We’ve gathered a selection of recreational games that people who use wheelchairs can enjoy.
When you’re playing together with someone who uses a wheelchair, what kinds of activities do you choose?
If everyone is using a wheelchair, a few ideas might come to mind, but it can be tricky when people who use wheelchairs and those who don’t are playing together, right?
So in this article, we’ve selected not only recreation that can be enjoyed in a wheelchair, but also activities that people who use wheelchairs and those who don’t can enjoy together.
Use this as a reference and have a great time with everyone!
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- Indoor activities and recreational games recommended for December
- Games you can play with just conversation. Classic and popular activities you can enjoy without any props!
- Play ideas kids can enjoy from 1st to 6th grade [indoors & outdoors]
- [For Seniors] Fun Recreational Activities Without Equipment
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Games and recreational activities enjoyable in a wheelchair (1–10)
Pinball cup-in
You might want to play with a ball, but heavy balls are hard to hold for seniors in wheelchairs… In that case, try playing “Ping-Pong Cup-In.” Lightweight, small ping-pong balls are perfect for playing while seated in a wheelchair! Prepare any kind of container to catch the balls—paper cups, mugs, vases, anything will do.
Then just toss the ping-pong balls toward the target.
Make up your own rules to keep it fun—for example, the red ball scores double, or 5 points if you land it in a small cup!
Eviction Game
A pretty fun-sounding eviction game you can play while sitting in a chair.
Prepare a rectangular court like in soccer, with a line down the middle.
The size can be around 100 cm by 150 cm.
Surround the outside of the court with cardboard or something similar so the ball doesn’t roll out.
Then place a heavy trash bin or similar object in the middle, and you’re ready to go.
From your own side, throw beanbags to move a beach ball and drive it into your opponent’s territory.
When time is up, if the ball is in your opponent’s territory, you win.
Use good beanbag control to knock the ball away!
Dice game
When we play, we often use board games or card games, and in middle school math, we use dice in the probability unit.
Besides the common six-sided dice, there are also eight-sided and twelve-sided dice.
Let’s try playing with those dice here.
Since all you do is roll the dice, you can enjoy it while staying in a wheelchair.
Please use slightly larger dice so the results are easy to see.
There are many possible rules: for example, the person who rolls the highest number wins, or the people who roll the same number win.
Come up with your own rules together and have fun!
Ping-Pong Basketball
Here’s a minimalist basketball activity using ping-pong balls.
It’s more of a free-throw recreation than an actual game.
Take advantage of the ping-pong ball’s bounciness by making a basketball hoop out of plastic cups or cardboard, and shoot with a single bounce into the hoop.
Because it requires fine finger control, it also serves as good finger exercise! The cute bouncing sound of the ping-pong ball adds to the fun, and it’s a seated tabletop activity you can enjoy right where you are.
ring picking
This is a recreational game called “Ring Pick-Up,” where you skillfully use simple tools for fun.
Divide into two teams and prepare construction paper in two colors plus some newspaper.
Roll each sheet of construction paper into a ring and place the rings on the floor.
Then, using sticks made from rolled-up newspaper, pick up the rings that match your team’s color from the floor.
Once you pick one up, drop it into your team’s box, and the first team to collect all their rings wins.
It’s tricky to scoop up the rings with the newspaper stick, so you’ll need to adjust your posture and technique as you play.
It makes for an exciting, competitive game!
Topple-the-sticks with disposable chopsticks
It’s a stick-removal game played with disposable chopsticks, similar to a popular tabletop game.
Rather than knocking sticks down, the goal is to carefully pull them out so they don’t fall.
Setup is simple: gather some chopsticks, stick them into the cardboard core of vinyl or masking tape, then twist the core to stand the bundle upright.
Teams take turns removing one stick at a time.
The team that causes the bundle to collapse loses.
It requires careful precision, so it’s fun for using nimble finger skills.
Daruma-otoshi
Menko, spinning tops, and beanbag juggling—old-fashioned games are simple yet so much fun, aren’t they? Flying kites at New Year’s, too: between the wind direction and how you handle the string, before you know it you can’t help getting serious.
How about revisiting one of those traditional games, “Daruma Otoshi”? You can find Daruma Otoshi sets at large 100-yen shops.
If you want to make do with what you have, a box of tissues works well.
Roll up some newspaper to make the stick for knocking the pieces out, too.
The trick to knocking them out cleanly is to hit with just a bit more force than you think you need! It’s great for recreation, and you can even play while sitting in a wheelchair.