Spring To It! 9 Top Outdoor Games To Try

Luckily, for so many, the weather has been amazing during lockdown! And with this beautiful weather, so many of us will be wanting to spend more time outside! Whether you've got a garden or not, it's important to get the kids out every day to get some fresh air and burn off some energy -  so we've come up with some spring-related outdoor games to keep you entertained.

For most of us, lockdown has brought a lot of free time and you'll no doubt be wanting to spend as much quality time with the kids at possible. So, this spring, whether you're playing in the garden or outside during your one hour of exercise, learn some new games and enjoy making memories with these activities for kids.

Host a boot camp in your back garden and enjoy an afternoon of outdoor activities, for fun and exercise at home! There are many different races and games to play - what you choose will completely depend on what you have to set them up! It's easy to create a killer obstacle course just from what you have lying around. And remember, you can alter any activities for kids of different ages. If you have a swing set, trampoline, or any other bits of garden equipment - involve these in the activities and play a range of challenges involving each!

Who doesn't love this classic game? It's such a popular game with all ages and probably because it is so easy for anyone to do! We all love a game that we can all have a bit of beginners luck. So, why not set up a mini-golf course in your own back garden? It doesn't matter the size of your garden as you can make the holes as long or short as you want. Grab some golf clubs and a ball and get creative in the setup! Remember that mini golf is meant to be silly, so invite all the cuddly toys out to be spectators and set up some of their bigger toys in the garden as obstacles! Kids of all ages are bound to love this game.

The idea here is to get something to throw that doesn't roll! So get your bean bag or soft toy and get the kids to throw them at targets. You can either set up buckets, or aim at tree stumps or inside hula hoops - whatever you have, you can make use of. Score the areas or targets like you would a dartboard and give the little ones a maths lesson as they go!

Memory games are so good for getting their brains engaged and they usually are quite good at keeping children's attention! So, the aim is to make this classic game into an afternoon of outdoor fun by creating giant memory cards and laying them on the grass face down. You can do this easily by printing off images online onto pieces of A4 paper or card - remember to print two copies of each image so that you have pairs. Since we're doing on the subject of spring activities - why not use baby animals? Once the basic prep is done, you're ready to play - the kids take turns in walking amongst the paper to find the pairs - they turn over two cards at a time and they take turns to do so. And quite simply - the one with the most pairs wins!

Using spray paint and a template if you want perfect circles, spray different coloured dots onto your grass to create your very own lawn twister! You could make your own spinner if you're feeling creative, or just use the one from the actual Twister box. This is a great fun game that is easy to bring outside and is bound to get their muscles working! And if you think they're up for the challenge, why not add in some extra homemade rules/demands like: "whilst you're in this position - try to lick your knee!".

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The classic carnival game of water cup races can easily be brought to your back garden - it's easy to set up and is fun for everyone to enjoy. Take advantage of this beautiful weather with this spring outdoor game - it's also perfect for cooling down as it will most probably turn into a water fight... All you have to do to is cut holes in the bottoms of plastic cups, then string the cups onto a piece of string. Tie the string between two trees or similar that you have in your garden and get the kids to spray water using a water gun into the cups to make them move! The first one to the end wins!

Recycle your old plastic bottles and use them to make a bowling alley outdoors! Paint them whatever colours you'd like, or keep it classic with a red-and-white striped colour scheme. Put a tiny bit of water in each one to make sure that it stands upon the ground and use a tennis ball to roll along the floor. This is an easy and fun home version of bowling - perfect for lockdown. If you don't have a garden - don't worry, bring your handmade bowling equipment to your nearest park or field and play there!

If you don’t have any shade in your garden, this is a perfect game to cool off in the sun! Kids will have played hot potato in school - but have they tried it with water balloons? Stand in a circle and throw the water balloon around, every time someone does a successful catch, they take a step back. As it gets harder and harder - someone will drop it or squeeze it too hard and it will pop over them - they then lose! Eliminate the loser each round and soon you'll have your outdoor hot potato winner! Young kids will love the excitement and competitiveness of this game and older kids may just like to get involved to cool down! Either way, it's a great fun family game.

Everyone loves a slip'n'slide - but sometimes it can be quite a short-lived game for the amount of prep work that goes into it! Why not try to host several games on your slip'n'slide set up? Such as tug of war! Divide the family into even teams and enjoy watching each other fall over and have fun! Simply use a tarp on the grass and add soap and water to it. As the teams struggle to keep their balance, let the tugging begin. There are also a load of other games that you could play on the slippery surface - like sumo wrestling or races!