• 50 games

Youth Group Games Outside, for 10 to 60 Teens

Pick by what you have: a field and flags, one ball, no props, or a faucet and buckets.

Youth Group Games Outside, for 10 to 60 Teens

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  1. Seven-Pass Disc1. Mark a square about 30 paces a side and make teams of five to eight.2. A team scores 1 by completing seven passes in a row, counted aloud by the whole team.3. No running with the disc, no passing straight back to the player who threw to you, and five seconds to throw.4. A drop or an interception hands the disc over, and the count starts again at one.5. Play four-minute games and rotate until every team has met every other.Space: a quarter of a field for each game; run several squares for a big group. Contact: none. Safety: defenders stay an arm's length from the thrower, and close passes are thrown flat and below head height. Players: 10 to 60. Time: 20 min. Props: one flying disc and four cones for each square.
  2. One-Breath Highlights1. Sit in a circle in the shade with water bottles.2. Each player in turn tells their highlight of the session, and it has to fit into one breath.3. Nobody comments; the group answers every highlight with two claps.4. Anyone may pass, and the leader comes back to them once at the end.5. The leader goes last and names something they saw a quieter player do well. With more than 30, sit in two circles.Space: a seated circle in the shade. Contact: none. Safety: this is the moment for a head count and a drink of water before anyone goes home. Players: 6 to 60. Time: 8 min. Props: none.
  3. Trading Post Card Rush1. Make 40 resource cards in each of four colors and set a box of one color at each corner of the site, with a ten-second task written on its lid, such as ten jumping jacks in step.2. A team of three does the task, then takes one card.3. A team may hold five cards at most, so it has to keep visiting the trading post in the middle.4. At the post the leader swaps a full set of four colors for a gold token.5. Teams may trade cards with each other anywhere.6. Most gold tokens after 20 minutes wins.Space: a full field or a campus. Contact: none. Safety: there is no tagging, so it suits a night with mixed ages, and the ten paces around the post are walking only. Players: 12 to 60. Time: 25 min. Props: 160 cards in four colors, four boxes and about 40 tokens.

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Wide games for a field or woods 12

  • Camouflage Countdown 1. One spotter stands at a marked tree, shuts their eyes and counts aloud to 30 while everyone hides somewhere they can still see the spotter from. 2. The spotter opens their eyes and, without leaving the tree, calls in anyone they can name or describe by clothing and place. 3. The spotter shuts their eyes again and counts to 20; every hidden player has to run in, touch the tree and hide again. 4. Repeat with counts of 15, 10 and 5, so the hiding places get closer. 5. The last player unseen is the next spotter. Space: a wood, or a site with bushes and thick trunks. Contact: none. Safety: hide standing or crouching inside the agreed boundary, never up a tree or under a vehicle. Players: 8 to 40. Time: 20 min. Props: none.
  • Capture the Flag, Youth Night Rules 1. Split the field in half with a line of cones and give each team a flag to plant in plain sight, at least 20 paces back from the line. 2. Mark a jail circle beside each flag. 3. A player tagged in the other team's half walks to that jail, and a free teammate who reaches the jail walks one prisoner home, both with a hand in the air. 4. Guards stay three paces away from their own flag and jail. 5. A flag carried over the line scores 1; reset and swap ends. 6. Play three points. Space: a full field, or a field with a wooded edge. Contact: light (tags). Safety: a tag is a flat hand on the arm or back, never a grab, and three whistle blasts bring everyone to the center for a head count. Players: 12 to 60. Time: 30 min. Props: two flags and about 20 cones.
  • Couriers and Interceptors 1. Write a 12-word message for each team and cut it into single words. 2. Each team's words wait at its sender post, and its receiver sits at a post about 150 paces away with paper and a pen. 3. Couriers carry one word at a time in their heads: nothing written leaves the sender post. 4. The middle ground belongs to the interceptors, one for every five players; a tagged courier walks back and sets off again with a different word. 5. The receiver writes down each word, and the team puts them in order. 6. The first team to read its whole message to the leader wins. Space: a full field or open woods. Contact: light (tags). Safety: tagged couriers walk back along the two edges, out of the way of the runners. Players: 10 to 40. Time: 25 min. Props: word slips, paper, pens and cones.
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Wide games for a field or woods, continued

