WHAT IS A SUMMER FUN KIT?
A summer fun kit is filled with items that can be used to play and be active in many different ways! Included is a list of ideas and activities you can do with just the contents of the kit. Many of the items are versatile and can be used in countless different ways. We have supplied lots of ideas here but your imagination is the only limit! Many of the activities can be done indoors or outdoors, so grab a friend or head out by yourself to have some summer fun!
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INVENTORY
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Pg 3 - 4 Corners Pg 4 - Balance Beam Pg 5 - Balance Games & Croquet Pg 6 - Ball Toss & Catch Pg 7 - Bean Bag Memory Pg 8 - Bean Bag Targets Pg 9 - Boomerang Hoops Pg 10 - Chinese Jump Rope Pg 11 - Fill The Bucket Pg 12 - Flipping Wars Pg 13 - Foosball Pg 14 - Four Square Pg 15 - Frisbee Golf & Tag Pg 16 - Hopscotch Pg 17 - HORSE Pg 18 - Hot Potato Pg 19 - Juggle & Laser Maze Pg 20 - Kick Ball Pg 21 - Noodle Hockey & Ring Toss Pg 22 - Jump Rope Pg 23 - Long Jump, Target toss & Sponge Bombs Pg 24 - Standing Noodles & Water Wall Pg 25 - Tic Tac Toe Pg 26 - Tug of War Pg 27 - Ball the Ultimate Boredom Buster
Pool Noodles - 8 Balls - 1 lg, 4 sm Chalk - 1 bucket Tape - 3 colors Buckets - 4 Hula Hoops - 4 Bean bags - 16 Rope - 2 Beach mat - 1 Sponges - 12 Frisbee - 2 These instructions
INSTRUCTIONS 1. Play as many of the games and activities as you can with items in the kit. Some activities will require you to use items you have around the house. 2. Many activities can be done indoors and outdoors. 3. When it's time to return the kit, please make sure the items are in good repair, clean and dry. 4. Check the inventory list to make sure everything is accounted for. 5. Return the kit on your designated day, so we have time to disinfect the items before it is scheduled to go to the next home. 6. Have fun with it!!!
We would love if you shared with us, some pictures of yourselves having fun with the kit, so we can share them on our social media and to help promote the kits. Please email photos to tanya@lethbridgesportcouncil.ca
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How to play 4 CORNERS 1. Using 5 hula hoops, place 1 in the middle and 1 in each corner of the playing area. 2. Divide the players into 4 teams, and assign each team to a corner. 3. Place all the bean bags in the middle hoop. 4. When the time starts, players run to the middle hoop and take one bean bag at a time and put in their team's hoop. 5. The teams can also steal from others team's hoops. 6. This continues until the 'time is up'. You can decide how long you want each 'round' to be, usually 1-3 minutes. 7. The team with the most bean bags at the end wins.
Su pp lie s Hula Hoops Bean Bags
Variations Can be played like a relay race, where only one player at a time gets a beanbag, and once they return it to their hoop, the next player goes. If you had fewer players (or too many) you could change the number of 'corners' to suit. You could play 3 corners or 5 corners, and adjust the play as needed.
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How to make a BALANCE BEAM 1. Line up pool noodles on a soft surface and practice walking across them without falling or stepping off. 2. You could string the rope through the noodles which would allow you to make shapes with the noodles, and would help them stay together 3. You could use a rope outstretched as your balance beam, and walk across without stepping off. Add waves and turns to make it more challenging.
Variations
You can challenge yourself to cross the beam in a different way! Try walking backward, or side-stepping across Challenge each other to carry an item across the beam, or to cross without looking down! For toddlers or young children, you could make a path with tape to practice walking on. Perhaps your beam has obstacles you need to step over to cross? You could use something small like a beanbag, or something larger like a bucket!
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Su pp lie s Pool Noodles Rope
How to play BALANCE GAMES 1. There are various ways to practice balance while having fun! 2. Try balancing a bean bag on your head while either walking around or dancing. The objective of the game is to constantly be moving and to not let the bean bag fall off your head.
Variations
Balance Juggling: Stand on one leg and raise the other to a 90 degree angle. Hold a ball in your hand on the same side of your body with the leg raised. Toss the ball over the top of the raised leg and move the same hand under the raised leg to catch the ball. Try on both legs.
How to play CROQUET 1. Use the pool noodles to make arches. Use either small wooden dowels or pencils keep the arches standing. 2. Can use another pool noodle to hit a ball through the arches or use feet to kick the ball.
