Pool Carnival

The summer is a great time for swimming and all kinds of water activities; it's also carnival season. So, why not combine the two?! I've listed 3 different games here, but there are countless others you could use as well. Also, this activity can be adapted for lots of different age groups, which is one of the reasons I love it. I targeted the toddler age group when planning this activity, but I'm sure you can think of (or google...) some great carnival games that would work for older children as well. You will need:

A pool

Floating Pool Rings

 

Pool Balls

 

Empty Water Bottles

Squirt Guns

Rubber Ducks

The first game is a simple twist on the classic ring toss. You can either float the rings on the surface of the pool or hold them up along the edge of the pool, and allow the participants to toss the water balls into the rings. You can mix it up by having the participants in or out of the water, and changing the position of the rings. Also, if you have the rings in the water, adding in a current with wind or by having a leader moving in the water can add an extra challenge as well.

For the second game, set up the empty bottles on the edge of the pool and pass out squirt guns to each participant. Have each person stand in front of a bottle (in the pool) and try to knock it over with their squirt gun to see who can knock their down first. You may want to add a little water (or other weight) in the bottom of the bottles depending on the wind and how difficult you want to make it. Then you can set the bottles back up and see who can knock down the most before their opponents, or assign teams and add a little food coloring to the water in the bottles, or any other variation you can think of!

"Lucky Duck" is another classic carnival game that works well pool-side. For the traditional game, distinctively mark the bottoms of one or two ducks and float all of them in the water, making sure that they don't tip over and reveal the markings. Let each participant choose a duck, one at a time. A prize is given if one of the marked ducks is picked. To make it more exciting, have one participant begin turning over ducks until they pick one of the marked ones. Then it's the next participant's turn to keep going until they find a marked duck. The game keeps going until only marked ducks are left. You can keep track of who got the most ducks, or just give everyone a prize (remember, I'm working with toddlers!). You can also assign 2 big teams and see who can collect the most ducks. You may want to consider marking a few more ducks for this game, depending on how many participants and ducks you have. You may also need to mix up the ducks or have the participant spin around a few times so they don't remember which ducks are marked from the previous turns.

I considered a few other games when making my final decisions, like a version of pin the tail on the donkey that was waterproof, and having the tails on the bottom of the pool and using velcro to attach them to the board. Also, a floating version of bowling, where the pins are on a pool float. You may need to stick the pins down with something or create little grooves for them to fit in so they don't fall over too easily on the water. Look to the internet and your childhood for other carnival games you could adapt, or use research as an excuse to go to your local fair!

Boogie Board Pool Relay

Since it's officially summer, (we're feelin' the heat here in the South!) I thought I would do a series of posts on games you can play in the pool. Hence, the Boogie Board Pool Relay. You will need:

A water ski rope:

Boogie Boards:

And a Pool!

To get started, divide your group into 2 or more teams, depending on the number of participants. (If you only have a few, you could even just do the one team, they will still have fun with no competition!) Make sure there is plenty of space between the teams to avoid any collisions. A pool with lane markers is ideal, with the space of one lane between each team. If you don't have a big enough pool for this, just have one team go at a time and use a stopwatch to time each team to see who was the fastest.

Have all the members of one team line up on one side of the pool, with one person on the other side. This will be your first "puller," so give them the end of the ski rope. Have your first "rider" get on the boogie board in the water, either sitting, which some kids find more comfortable, or kneeling, which is undoubtedly faster. Hand the rider the end of the rope with the handle. When you say "go," the puller will begin pulling the rider across the length of the pool. You may want to make another line across the end of the pool so that the puller stops pulling before the rider hits the wall. An extra brightly colored rope that will float works great for this. When the rider stops, he will get out of the pool and trade the ends of the rope with the puller, then the puller will get on the board and paddle quickly back to the starting side. (If you find that it's difficult for them to hold on to the rope and paddle, have a leader swim back in the adjacent, empty lane with the rope for them, or have more than one rope per team.) When they reach the other side, they will join the end of the line and the next participant will get on the boogie board and ride across. This puller (who was the original rider) will get on the board and paddle back across the pool, the most recent rider becomes the puller for the next participant in line, and the game goes on. Only one person will be on the "pulling" side of the pool at any given time, with the rest of the team on the opposite side (except for the one in the water.)

This activity is fun for adults too, I was certainly entertained! Recommended for ages 8 and older.

The Move! (don't worry, the old stuff is coming back!)

Dearest Readers, if you have recently attempted to visit the old blog site, I'm sorry for your severe disappointment in being unable to find it, but I'm glad you survived without me and are here now! I've gotten a couple of e-mails from some of you faithful readers out there, which I was flattered to receive despite your anger and frustration! But, I'm happy to report that this new site will be up and running in no time with REGULAR blog posts! I promise, it'll be just like the old days. And all that wonderful old stuff will be back for you to use and reference! I'm working on putting it in one compact, searchable, organized pdf document to upload. I know you're relieved and excited!