  • Food Chain Survival 1. Give two thirds of the group green bands (plant eaters), a quarter yellow (hunters) and two or three red (top predators), and everyone three life tokens. 2. Hang six food cards and four water cards around the site, each with a crayon on a string; plant eaters mark their own card at all ten. 3. A yellow tag takes one token from a green, and a red tag takes one from a green or a yellow. 4. After a tag the hunter counts to ten aloud before chasing anyone. 5. A player with no tokens collects three more from the leader. 6. After 20 minutes greens score 1 for each mark and hunters 1 for each token taken. Space: woods, or a large site with cover. Contact: light (tags). Safety: walk the boundary with the whole group first, count heads at the start and the end, and recall with three whistle blasts. Players: 15 to 60. Time: 35 min. Props: bands in three colors, tokens, ten hung cards with crayons and a card for each plant eater.
  • Four-Team Capture the Flag 1. Quarter a field with two crossing lines of cones; each team owns one quarter and plants a flag in its far corner. 2. A player is safe in their own quarter and can be tagged in any other. 3. A tagged player jogs to the center cross, counts to 20 aloud and rejoins. 4. Each flag stolen and carried home scores 2, and at the final whistle a team still holding its own flag scores 3. 5. Play 12 minutes, then rotate quarters and play again. Space: a full field. Contact: light (tags). Safety: the center cross is a walking zone, because four teams cross paths there. Players: 20 to 60. Time: 30 min. Props: four flags, about 20 cones and bandanas in four colors.
  • Gold Rush With Two Sheriffs 1. Scatter 100 yellow tokens across a marked gold field about 40 paces square. 2. Teams of four or five each have a bank bucket outside the field, and two sheriffs patrol inside it. 3. A miner carries one piece at a time. 4. A miner tagged inside the field puts the piece down on the spot and runs back to touch the bank before returning. 5. When the field is empty, count each bank. 6. The next two sheriffs come from the team in the lead, which evens out the following round. Space: half a field. Contact: light (tags). Safety: when two players reach for the same piece, the first hand on it keeps it and nobody wrestles. Players: 10 to 50. Time: 20 min. Props: 100 tokens or painted stones, a bucket for each team and cones.
  • Medic Capture the Flag 1. Set up two halves and two flags, with no jail. 2. A tagged player sits down where they were tagged, one hand up. 3. Each team secretly names two medics, who free a sitting teammate with a high five; the freed player walks home before rejoining. 4. A tagged medic sits like anyone else, and only the other medic can free them. 5. A team wins by carrying the flag home, or by having both enemy medics sitting at once. 6. Name new medics every round. Space: a full field. Contact: light (tags and high fives). Safety: sitting players keep their legs crossed, and runners go around them, never over. Players: 14 to 60. Time: 30 min. Props: two flags and about 12 cones.
  • Raid the Ball Store 1. Mark a ring ten paces across and put a crate of 30 tennis balls in the middle. 2. A quarter of the group defend it from outside the ring, which they may not enter. 3. Attackers start from a base line 40 paces away, and one tagged on the way in walks back to it. 4. An attacker who reaches the ring is safe, takes one ball and walks it home untouched, ball held high. 5. After five minutes count the balls at the base line, then change defenders. 6. The defenders who lose the fewest win. Space: half a field. Contact: light (tags). Safety: attackers slow to a walk at the edge of the ring, so nobody dives at the crate. Players: 10 to 40. Time: 20 min. Props: a crate, 30 tennis balls and about 20 cones.
  • Score Course in Threes 1. Before the group arrives, hang 15 numbered cards around the site, each with a letter on it; near cards are worth 5, far ones 10 and the two hardest 20. 2. Teams of three get a sketch map, a pencil and 20 minutes. 3. They visit cards in any order and copy each letter beside its number. 4. All three touch a card before its letter counts. 5. Every full minute late costs 10. 6. The highest total wins, and the letters spell a phrase for a bonus 20. Space: the whole site: a campus, a park or woods with paths. Contact: none. Safety: every card hangs beside a path and well away from roads and water, and three whistle blasts mean come straight back. Players: 9 to 60. Time: 30 min. Props: 15 lettered cards, string, sketch maps, pencils and a watch for each team.
  • Smugglers and Border Guards 1. Mark a border strip about 30 paces deep across the site, with the smugglers' den on one side and a drop box on the other. 2. A third of the group are guards, and they stay inside the strip. 3. Each smuggler takes one card from the den; cards are marked 1, 5 or 10, and most are 1s. 4. A smuggler tagged in the strip hands the card over unseen and goes back to the den for another. 5. Cards posted in the drop box count for the smugglers, and cards taken count for the guards. 6. After 12 minutes add up both piles, then swap roles. Space: a field with cover, or a wood with a path on each side. Contact: light (tags). Safety: guards tag and never search: a tagged smuggler hands the card over. Players: 15 to 60. Time: 30 min. Props: about 80 small numbered cards, a box and boundary tape.
  • Three-Flag Capture 1. Each team gets three flags of its own color and five minutes to place them in its half: knee height or higher, a hand's width showing, nothing buried. 2. Play as capture the flag with no jail: a tagged player walks back to touch their own base tree before rejoining. 3. A raider carries one flag at a time, and a tagged carrier drops the flag where they stand. 4. Captured flags hang on the team's base tree. 5. The first team holding all three enemy flags wins; at the final whistle the higher count wins. Space: open woods, or a field with cover. Contact: light (tags). Safety: in woods everyone moves in pairs, the boundary is walked by the whole group first, and nobody climbs to place a flag. Players: 12 to 60. Time: 40 min. Props: six flags in two colors and boundary tape.
  • Trading Post Card Rush 1. Make 40 resource cards in each of four colors and set a box of one color at each corner of the site, with a ten-second task written on its lid, such as ten jumping jacks in step. 2. A team of three does the task, then takes one card. 3. A team may hold five cards at most, so it has to keep visiting the trading post in the middle. 4. At the post the leader swaps a full set of four colors for a gold token. 5. Teams may trade cards with each other anywhere. 6. Most gold tokens after 20 minutes wins. Space: a full field or a campus. Contact: none. Safety: there is no tagging, so it suits a night with mixed ages, and the ten paces around the post are walking only. Players: 12 to 60. Time: 25 min. Props: 160 cards in four colors, four boxes and about 40 tokens.