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How to play BALL TOSS 1. Set up targets using hula hoops, buckets, frisbees or pool noodle rings. 2. Create a line that the ball must be thrown behind. 3. Throw ball and try to land in or on targets.
Variations
Create points for the various targets. Larger/bigger (1 point), farther/smaller (2 points), etc. Decide a game winning score. Use different sized balls.
How to play CATCH 1. Play catch with one or multiple people with a ball, bean bag, sponge or frisbee.
Variations Add more than one object. Count to see how many times in a row you can pass and catch without dropping the object.
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Su pp lie s Pool Noodles Frisbees Buckets Hula Hoops Balls Bean bag Sponge
How to play BEAN BAG MEMORY 1. Place 16 bean bags (4 colors, 4 of each color) in a 4x4 grid. The beanbags should be at least 1 metre apart. 2. Make a 'starting line' at least 3-4 meters away from the grid 3. Cover each beanbag with a paper plate, frisbee or bowl (One person needs to do this so the other players don't see what colors are where) 4. Going one at a time (relay race style) 4 teams of players take turns flipping one bowl to look for the 4 bean bags in their color. If the find a beanbag their color they bring it back to the start line. If they find a beanbag of a different color, they leave it there, covered up for the other players. 5. Players waiting for their turns can yell instructions 6. First team to bring all 4 of their beanbags back to the start line wins
Variations If you don't have enough players for 4 teams, you could play with 2 teams (each team is looking for 2 colors) or even 2 individual players You could also make it more challenging by scattering the beanbags more randomly, and make it like a hide and seek bean bag memory!
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Su pp lie s 16 bean bags 16 bowls, paper plates etc. Rope or tape
How to play BEAN BAG TARGET TOSS 1. Set up a target by using hula hoops, buckets or frisbees. You can have a single target, or multiple targets. 2. If you have multiple targets, experiment with their placement by increasing or decreasing the amount of space between them. 3. Make a line for players to stand behind to throw their bean bags 4. Throw the bean bags and try to land on or in targets
Variations Create points for the various targets. Larger/bigger (1 point) farther/smaller (2 points), etc. Decide a game winning score The further the throwing line is from the targets, the more difficult it will be. If you are feeling super creative, you can even make your own cornhole targets using a cardboard box. Just turn the box upside down, and cut off the bottom of the box diagonally, then make a hole in the bottom of the box. You can paint it and add eyes and a nose if you want :-)
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Su pp lie s Hula Hoops Buckets Frisbees Bean bags
How to play BOOMERANG HOOPS 1. Throw the hula hoop forward with a backspin. The hoop will come back to you. To do this, take a hoop in your hand, and toss it on the ground in front of you. As you throw it, slightly flip your hand upwards, making a backspin, so the hoop will roll back to you once it hits the ground. It takes a little practice, but once you get it, it's a cool trick!
Variations Walk the Dog: Use your foot to 'catch' the hoop when it comes back to you Keep once you catch it, the hoop has to keep spinning for a few seconds. If you can, keep it spinning around your foot until you put it back down and it rolls away. You can also try catching it with your head! There is also a version of Walk the Dog where you have a race where each player has a hula hoop and a ball, and they use the hoop only to guide the ball from a start line to a finish line.
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Supplies Hula Hoops
How to play CHINESE JUMP ROPE 1. Tie the ends of a rope together to form a circle. 2. Must have a minimum of 3 players 3. Place the rope on the ground and stretch out to look like a long, skinny rectangle. Make sure to play in a large enough space (should be several feet on each side of the rope). 4. There should be two holders, who step into the ends of the rope so that they are facing each other. They should stand with their feet about shoulder width apart and move back until the rope is tight. There should be enough space for a third player to safely jump between the first two players. 5. There are various jumping patterns that can be done in any combination or order. 6. Choose a pattern that the holders can call out as the jumper jumps. The longer the pattern the more difficult. 7. If the jumper does all the moves successfully, then speed up the pattern or try a different one. 8. Once jumper messes up, then someone else can have a turn.
Variations Raise the rope higher to make it more difficult. The holders can switch to one foot so that the inner rope area is smaller.
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How to play FILL THE BUCKET 1. Divide players into 2 person teams, each team will need 2 buckets and sponges. 2. Each team has a bucket full of water at 1 end and empty bucket at the other. The person at the full bucket dips a sponge in the bucket and throws it to the other person who catches it, squeezes the water into their bucket and throws it back to the player at the other bucket. This continues for a set period of time (1-2 minutes). When the timer goes off, whichever teams previously empty bucket is fuller wins the round.
