Parent-Child Events for Sports Day: Recommended Ideas for Nurseries and Kindergartens
Parent-child events at kindergarten and nursery school sports days are a great way for families to have fun together and get everyone excited! Here, we’ll share ideas for parent-child competitions at sports days.
From classics like sprints and beanbag tosses to obstacle courses and quirky games, there’s a wide variety to choose from.
It’s also wonderful for children to see their parents getting really into it.
You can easily adapt the activities to fit your space and number of participants, so use these as a reference and brainstorm fun ideas with your fellow teachers.
Imagine the children’s smiles as you prepare, and make it a joyful sports day!
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[Parent-Child Events for Sports Day] Recommended Ideas for Nursery Schools and Kindergartens (71–80)
playing horsey
Incorporating Olympic equestrian events into a school sports day’s parent–child activities might seem difficult, but if the parent gets down on all fours as the “horse” and the child rides on their back, it instantly transforms into a proper equestrian event! You can adjust the difficulty by adding various obstacles along the course.
If you do it outdoors, using mats can enhance safety and reduce strain on the parent’s knees.
Wearing a horse mask or having the child wear a helmet can make it feel more realistic and safer as well.
Jama-Jama Ball Toss
One of the most exciting events at a sports day is the ball toss.
Let’s try it as a parent–child competition! But instead of doing an ordinary ball toss, here’s a fun twist: the “Jama-Jama Ball Toss.” Split into teams and do a parent–child ball toss, but a mischievous character called Jama-Jama-kun shows up to interfere—getting in the way of your throws or stopping the balls from going in.
It might be just a little frustrating! Even though Jama-Jama-kun is the “opponent,” if you make the character cute, the kids might love it.
Bread-eating race while being carried
How about arranging a classic sports day “bread-eating race” into a “piggyback bread-eating race” for your nursery or kindergarten sports festival? The key is to hang the bread a bit higher so children can only reach it if their parent picks them up.
Since lifting takes some strength, it’s an event that fathers as well as mothers can easily take part in.
We’d especially love dads who don’t often get chances to interact with their children to join in! It’s a creative twist on the usual bread-eating race.
Daruma-san rolling
Think of it as a Daruma-themed version of the giant ball rolling game.
Let’s make a rolling Daruma! Create thick tires out of cardboard and draw cute Daruma faces on both sides—that’s all it takes.
A nice feature is that you can adjust the size to match the ages of the children competing.
It rolls better with a bit of weight, so stuff the inside with things like sandbags or water-filled plastic bottles.
Drawing original Daruma designs together with the kids also sounds like a fun time!
Cart-pulling relay
The basket-pulling relay, which is popular for parent-participation events, is one of the classic sports day activities at many preschools.
It’s especially great for infants who aren’t ready to run yet—by sitting in a box and being pulled by a parent, they can enjoy the exhilarating feeling of running themselves.
Even with simple rules—head toward the cone, turn around, and come back—it can be surprisingly demanding.
Children may feel the thrill of running, while parents may feel like they’ve run a long distance! It’s a really fun event, so definitely consider including it.
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!