Field games with one ball or disc 12

  • Bandana Pairs Soccer 1. Pair everyone up and give each pair a bandana to hold between them, one end each. 2. Play soccer on a small field with cone goals, six to eight pairs a side. 3. A pair that drops its bandana stands still until both are holding it again. 4. There are no goalkeepers, and a goal counts only from inside the attacking half. 5. Swap partners at every five-minute break. Space: a quarter of a field. Contact: light (shoulder to shoulder for the ball). Safety: pairs hold the bandana, not each other's wrists, so a stumbling player can let go; no slide tackles. Players: 12 to 32. Time: 20 min. Props: one soccer ball, a bandana for each pair and four cones.
  • Big-Base Kickball, Two Laps 1. Set out a kickball diamond with four big bases, such as tarps staked flat, that can each hold any number of runners. 2. The pitcher rolls the ball, and the kicker kicks and runs. 3. Runners may wait on a base as long as they like, but once they step off they must go on to the next. 4. A runner scores only after going round the diamond twice. 5. A caught fly ball is an out, and so is a runner who reaches a base after a fielder is standing on it with the ball. 6. Swap sides when everyone has kicked once; most runs wins. Space: half a field. Contact: none. Safety: nobody throws the ball at a runner: every out is made with a catch or at a base. Players: 12 to 40. Time: 30 min. Props: one playground ball and four big base markers.
  • Catch-and-Throw Volleyball Over a Rope 1. Tie a rope between two trees or posts just above head height and mark a court on each side. 2. Teams of six to ten play with a ball that is thrown and caught, never hit. 3. The catcher has three seconds and one step, and a side may pass twice before the ball goes over. 4. A ball that lands in court, or a throw that goes out or under the rope, is a point to the other side. 5. The serving team rotates one place at every serve. 6. Play to 15. Space: a quarter of a field with two trees or posts. Contact: none. Safety: tie bandanas along the rope so nobody runs into it, and take it down afterwards. Players: 10 to 24. Time: 20 min. Props: one volleyball or beach ball, a long rope, bandanas and cones.
  • Four-Goal Soccer 1. Mark a square field with a cone goal in the middle of each side and make four teams, each defending one goal. 2. Play with one ball for the first five minutes. 3. Every team attacks all three other goals. 4. A goal against a team is a mark against it, and the team with the fewest marks wins. 5. Nobody uses their hands, and shots stay below knee height. 6. Add a second ball at half time. Space: half a field. Contact: light (shoulder to shoulder for the ball). Safety: no slide tackles, and shots stay low because goals face each other across a small field. Players: 12 to 40. Time: 20 min. Props: one or two soccer balls, eight cones and bandanas in four colors.
  • Hoop Catcher Disc 1. Lay a hoop or a rope circle at each end of a field 40 paces long; each team puts one catcher in the far hoop. 2. Teams pass a disc up the field, with no running while holding it. 3. A point is scored when the catcher catches a pass with both feet inside the hoop. 4. Nobody else may come within three paces of a hoop. 5. After each point, the player who threw the scoring pass becomes the new catcher. 6. First to 7. Space: half a field. Contact: none. Safety: the three-pace rule keeps the crowd off the catcher, who is looking up at the disc and not at the players around them. Players: 10 to 24. Time: 20 min. Props: one flying disc, two hoops or rope circles, and cones.
  • Human Foosball on Rope Lines 1. Lay six ropes across a field about 30 paces long, three for each team, in alternating rows like the rods of a foosball table, with a cone goal at each end. 2. Players spread along their team's ropes and keep one foot on the rope at all times. 3. They may slide sideways along the rope but never step off it. 4. Drop in a soft ball, which is played along the ground with the feet only. 5. A goal scores 1, and the ball is dropped in again at the center. 6. Rotate the rows after every goal, so everyone has a turn in attack and in goal. Space: a quarter of a field or a court. Contact: none (the rows keep the teams apart). Safety: use a soft ball and keep it below knee height. Players: 12 to 36. Time: 20 min. Props: one soft ball, six long ropes and four cones.