Variations This can be played with 3 players on each team. The game starts with 2 players at the full bucket, and 1 at the empty bucket. As soon as the first player at the full bucket throws the sponge, they run (slightly off to the side) to the other bucket. When the person at the full buckets catches the sponge and squeezes the water out, throws it back, then runs to the other bucket. Now the player that was second at the full bucket catches, dips and throws the sponge, and the person that threw the first full sponge is at the other end to catch the full sponge. This continues where each player runs to the other bucket after they throw the sponge (empty or full)
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How to play FLIPPING WARS 1. There are two teams, builders and wreckers. Builders like the domes right side up and wreckers like the domes flipped upside down. 2. Scatter the domes across the playing area. 3. The teams race around flipping the domes right side up or upside down, depending which team they are on. 4. The play is stopped after 1 minute 5. The team with the most of the domes sitting their way, wins! 6. This game is also known as builders and bulldozers, and you can search it on YouTube to see it in action!
Variations To make it more difficult, you can add rules about how the players flip the objects. Maybe they can't use their hands? Maybe they can only use their feet? heads? Be sure to swap roles so players get to be both builders and wreckers You can use any item for this game that has a right side up and an upside down. Paper plates and plastic cups work great too.
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Su pp lie s Buckets, frisbees or pylons
How to play FOOSBALL 1. In a large field with two nets (real, pylons, etc) at the end of the field, string rope across the area laterally. Using any kind of ball (preferably soccer) as the object in play. 2. The amount of ropes needed will vary depending on the number of participants. 3. There will be 2 teams and the teams will alternate every other rope. Using pinnies or different colors of shirts will help to differeniate between teams. 4. The players must hold onto the rope the entire game. 5. The goal is to score on the opposing team's net. 6. The team with the most goals at the end of the game wins.
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Su pp lie s Rope Ball
How to play FOUR SQUARE 1. With chalk or tape make a large square at least 6ft wide and divide into 4 equally sized small squares. Number these 4 squares 1 to 4. 2. Must have 4 people to play and each player stands in one of the four squares. 3. The player in square #4 serves the ball by bouncing it in their square once and then hitting it towards one of the other squares. 4. The receiving player then hits the ball to any other player in one of the other squares. 5. The ball must bounce in another player’s square and they must hit it to another player before it bounces a second time. 6. A player may hit the ball before it bounces if they choose. 7. If a player hits the ball outside of another player’s square or lets the ball bounce twice before hitting it, they are out. 8. When a player is out, the other players move to take their place and that player moves to the last square. Or if there are more than four players, this player moves to the end of the line. 9. The object of the game is to move up to and hold the server’s position.
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Supplies Chalk Tape Ball
How to play FRISBEE GOLF 1. With one of the frisbees from the bin, find a disc golf course in a public park. (Alternately you could use buckets to make a backyard course.) 2. Each hole begins with a tee throw and the frisbee must be thrown within or behind the area. 3. Each throw counts as one stroke and the goal is to play each hole in the fewest strokes possible. 4. The next throw must be made from where the frisbee lands. 5. The player whose frisbee is farthest from the hole throws first.
How to play TAG 1. There are various versions of how to play tag! 2. Home free tag: Blanket is used as home base. 3. Regular tag with pool noodles Taggers use pool noodles to tag players below the hips. 4. Twister Tag Partner up, each set of partners has a hula hoop. One partner (tagger) spins the hoop. As the hoop is spinning, the tagger must attempt to tag his partner before the hoop completely stops. The game is played around the spinning hoop.
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Su pp lie s Chalk Tape Ball
How to play HOPSCOTCH 1. Make the traditional hopscotch diagram using either chalk or tape Throw a bean bag into the first square. If it lands on a line or outside the square, you lose your turn. 2. Hop on one foot into the first empty square, and then every subsequent empty square, skipping the square with the marker on it. 3. At the pairs (4-5 & 7-8) jump with both feet. 4. At 10, hop with both feet, turn around and go back to the start. 5. Once you reach the marked square, pick it up (still on one foot) and complete the course. 6. If finished with no mistakes, pass the marker to the next player. On your next turn, throw the marker to the next number. 7. If you fall, jump outside the lines or miss a square or marker, you lose your turn and must repeat the same number on your next turn. First to reach 10, wins!
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Su pp lie s Chalk Tape Bean bag
How to play HORSE 1. With one ball, go to a public basketball court (indoors or outdoors), or use a bucket or the bin as a basket. 2. Must be played with two or more people. 3. Decide who will shoot first either by rock, paper scissors, flipping a coin, oldest/youngest, etc. 4. The ball can be shot from anywhere on the court. 5. If the shot is made then the next players must attempt to make a basket from that exact spot. If they miss they collect a letter, starting with H. 6. If the first shot is missed then the second shooter may attempt any shot. If made the other players must attempt to duplicate. If missed it is the next shooter's turn. 7. Each time a shooter misses a shot that they are attempting to duplicate, they collect another letter. 8. The game continues until one person collects all 5 letters spelling H-O-R-S-E. The player with the fewest amount of letters wins.
