[Childcare] From small to large groups! A collection of fun game ideas

Balloon Play

Balloon Play for 4-Year-Olds

Balloons floating softly in the air are very safe, so kids can play with them with peace of mind.

Here are some indoor games using balloons.

The “keep it off the floor” game naturally encourages kids to cooperate, calling out to each other to keep the balloon from touching the floor and getting excited together.

In the balloon passing game, form groups of about six and split into teams.

Enjoy sending the balloon from front to back, or passing it under the knees.

The team that can pass the balloon the fastest wins.

You can also stick a strip of plastic tape across the middle of the room and enjoy balloon volleyball or soccer.

Please choose and enjoy games suited to the children’s ages.

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mayumi

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ball toss (traditional Japanese beanbag/ball-throwing game)

All Sorts of Ball Toss Games! [Ages 3–5] | Torikai Yuiku-en [Nursery/Kindergarten]

Tamaire, a classic field day event, is fun for everyone—players get absorbed in throwing, and spectators get excited, especially when it’s a close match.

When you can play outside, use a tall, freestanding basket for tamaire and enjoy throwing to your heart’s content.

For indoor play, you can add more targets with something like shopping baskets, or tweak the rules to make it easier.

Our recommendation is “chase-and-throw tamaire,” where one person wears a basket on their back and runs away while others try to throw balls into the moving basket.

This is great for children around 4–5 years old who understand the rules and can move their bodies well.

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Yoimachi Jēn

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Curling Bingo Game

Make it with paper cups! Here’s an idea for a curling bingo game.

Curling is the sport where you slide heavy stones across an ice rink and try to place them as close as possible to the center of a target area called the house to score points, right? This time, let’s use paper cups as the stones and set the house as a 3×3 grid to enjoy a bingo-style game.

Split into two teams and, like tic-tac-toe, adjust your force and control your direction to line up three in a row vertically, horizontally, or diagonally.

Target practice with a candy box

[Easy Craft] A Shooting Gallery Game with Candy Boxes! Enjoy a Festival at Home [Wacky After School]

Let’s make and play! Here are some ideas for a target-shooting game using candy boxes.

Target games are one of those corners that really excite kids, right? This time, let’s try making one with candy boxes.

You’ll need empty candy boxes, a stapler, rubber bands, and double-sided tape or regular tape.

It seems you can even make a rubber band gun and a festival-style headband out of empty candy boxes, so give it a try! For the targets, just line up the candy boxes and assign point values to each—easy to set up and play.

Roulette

[Playable Crafts] Easy to Make! Roulette and Sugoroku (Paper Cups, Paper Plates, Bottle Caps) [Simple Crafts] Great for Home Play, Preschool Teachers, and Projects in Kindergartens and Nursery Schools

Make it with paper plates! Here are some roulette ideas.

How about making a roulette and a sugoroku board to enjoy mini games? You will need paper plates, plastic bottle caps, construction paper, origami paper, paper cups, round stickers, pens, tape, scissors, glue, and so on.

You can finish it colorfully using construction paper and origami in your favorite colors, so have fun while making it.

It also sounds fun to complete it together with children in the senior kindergarten class or the toddler class!

The Little Bird’s Move

[Exercise & Gymnastics Kids Enjoy] “Little Bird Moving House” Recommended from Age 3 / Rule-based movement games and exercise/gymnastics educational videos from ‘Okaasan to Issho’ to improve motor skills

Let me introduce “Kotori no Hikkoshi” (Little Birds Moving House), a game that even very young children, from preschool age, can enjoy.

Children sit with their backs against a wall (or similar) and their knees up.

They become little birds, and when the leader says “Time to move!” they do a bottom-scoot to the opposite side—still seated—trying to escape without being caught by the “it” player.

The “it” player gradually changes their movements, transforming into stronger and stronger animals, making their motions bigger.

This builds excitement and suspense for the children as the game goes on.

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utatane

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Egg Quiz

@popon_shop

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♬ Cute heartwarming song(1425147) – sanusagi

What comes out of the egg…? Here’s a fun egg quiz that gets kids thinking! Make eggs out of construction paper or nonwoven fabric, and have the children imagine what kind of baby will hatch from inside.

Plain white shells can be hard to guess, so try expressing the baby’s characteristics on the shell itself.

For example, if it’s a baby zebra, give the shell stripes; if it’s a ladybug, make it red with black polka dots—hide clues on the shell.

Once everyone gets the hang of it, let the kids come up with ideas too, and you’ll end up with lots of clever egg shells to match each baby!