Summer is here and it’s extremely important to keep your kids cool and safe in the summer heat. I’ve created a list of engaging and simple water activities so that you and your kids can have some fun in the sun.
Water Sprinkler Activities for Kids
There are a variety of water sprinkler games for kids that are very easy to put together. You can either buy a water sprinkler from the store or get your kids involved and create your own! This will create an easy little DIY activity for the summer that will only cost a few bucks. All you need are a few supplies and the fun can begin.
What You Will Need
To make your own water sprinkler, you will need the following supplies:
- 2 liter soda bottle
- Duct tape
- Drill or screwdriver
- Hose
How to Prep
- Find a smooth flat surface where you’ll have plenty of workspace, a tabletop or the ground will work. Use a drill or screwdriver to create holes in a line down the sides of the soda bottle. A screwdriver or drill will make more circular holes compared to a knife or scissors and will make the sprinkler more functional.
- Using duct tape, connect the open end of the soda bottle to the end of a hose and wrap it tightly so there are no leaks.
- Once connected, you can turn on the hose and wait for the water to build up, it will spray out just like a store bought sprinkler!
How to Play
Red light Green light!
For this game, have one person stand at one side of the yard to be the caller and have the rest of the kids lined up in a horizontal line on the opposite side, with the sprinkler placed in the middle.
To start, the caller will have their back turned to the kids and will say ‘green light’ and this is where the kids will have to try their best to walk across the yard to reach the same side as the caller.
When the caller turns to face the kids and says ‘red light’, the kids will have to freeze where they are. If the kids are not able to freeze in time or move, they will have to go back to the starting line. Whoever is able to reach the caller’s side first will be the winner. The sprinkler is a great element to add as you never know when you might need to freeze beside it!
SIMON SAYS
Simon Says is a classic children’s game and adding water makes it even more fun. Have the kids stand in a circle around the sprinkler and make each of Simon’s instructions have something to do with the sprinkler. Such as “Simon Says stick your right hand in the water”, or “Simon Says run around the sprinkler”. It’s an easy water activity that can keep your kids entertained all afternoon.
Water Balloon Baseball
If you’re ever stuck on what fun water activities you and your kids should play, water balloon baseball will always be a hit. It’s quick to set up and will keep everyone cool in the summer sun.
What You Will Need
There are a few things that are needed in order to have a successful game. Aside from the water balloons, you can find most of these items lying around the house.
To play water balloon baseball, you will need the following supplies:
- Water balloons
- Bucket
- Whiffle bat or baseball bat
- Bases
How to Prep
- To start off, you will need about 50 water balloons placed in a bucket and you can make more as the game goes on.
- You will also need 3 bases and a home plate. You can use a piece of cardboard or hula hoops, but anything easily noticeable will do so everyone can see where the bases are.
- Lastly, you will need a baseball bat and players! For the baseball bat, a plastic baseball bat would suffice but you can use a real baseball bat as well. As long as you use something strong enough to pop a water balloon. Although this game can be played with just two people, I encourage you to invite some friends and family over to play. Having two teams of about 3 to 4 people would be best.
How to Play
To play by the traditional rules of baseball, you will need two teams and one pitcher. One team will be the batters and one will be the defense (fielders). The first batter up will have three chances to hit a water balloon thrown by the pitcher.
If the batter swings but misses, that is considered a strike. Once they hit 3 strikes, they’re out.
If the batter swings but the water balloon does not break, that is considered a foul ball. When they hit 3 foul balls, that player is allowed to go to first base.
If the batter breaks a water balloon they have to run to first base, while the fielders will try and get the batter out by hitting them with a water balloon.
Each fielder will only be allowed to throw one water balloon per base the runner is attempting to reach. The batter can choose to try and make a home run but this means that the fielders will be allowed to throw unlimited water balloons if the runner is taking on more than one base at a time.
The team that scores the most players that cross home plate, wins the game. Be sure to cycle through players to give everyone a fair chance at playing.
There are also variations for smaller groups where the adult will be the pitcher and kids can just bat. When kids run through the bases, the pitcher can act as a fielder to try and get them out. Feel free to make up your own rules and just have fun with it!
Water Sponge Games for Kids
Water activities for kids are great because they can be simple and easy but entertaining for hours. All it takes are a couple of sponges and buckets for a day full of fun.
What You Will Need
- 4 plastic buckets
- 2 large sponges
How to prep
To set up the games, you simply need to place a bucket full of water on one side of the yard and place an empty bucket on the other. The empty buckets should have a line drawn for where the water needs to meet.
How to Play Sponge Toss
To play sponge toss, you will need two teams. The teams will need to line up their players anywhere between the two buckets and once they are lined up, they cannot change their placement. Each team will need one player next to the full bucket and one next to the empty bucket.
To start, the first player next to the bucket full of water must dunk the sponge in, trying to soak up as much water as they can. Then they must toss the sponge to their next teammate and so on until they reach the last player. The last player by the empty bucket must wring out the sponge and pass the dry sponge back down to the first player and repeat the process. The first team to fill their empty bucket up to the marked line wins.
For smaller groups, you can just set a timer and if the team beats the timer, they win.
How to Play Sponge Run
For the sponge run game, each player will need a sponge and will start off next to the bucket full of water.
The players must dunk the sponge in the water trying to soak up as much water as possible. Then they must put the sponge on their head while they run to the empty bucket, trying to keep as much water retained in the sponge. The player then will wring out the sponge into the empty bucket and continue this process until they meet the line in the empty bucket. This game can be done with just individual players or a team. The first person to fill their bucket to the line wins!
Will you be trying these fun water activities with your kids this summer?
There are a variety of fun water activities for kids that don’t require many supplies or setup. Most importantly, remember to wear your sunscreen and just have fun! What other kids’ water activities would you recommend?
xo, Gbeke
Looking for more fun activities to do with your kids? Here are some of my family’s favorite places to go.
What do you think?