  • Laps and Lines Kickball 1. One team kicks and the other spreads out in the field; there are no bases. 2. After a kick the whole kicking team bunches together and the kicker runs laps around them, the team counting each lap aloud. 3. Whoever fields the ball holds it up, every fielder lines up behind that player, and the ball is passed back over each head. 4. When the last fielder holds the ball up and the team shouts stop, the laps stop. 5. Each lap is a run; swap sides after five kickers. 6. Most runs after three turns each wins. Space: half a field. Contact: none. Safety: fielders jog to the line and the kicker keeps an arm's length out from the bunch. Players: 12 to 60. Time: 20 min. Props: one playground ball.
  • Longball With Two Safe Zones 1. Mark a home zone and, 30 paces away, a far zone, each wide enough to hold a whole team, with a hoop halfway between for one fielder, the hoop keeper. 2. The batter hits a soft ball out of their own hand with an open palm and runs to the far zone. 3. Runners may wait in the far zone as long as they like and come home on any later hit; out and back scores 1. 4. Fielders return the ball to the hoop keeper, and a runner caught between zones at that moment is out. 5. A caught fly ball is out too. 6. Swap sides after three outs or when everyone has batted. Space: half a field. Contact: none. Safety: nobody throws the ball at a runner, and waiting batters stand well behind the home zone. Players: 12 to 40. Time: 25 min. Props: one soft ball, a hoop and about 12 cones.
  • Nine Square on a Court 1. Chalk a grid of three squares by three on a hard court, each square about two paces a side, and number them 1 to 9 with 9 in the center. 2. One player stands in each square and the rest wait in line. 3. The player in 9 serves: a bounce in their own square, then an open-hand hit up and into any other square. 4. The ball bounces once in a square, and that square's owner hits it on. 5. A player who misses, hits out or hits a line goes to the back of the line; everyone behind moves up a number, and a new player enters at 1. 6. Whoever holds the center at the ten-minute whistle wins. Space: a hard court or a parking lot closed to traffic. Contact: none. Safety: open-hand hits that travel upward only, with no spikes. Players: 10 to 24. Time: 20 min. Props: one playground ball and chalk.
  • Pin Guard Circle 1. Form circles of 10 to 12, each with three plastic bottles standing in the middle and one guard. 2. The circle passes a soft foam ball around and across, and throws to knock a bottle down. 3. The guard blocks with hands, feet and body but may not hold a bottle. 4. Every throw is underhand and aimed at the bottles. 5. Whoever knocks down the last bottle is the next guard. 6. Run several circles side by side for a big group. Space: a circle eight paces across for each group. Contact: none. Safety: foam ball only, thrown underhand, so a block never stings. Players: 10 to 60. Time: 15 min. Props: one soft foam ball and three plastic bottles for each circle.
  • Seven-Pass Disc 1. Mark a square about 30 paces a side and make teams of five to eight. 2. A team scores 1 by completing seven passes in a row, counted aloud by the whole team. 3. No running with the disc, no passing straight back to the player who threw to you, and five seconds to throw. 4. A drop or an interception hands the disc over, and the count starts again at one. 5. Play four-minute games and rotate until every team has met every other. Space: a quarter of a field for each game; run several squares for a big group. Contact: none. Safety: defenders stay an arm's length from the thrower, and close passes are thrown flat and below head height. Players: 10 to 60. Time: 20 min. Props: one flying disc and four cones for each square.
  • Two-Disc End Zones 1. Mark a field about 70 paces long with an end zone at each end and split into two teams of up to 15. 2. Put two flying discs in play at once, one starting with each team. 3. A player holding a disc may not run and has five seconds to throw. 4. A dropped, blocked or out-of-bounds pass goes to the other team where it landed. 5. A catch inside the far end zone scores 1, and that disc restarts from the end zone of the team that was scored on. 6. Play to 9. Space: a full field. Contact: none. Safety: defenders stay an arm's length from the thrower, and with two discs in the air everyone looks before they cut across the field. Players: 12 to 30. Time: 25 min. Props: two flying discs, eight cones and bandanas for one team.

