[Elementary School] Indoor Games and Recreational Activities Recommended for Upper Primary Grades
There are lots of elementary school children who love the internet and online games, right?
Of course, they can build relationships and develop various skills through them, but many parents and educators probably feel, “I’d like them to play something other than games a bit more.”
Kids can learn a lot from new experiences, so we hope they’ll try a variety of activities.
In this article, we’ll introduce fun games and recreational activities suited for upper elementary grades!
All of them can be played indoors, so they’re perfect for days when you can’t go outside!
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Elementary School: Indoor Games and Recreation Activities Recommended for Middle Grades (31–40)
Clap-Clap Game
Let me introduce the Clap-Clap Game that always gets the class excited.
The rules are simple: the leader moves both hands, and the participants watch the leader’s movements and clap their hands exactly when the leader’s hands overlap.
It’s a game where you enjoy clapping in sync with the timing.
Carefully observe the leader’s movements and match your timing.
It’s also important for the leader to be creative with their motions to make the game more exciting.
Even if someone claps at the wrong time, it turns into laughter and makes the game even more fun.
Epicenter Game
Everyone sits in a circle and does the same movements, but in fact there’s a leader among them, and everyone is copying that person.
The goal of this “Epicenter Game” is to guess who that leader—the “epicenter”—is.
The person chosen as ‘it’ steps into the circle and has to identify the epicenter.
The key is to spot the moment when the movement changes, but the more people there are, the higher the difficulty.
Let’s go hunting for wild animals.
The game best suited for large-group recreation is “Let’s Go Hunt Wild Beasts.” The children imitate the teacher’s movements and call out together.
Then they form groups with friends matching the number of letters in the name of the last animal the teacher said.
This activity tests quick counting skills and proactiveness, and it may help kids become friendly with classmates they haven’t talked to before.
Dice Cone Relay
Roll a big die, run to the cone that corresponds to the number you rolled and back, then pass the die to the next person.
The die acts as a baton, so after you roll it, pick it up and then start running.
If you roll a large number, you run a longer distance; if you roll a small number, you run a shorter distance—so hope for a small number! The team whose last runner finishes first wins.
Balance game
Let’s try a “balance game” using a balance disc.
A balance disc is a rubber disc about 30 centimeters in diameter, and when you stand on it, it’s unstable and wobbly.
It’s used as a tool to train your core by mastering that instability.
Try striking various poses on the balance disc.
If you fall off the balance disc or touch the floor with your foot, you’re out.
Look that way—Hoi!
It’s “Acchi Muite Hoi!”, a classic game that almost everyone has played.
First you play rock-paper-scissors; the winner, on the cue “Acchi muite hoi!”, points their finger in one of four directions: up, down, right, or left.
The loser turns their face in a direction, and if they end up facing the same direction as the finger, they lose; if it’s different, they’re safe and the game continues.
A three-person version sounds complicated, doesn’t it? (lol)
Drawing Telephone Game
Speaking of the telephone game, it’s that fun game where you whisper a preset phrase to the next person in line, and if it reaches the last person correctly, it’s a success—but usually it changes into different words along the way, which is the fun part! This drawing telephone game is a version where you pass things along with drawings instead of whispers.
The first person draws a picture based on the given prompt.
Then the second person looks at the first person’s drawing and draws their own version of it… and so on! Drawing is often harder to convey than whispering, so the original prompt might drift further and further away.
At the end, everyone says what they thought they were drawing, which makes it even more exciting!
Centipede ball relay
This is “centipede ball passing,” where everyone lines up in a single file and passes the ball backward.
But instead of passing it normally, you alternate: one person passes the ball through their legs, the next person passes it over their head—so the ball moves in an up, down, up sequence.
After passing the ball, that person runs to the back of the line and waits for the ball to come again.
You can time how many seconds it takes to reach the goal, or make it a team competition.
Exercise play you can enjoy at home
Even when you can’t play outside, you still want to move your body! In times like that, let’s enjoy some active play at home.
For infants and toddlers, try baby massage or touch-and-play activities.
For preschoolers through elementary school kids, how about a spy game with a treasure hunt or a round of table tennis on the table? For the spy game, setting up obstacles around the room and preparing a treasure map can really liven things up.
For table tennis, you can substitute household items: a tissue box for the net, a pot lid for the paddle, and a super ball for the ball.
Newspaper Rock-Paper-Scissors
This is “newspaper rock-paper-scissors,” where you use a sheet of newspaper as your territory.
Each player lays down one sheet of newspaper and stands on it.
Then you play rock-paper-scissors.
The loser folds their newspaper in half.
As you keep losing, you keep folding it in half again and again, so your territory gets narrower and narrower.
You can keep playing as long as you can still stand on it, but once you can’t stand on it anymore, you’re out.