Handmade summer festival games: a collection of ideas you can enjoy at kindergartens, daycare centers, and at home.
At the festivals held all over during summer, you can enjoy all kinds of games like goldfish scooping, target shooting, and raffles! If you could bring fun summer festival games to a daycare, kindergarten, or even your home, the kids would definitely have a great time! In this article, we’ll introduce a bunch of ideas for handmade summer festival games.
They range from games you can actually play at festivals to make-believe play with a summer festival vibe.
Pick a few ideas from the ones we’re about to share and try hosting your own DIY summer festival!
Handmade summer festival games: A collection of ideas you can enjoy at kindergartens, preschools, or at home (1–10)
lottery game with many strings (Senbonbiki)
Despite its simple setup, the string lottery is one of those games that really gets kids excited.
They can’t wait to find out, “Which prize will I win?” and even the adults watching can’t help but get caught up in the fun.
If you’re giving the prizes as summer festival souvenirs, waterproof mini mascots or colorful balls that can be used in the bath or pool are likely to be a hit with kids.
Let’s combine different ideas to make the game even more exciting, so everyone goes home saying, “That was so much fun!”
Bowling
Let’s make a bowling set using plastic bottles.
This is a fun craft for children aged 1 to 2, where they can enjoy sticking stickers, making single snips with scissors, and gluing.
First, decorate construction paper with stickers, free drawing using crayons, and gluing on pieces of origami that have been cut with one snip.
It’s great if children can express themselves freely while imagining their own ideas.
Once the decorating is finished, wrap the paper around the plastic bottles to make bowling pins.
Prepare a soft ball and roll it to knock them down.
Bowling is exciting even if you knock down just one pin, so the children are sure to be absorbed in play.
Pretend play: running a stall at a festival
When you think of festivals, this is the scene that comes to mind—why not set up some food stalls and play shopkeeper? You’ll get that lively fair atmosphere packed with people and the excitement of “I wonder what kinds of stalls there are?” With yakisoba stands, takoyaki stands, shaved ice stands, and even ring toss, it’s hard to choose just one! Hang up some lanterns and have the kids wear happi coats to really set the mood, and it’ll be even more festive.
Best of all, it works great with either a small group or a big crowd.
ring toss
Isn’t ring toss a classic summer festival game? Even infants can play it, so it’s definitely one to add to your lineup.
If you use plastic bottles, you can put together a ring toss game in no time.
First, fill the target bottles with water and mix in some paint.
Using various colors makes it easier to tell them apart and results in a more engaging game.
Next, draw score markers and decorations on construction paper.
If you let the kids do the drawings, it turns out super cute.
For the rings, just roll up newspaper and secure it with vinyl tape—and you’re done! Play while feeling that little thrill of whether the ring will land just right.
mini basketball
https://www.tiktok.com/@brechojuribas/video/7509579992578231558Let’s make something with items you have at home! Here are ideas for a mini basketball game.
These are great for anyone who wants to set up a basketball-like corner.
You’ll need cardboard or boards, paint, construction paper, plastic cups, double-sided tape or glue, clothespins, and balls made by crumpling paper.
The appeal is that you can make it with materials found at home or in a classroom! Give it a try.
You can also adapt it by changing to a hand-thrown ball method to suit the child’s age.
Target shooting
You can make a safe shooting game using a paper cup and a balloon.
First, cut out the bottom of the paper cup.
The teacher should prepare this in advance.
Next, attach a tied balloon to the bottom area.
Cut off the side of the balloon opposite the knot, then stretch it over the cup.
Secure the seam between the balloon and the cup well with tape.
After that, put a ping-pong ball into the cup and pull the balloon—pop! The ping-pong ball shoots out, and your shooting game is complete! Make various targets and enjoy the game.
Lucky Ball
Lucky Ball is a game whose play styles and formats vary by region.
Similar attractions are popular at places like Disneyland and Universal Studios Japan, too.
You line up cups or make a grid of holes in a board and toss balls about the size of a baseball.
You can set your own rules, such as getting the ball into a designated color or lining them up vertically and horizontally like bingo.
As long as you can throw a ball, anyone—young or old—can enjoy it.
And don’t forget some eye-catching, luxurious prizes!
Whac-A-Mole
If you have a whack-a-mole game at a festival, both adults and kids are guaranteed to have a blast! Make one by hand and liven up your summer festival.
Adults should handle decorating the cardboard base and cutting the holes.
The kids’ turn starts with making the moles.
Using an empty egg carton and construction paper, you can create round, cute moles.
Let the kids draw the faces too, so each mole has a unique expression.
Have the kids also take charge of moving the moles in and out by attaching them to wooden skewers or chopsticks.
You’re sure to have an exciting, heated game!
watermelon splitting
Here’s an idea for enjoying the popular summer festival game “suikawari” (watermelon splitting) in a safe and secure way.
Use plastic bowls and decorate them with green and red paper or paint, then stack them to create a watermelon.
Instead of a stick, use a bat made from rolled-up newspaper so even small children can participate safely.
By adjusting the rules for different ages—preschool, kindergarten, or elementary school—it becomes a game anyone can enjoy.
It can be done indoors and is easy to set up.
This is a perfect idea for summer events that gets everyone just as excited as a real watermelon-splitting game.
Yo-yo fishing
Yoyo fishing has long been a favorite game for children at summer festivals.
However, yoyos filled with water are heavy and hard to catch, so let’s make lightweight paper yoyos that are easier for kids to fish.
All you need to do is cut construction paper into strips and connect them into rings, but this might be tricky for little hands.
In that case, have the children decorate them with round stickers and more so they can feel the satisfaction of making something themselves.
Make the pipe-cleaner loop attached to the yoyo a bit larger.
Easier-to-catch yoyos are sure to be popular with the kids.