio’s Active Play That Excites Kids]

Many people probably played with friends in the park when they were children.

Freeze tag is a game that lets kids develop a sense of fairness while having fun.

Unlike regular tag, players who are caught have to freeze in place and can’t move.

A frozen player can start moving again when a teammate tags them.

It’s a version of tag that helps kids build awareness of their surroundings—like where the tagger is and how their teammates are moving!

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Yoimachi Jēn

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Musical chairs

Musical Chairs

A game of musical chairs where players compete for a limited number of chairs, and the last person remaining wins.

It’s a classic indoor activity that everyone enjoys.

The rule that you must keep walking without stopping while the music is playing adds a sense of tension.

When the music stops, sit on a chair immediately; anyone who can’t sit is out.

If two people end up on the same chair, decide the winner with rock-paper-scissors or a similar method.

One of the perks is that, while having fun, players also get to move their bodies and train their thinking skills.

Why not try playing with popular kids’ songs or nursery rhymes as the background music?

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mutō

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Signaling Game

A simple game you can play in your room: 'Traffic Light Game'

Here’s a traffic-signal game everyone can play.

The rules are: blue = march in place one step, red = crouch quickly, yellow = shake your head and look around, and any other color = do nothing.

Choose one person as the leader.

The leader calls out a signal color, and the other participants perform the corresponding action.

The game gets more exciting if you increase the speed and keep a good rhythm! It’s recommended to start at a slower pace at first.

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mayumi

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Morning Noon Night game

Indoor games for large groups starting from age 3! Even elementary school kids can have fun while practicing moving quickly!

Here’s an introduction to the Morning-Afternoon-Night game.

You can play it anytime, anywhere, with any number of people, so it’s perfect for filling small gaps of time! When the teacher says “morning,” the children stand up.

For “afternoon,” they sit in seiza (kneel with legs folded under).

For “night,” they lie down right where they are.

The fun is in doing each action as quickly as possible.

Once they get used to it, try adding twists like “duck” or “monkey.” How will the children respond? Will they imitate the animals, get confused, or tell you, “Teacher, that’s wrong!”? That uncertainty is part of the fun of this game.

Shape Finding Game

Let’s develop discovery skills, imagination, and expressive ability! Here’s an idea for a shape-finding game.

It’s a simple yet effective game where you look for shapes in everyday life.

Start with basic shapes like circles, triangles, and squares, and once you get used to it, raise the difficulty with stars, diamonds, pentagons, and more.

This will broaden interest and make the game more fun.

Plus, drawing the shapes you find on paper helps cultivate expressive skills and creativity, which is a great bonus.

It’s a playful way to deepen shape recognition and boost the power of discovery!

Color tag (a children’s chasing game)

Younger Class – Color Tag (Color Oni Game)

It’s a traditional game.

You don’t need any equipment, and even small children can play.

On sunny days, try it outdoors.

The person who is “it” calls out a color—for example, “red.” Everyone else looks for something red and touches it.

While they’re touching it, they’re invincible and can’t be tagged by “it.” Anyone who can’t find the color and gets tagged becomes the next “it.” Good rules for choosing colors include “pick colors everyone knows” and “colors on clothing or shoes don’t count.” A kindergarten or daycare playground is plenty big for this game.

It’s also great for intergenerational activities with older adults who prefer light exercise!

Come-here game

[Toddler Play] “Come here, come here” game — a play activity that even 3-year-olds can do!

Even though the rules are super simple, let’s try playing the “Come Here, Come Here Game,” which kids are guaranteed to love! Divide into a teacher and children.

The teacher gently beckons to the children, saying “Come here, come here.” While the teacher is saying it, the children move slowly toward the teacher without running.

When the teacher suddenly says, “Come here, come here…

It’s a ghost!” the children have to run away so they don’t get caught.

Once everyone gets used to it, you can make it even more exciting by faking them out with similar-sounding words to “ghost,” like “pot” or “mother.”