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Su pp lie s Ball Bucket
How to play HOT POTATO 1. With a minimum of 4 people, arrange players in a circle and pass a ball around the circle while music plays. 2. The player holding the ball (hot potato) when the music stops is out. 3. The game continues until one player is left.
Su pp lie s
Variations Anyone who drops the hot potato is out.
Ball Hula Hoop Pylons
How to play SOCCER GOLF 1. Set up as many holes as you want using hula hoops. A tee-off area can be indicated by a pylon or other object. 2. Vary the length of each hole and the surface area if possible (up hill, trees, etc.). 3. Each player gets one ball they get to kick. 4. The game has the exact same rules as golf except you kick the ball instead of using a club. 5. Count the number of kicks to get the ball into the hula hoop and the player with the fewest strokes over the entire game wins.
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How to JUGGLE 1. With three balls or bean bags try, practice and master juggling. 2. Below is a link teaching the stages of learning how to juggle: https://www.wikihow.com/Juggle
Su pp lie s Ball Bean bags Rope Tape
How to make a LASER MAZE 1. Using tape and/or rope set up your own laser maze to try to maneuver through without touching any of the “lasers”. 2. Add lots of lasers close together or set up other obstacles to make it more challenging.
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How to play KICK BALL 1. Any number of people can play but there is a minimum of 5 players per team. One ball is needed for the game. 4 bases are needed and can be made from hula hoops, bean bags, tape or chalk. The field and bases are set up the same as baseball and softball. 2. The object is for one team to score more runs than the other team. A run is scored by a player successfully making it back to home plate. 3. The team with the most runs at the end of the game wins. The end of the game can be determined by the players. Either by a specific set of innings (6-9 usually) or an allotted time or a specific score. Supplies 4. The game begins with one team being in the Ball outfield and one team kicking. Hula hoops 5. One pitcher rolls the ball to a kicker who attempts Bean bags to kick the ball. If successful they then run to first Tape base and potentially all the way home. The play Chalk stops when the ball is returned to the pitcher. 6. A player can get out when: a. The ball is caught by an opposing team member off the kick. b. The player is tagged by an opposing player with the ball. c. An opposing player tags a base with ball in hand before the runner reaches the base. 7. Once there are 3 outs the teams switch who is kicking/outfield
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How to play NOODLE HOCKEY 1. Using pool noodles as hockey sticks and a ball as the puck the rules are the same as hockey. 2. To make a net you can set up 2 chairs, 2 pylons or an actual mini stick/hockey net. 3. The goal is to score goals on your opponents net and prevent your opponents from scoring on your net. 4. This game can be played with teams of 3, 4 or 5.
How to play RING TOSS 1. Using dowels, water bottles or other objects around the house for the target. 2. Form pool noodles into a ring shape and use tape to keep the ends together. 3. Throw the pool noodle and try to land it on the ring. 4. Try from various distances.
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Su pp lie s Pool Noodles Ball
How to JUMP ROPE
1. Using the rope kids can jump rope! 2. There are various ways to make this more complicated or difficult alone such as: a. Scissor jumps: land with one foot forward, then on the next jump switch feet. b. Cross jumps: land with feet crossed like an X, then apart, then crossed again. c. Duckie: land with heels apart, toes and knees pointed in; then on next jump, put heels together and toes and knees pointed out. d. Swing: land on one foot and swing the opposite leg out to the side, then switch on the next jump. 3. There are various jump rope rhymes to do with a small group. 4. Partner jumping is another fun and challenging way to jump rope. With one person holding both ends of the rope, try jumping while standing face-to-face. Or standing side-by-side with each person holding one end of the rope. Su pp lie s
Variations Try skipping with a hula hoop
Rope Hula hoop - 22 -
How to do STANDING LONG JUMP 1. Set up a starting line that the kids must jump from behind using either tape, chalk or a different marker. 2. The jump is done from standing with a two foot take off. 3. Use either chalk, tape or a different object to mark where they land. The goal is to jump as far as you can.
How to play TARGET TOSSING 1. Tape targets on an upright sheet/blanket. 2. Using bean bags try to hit the targets on the sheet.
