Gleaned from the discussion area of the online elementary school conference

section of the Carleton District School Board!

Sometimes the simplest games are the best to play but the hardest to think of. In
my undying quest for fun simple games I put this out there:

Does anyone have a simple but fun gym game to share? Here is one of mine. It's
simple, very fun and I have no doubt I'm not the first person to think of it.

Whistle Stop

Objective:
To not be the last to run across to the other side of the gym and touch the wall.

Rules:
One whistle: freeze
Two whistles: freeze and take a knee
Three Whistles: Come and sit in a circle by me (O.K. I only do that one at the end
of the game)
If you are the last to freeze or the last to touch the opposite wall you come sit
with me (the teacher) on the stage

Play:
-Line up against one wall with one hand on wall
-Shout "Go"
-Blow whistle at your discretion
-wait unit last four or two are left congratulate them and play again

Pluses
It's multiple uses: I use this with my scooter board unit and when doing our
basketball unit as well (It's fun to watch the basketballs role across the floor
when they try to freeze)

Caveats:
Watch the race to the wall. Sloppy kids can crash into wall. And never let the
"sliders" (you know the kids I mean) do their sliding trick. They're out of the
game immediately.

So.... What do you do?

Circle Dodge Ball

Students in a large circle. Number off 1 to 4.
All the 1's in the middle.
Using 3 or 4 balls, outer circle tries to eliminate the "1's" in the middle by
hitting below the waist.
The last "1" eliminated is the champion of all of the "1's".
Do the same for the 2's, 3's and 4's.
Take all 4 winners in the middle to determine who the ultimate dodgeball champion
is.
Great for a warm-up activity - doesn't take long - but can if you want to see if
the winner from your first game, can hold the championship title, when you play a
2nd time.

For the lower grades, a great game is a kind of twister where I call out a body
part (left hand, right foot, etc.) and a colour. They have to put that body part
on a line or mark of that colour. It's great, there are no people sitting out,
it's fast to teach and it reinforces the ideas of colours and right vs. left. No
equipment either.
Musical Hoolahoops
- a lot like musical chairs except no one sits out.
- maybe better for primary???
- start with enough hoola hoops for everyone and as music plays remove one (or
more as time limits require).
- those without a hoop must sit with another/others

- I use this to take about groups (which is the biggest group so far? which set is
the smallest?)
- eventually, to get everyone in the remaining two or one hoop the children have
to figure out that they must stand. I have never had to tell them this yet. It is
great problem solving and we can get a class of 20 Ks in one hoolahoop!!!! Yeah
us!!!!

A game that works for a warm up or for DPA is Triangle Tag.

-work in groups of 4
- 3 people hold hands (to make a triangle) and select one child to be the
"protected one"
- the remaining person on the outside must run around and try to tag the
"protected one"
- the child who is "it" may not run through the triangle
- the two holding the "protected one's" hands must run around to keep him/her
protected
-switch and let new children be the "protected one" and the "it"

My grade 3's love this game and it's quick and easy too.

Go- walk around the gym

1 whistle- stand and freeze
2 whistle - sit down
last person for standing or sitting is out. ( I keep this very short before
restarting everyone)

OR

Shout out Green light - everyone walks or jogs quickly around the gym
Yellow light - freeze like a soldier
Red light - sit cross legged or hugging knees ( they cannot be sprawled all over
the floor)
Last one caught is out

Simple but yet effective.