While kindergarten is where a lot of young children begin to learn some of the most basic life skills, it is your job to keep it fun and exciting.
And the best way to do that is with some fun classroom activities that they can all take part in and enjoy. No one wants a room of unamused kids.
Below are 12 of the best classroom activities perfect for keeping kindergarteners happy, amused, and most importantly, learning. Check them out and see what you can do for your students!
1. Four Way Tug Of War
Want to make the most of the sunshine, get the kids outside for some team building! Combine 4 ropes to make a square and have the kids split into four teams.
Each team selects a player to begin by standing on the inside of the rope with a bean bag.
The kids must then run their hardest to reach their post and place the bean bag inside.
The kid to do this first must then swap with a team member and continue doing so until all of the team members have played.
The team to get all of their bean bag inside, win!
2. Balloon Walking
When you feel like you need more of a friendly atmosphere in the classroom, the Balloon Walking game is excellent.
Have the pupils stand in pairs and clasp hands. Then sandwich a balloon between each pair’s shoulders. The activity’s goal is for the whole class to walk in a straight line without any balloons popping or falling to the ground. It’s really enjoyable!
This is a great way to end the week and have some fun in the classroom!
3. No Hands Cup Stacking Challenge
Choose the number of pupils you want in each group, then tie that many strings to a single rubber band to create one for each group.
By stretching and contracting the rubber band, the group uses this tool to pick up the cups and stack them on top of one another to form a pyramid.
Each member of the group grabs onto one of the strings that is tied to the rubber band.
This is a great challenge for teaching teamwork and essential problem-solving skills. Students are also encouraged to communicate with each other!
4. Straw Challenge
Give each pupil a disposable straw, then ask them to make a huge circle.
Have them cross their arms in front of them with their right hand near their left shoulder and their right hand near their right shoulder, holding the straw in their right hand.
The task is to balance each straw between one person’s right pointer finger and the person next to them’s left pointer finger.
Try moving your body by raising one foot, turning the circle to the left or right, etc. The difficulty is maintaining the straws’ connection.
5. Buzz
Buzz is a great game for young children who need to memorize lengthy lists, such as a series of numbers, alphabet letters, or days of the week.
This is a great game that the entire class can get involved in. Select a series of numbers you want the kids to guess.
Determine what the buzz number is going to be. For example, every fourth number is the buzz number.
The word ‘buzz’ replaces the figures in the series. The kids must begin guessing the items on the list or the series in order while replacing the right numbers with buzz.
6. Four Corners
A quick game of chance called “four corners” can energise pupils and keep them awake after lunch.
Select one student to be ‘It, blind fold them and send ‘it’ out of the classroom for a few moments. Divide the rest of the class into four groups of four students each.
Each group should pick a corner and give the corner a simply name. Once everyone is in a corner bring ‘It’ back into the room and have them call out one of the names of the corners.
The kids standing in that corner are out!
The final group will select a corner, and the remaining four members will take turns being eliminated by “It” until there is only one student left.
This is a simple game that gives the kids a brain break to keep them engaged and having fun.
7. Board Race
This is a great game for increasing vocabulary while having some fun. All you need is a board and two or more colored markers of different colors.
Divide the class into two teams and give each team a marker. Draw a line down the middle of the board, a side for each team.
On one side, write a word and then each team must take a turn writing a different word relevant to that theme.
The team with the most words wins!
This is perfect for younger kids who need to expand their vocabulary without being stuck behind a desk. It also brings some healthy competition to the classroom.
8. Art Bingo
Traditionally, bingo is played for money but in the classroom, you can play for a piece of candy or simply bragging rights.
Bingo cards are simple to make online or you can buy pre-made ones. Just ensure the images are clear and easily identifiable. Write the word for each square and place them in a hat.
Allow each kid to come to pick a piece of paper from the hat and the first one to get 5 across wins!
This is an awesome treat in the afternoon to help with memory and recognition functions in smaller kids.
9. All About Me Hats
Everyone can play the role of a mad hatter with this game. The game promotes creativity by utilizing commonplace items or even useless items.
This is the perfect arts and crafts activity for the first day of school. Everyone can learn something about their new classmates and even have a keepsake for years to come.
It is also great for the parents to get involved, especially for younger kids who havent mastered the skill of writing yet.
10. Heads Down Thumbs Up
Heads Down Thumbs Up is a classic classroom game in the UK. It’s great for a quick game during recess when it is raining or if you don’t have a lesson plan for the afternoon.
Begin by selecting 2 or 3 volunteers and having everyone else put their heads down on the table with their thumbs up. Eyes closed of course.
The volunteers must circle the room and select a seated student and press their thumbs down. Once all of the volunteers have pushed someone’s thumbs down have them all stand at the front of the room.
The students with their thumbs pressed down must now try to identify who pushed their thumbs down.
You can then choose new volunteers and start again or have those that guessed right become the new volunteers!
Kids will love this game and insist on playing it every chance they get.
11. Blind Artist
This is a great game for helping kids get used to the action of holding a pencil correctly, working their memory muscles, and having some fun with their friends.
All you need is a whiteboard and marker or paper and pencil and some easy yet interesting images. Split the kids into pairs and do not let them face each other.
One of the kids is given the image and the other is given drawing materials. The kid with the image should begin to describe th image they are looking at while the other draws what is being described.
The idea is to get as close to the image as possible by revealing what it actually is. Kids can then swap images and begin the challenge again!
12. Simon Says
In this age-old game, students are obligated to do what you say each time “Simon says” comes before a directive. Such phrases as “Simon says jump” or “Simon says turn around” fall within this category.
Yet you might simply shout out directives without the words “Simon says” in order to fool kids. Any kids who follow directions that don’t start with “Simon says” are eliminated from the game.
The winner is the last child left standing, who gets a shot at succeeding Simon. Who knows, maybe in the future kids may listen to you so well that you won’t need to repeat yourself!
Final Thoughts
When it comes to keeping young children occupied for a long period of time, you can run out of ideas quickly.
While they do have to be learning most of the time, there is always a little room for learning skills while having fun.
And we know just how to do it!
Above are 12 of the best classroom activities that are perfect for kindergarten kids! Get outdoors for a game of Four Way Tug of War or create a sense of comradery with a game of Board Race!
Hi, my name is Helena Waters and I was a teacher for 40 years before retiring last year.
During my time as a teacher I dedicated the majority of it to making classrooms as fun as possible, with educational parties, fun activities, and low cost entertainment that made the children excited about learning.
I taught children of all ages, from preschoolers to high school students. Now, with the pandemic having uprooted everything that children once knew about school and learning, I think that the need for my ideas is bigger than ever.
That is why I created School Sparks, a place in which I can write down and share all of my ideas on how to get students excited about going to school again. I hope that you’ll find some useful within a school setting, even at home too!