How to make SPONGE BOMBS Below is a link on how to make these fun sponge bombs to help stay cool in the summer heat! https://apumpkinandaprincess.com/make- 23 sponge-bombs/
How to play STANDING NOODLES 1. Each player needs one pool noodle. 2. Start the game with everyone holding their own pool noodle straight up and standing in a circle a few feet apart. 3. After saying “1, 2, 3, Go!” everyone must let go of their noodle and move clockwise to the next noodle. 4. The goal is to keep all the noodles standing for as many rounds as possible.
Variations Step out farther to make it more challenging
How to play WATER WALL 1. To make the water wall you will need pool noodles from the Summer Fun Bin, zip ties and a peg board (but a fence or deck rails would work also). 2. Use zip ties to attach pool noodles to the pegboard in a pattern of choice. 3. To make it easier to pour water into, you can add funnels to the top of the pool noodles.
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How to play TIC TAC TOE 1. Make the tic tac toe board (3 x 3 grid) using 9 hula hoops, rope, chalk (on concrete), or tape (on carpet). 2. Use the bean bags (2 colors, 5 of each) as markers 3. Players take turns putting their bean bags in empty squares.The first player to get 3 squares in a row (up, down, across, or diagonally) wins. When all 9 squares are full, the game is over.
Variations To make it more active, have a relay race with a starting line about 10 paces away. Place the bean bags in a pile there. One player from each team will run, place their bean bag then run back. The next player cannot go until their teammate has given them a high five or crossed the line. A player can only carry 1 bean bag at a time. The first team to successfully get three bean bags in a row wins. Another challenging variation > on their turn, a player can move one of the other team’s bean bags instead of placing a bean bag for their team.
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Su pp lie s
Pool Noodles Chalk Tape Hula Hoops Bean bags Rope
How to play TUG OF WAR 1. Use a bean bag, pool noodle or tape to create a middle marker. 2. Use the rope as the object to be tugged and using tape. mark the center line on the rope. Add two more markings of tape towards the ends of the ropes at equal distances. 3. This game should be played on a flat, grassy area for safety purposes. 4. Split the group into two equally matched teams 5. With the centre tape lined up over the middle marker, someone will say go and each team can start pulling on the rope. 6. The goal is for each team to pull the rope along with the opposing team to their side of that middle marker. 7. Once the far tape marking crosses the centerline, the team that pulled the rope to their side wins.
Variations
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Use a sprinkler (the kind that goes over and back) as the middle marker!
Did you Know?
Bean bag Tape Rope
Tug-of-War was part of the Olympic Games between 1900 and 1920
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BALLS the ULTIMATE
boredom buster
Here are more ways to play Tin can knock ‘em down - Save your tin cans then stack them up and knock ‘em down with a ball. Stacking is all part of the fun and seeing the cans scatter adds to the game. Play this one outside in a wide, open space. You can also add a crafty element by painting or papering the cans before you use them to play. Wall ball - All you need is a bouncy ball and a wall in front of some concrete or other bouncy surface. The aim is to bounce the ball against the wall and keep hitting it back for as many times as you can. Younger kids can catch the ball between bounces. Older kids will like hitting it back without catching. Once you get really good at it, draw a circle on the wall with chalk to hit the ball into. Keep the ball up - A classic game that involves throwing the ball into the air and clapping before you catch it again. Little kids will enjoy the simple throw and catch with one clap if they can manage it, older kids will enjoy adding more and more claps before they get to catch the ball. Surprisingly addictive. Hoops - If you’ve got a basketball hoop, great, but you don’t need one to score! You can lay a hula hoop on the grass and throw the ball from a distance to ‘land’ inside the circle. Try to get the ball into the hoop X amount of times or count how many times you can get the ball in the hoop in 1 minute, 2 minutes, 5 minutes... Dribble drills - The aim of this game is to dribble the ball without stopping from point A to point B. Challenge your child by moving the points further and further away from each other. You can also set up ‘out of bounds’ areas so that if they go out of bounds, they have to return to point A each time. Obstacle course - A ball can be an obstacle course all on its own. Call out different things to do with the ball – ‘kick’, ‘pick up and run’, ‘bounce’, ‘dribble’, ‘throw’, etc. Make a catapult - What’s more fun than launching a ball using a catapult? It’s easy to make a catapult from recyclables. Backyard bowling - To get bowling in the backyard, all you need to do is store up your empty milk cartons or soft drink bottles until you have 10. Set them up ‘bowling alley style’ at the end of a fairly long stretch of lawn. Now, use a basketball, soccer ball or netball to bowl those bottles over! To add extra excitement (and an educational element) to the game, write a ‘score’ on each bottle so your child can add up the score based on the bottles they knock over. This is a good one for more than one player, too.
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