Running and tag games with no props 8

  • Captain's Coming With No Knockout 1. Name the four sides of a playing area about 20 paces across as bow, stern, port and starboard. 2. The leader calls a side and everyone runs to it, or calls an action: captain's coming (stand tall and salute), scrub the deck (crouch and scrub), lifeboats (sit in a line of three and row) or climb the rigging (climb on the spot). 3. The last to arrive, the last to act or anyone left out of a lifeboat does five jumping jacks and plays on; nobody is out. 4. Speed the calls up, then add one call that the group invents. 5. Hand the calling to one of the teenagers halfway through. Space: a quarter of a field. Contact: none. Safety: all four sides are lines on open grass, never a fence or a wall. Players: 10 to 60. Time: 10 min. Props: none.
  • Court Line Tag 1. Use a marked court where the painted lines are the only places anyone may step. 2. Name two taggers for every 15 players. 3. Everyone, taggers included, moves only along the lines and may not jump from one line to another. 4. A tagged player sits down on the line where they were caught and becomes a roadblock that runners cannot pass but taggers can. 5. The last three free players are the next taggers. Space: a marked basketball or tennis court. Contact: light (tags). Safety: jogging pace at most on a hard surface, and sitting players tuck their legs in. Players: 10 to 40. Time: 10 min. Props: none.
  • Double High-Five Freeze Tag 1. Name one tagger for every eight players; taggers run with one hand on their head so everyone can tell who they are. 2. A tagged player freezes with both hands up. 3. It takes two free players at once to thaw them: both give a high five at the same moment. 4. Taggers keep three paces away from anyone who is frozen. 5. The taggers win if everyone is frozen; change taggers every two minutes either way. Space: a square about 30 paces a side. Contact: light (tags and high fives). Safety: a tag is a flat hand on the arm or back, never a grab, and the three-pace rule keeps rescues from ending in a collision. Players: 10 to 60. Time: 10 min. Props: none.
  • Elbow Tag 1. Everyone pairs up, links elbows and spreads out, free hands on hips; name one chaser and one runner. 2. The chaser tries to tag the runner. 3. The runner is safe by linking onto the free elbow of any pair, and the player on the far side of that pair lets go and is the new runner. 4. A tagged runner becomes the chaser at once, and the old chaser runs. 5. With more than 20 players, use two chasers and two runners. Space: a square about 20 paces a side. Contact: light (linked elbows and tags). Safety: run around a pair, never between the two, and a pair may stand shoulder to shoulder without linking if they prefer. Players: 10 to 40. Time: 10 min. Props: none.
  • Streets and Alleys 1. All but two players stand in a grid of rows and columns, arms stretched out sideways so fingertips nearly meet along the rows: these are the streets. 2. One chaser and one runner move along the corridors only, and may not break through arms. 3. When the leader calls alleys, everyone in the grid makes a quarter turn to the right with arms still out, and the corridors change direction; streets turns them back. 4. A tag swaps the two roles, and the leader names a new pair every 30 seconds. 5. Call the turns often, to help whoever is losing. Space: a square about 15 paces a side. Contact: light (tags). Safety: arms are fences and not gates: nobody ducks under one, and grid players keep their hands open and still. Players: 14 to 60. Time: 10 min. Props: none.
  • Team Rock Paper Scissors Chase 1. Two teams huddle and each secretly agrees on rock, paper or scissors, plus a backup sign. 2. The teams line up facing each other, two arm's lengths apart, along the center line; each team's safe line is 20 paces behind it. 3. On the leader's count of three, every player shows the team's sign. 4. The winning team chases the losers toward their safe line, and anyone tagged before reaching it joins the winners. 5. On a tie, both teams show the backup at once. 6. Play for ten minutes, or until one team is down to three. Space: a strip about 40 paces long. Contact: light (tags). Safety: put the safe lines well short of any fence or wall, so runners have room to slow down. Players: 10 to 60. Time: 10 min. Props: none.
  • Triangle Tag in Fours 1. Make groups of four. Three join hands in a triangle, and one of the three is named the target. 2. The fourth player is the chaser and stays outside the triangle. 3. The chaser tries to tag the target on the shoulder while the triangle turns and sidesteps to keep the target away. 4. The chaser may not reach across the triangle or duck through it. 5. After 30 seconds or a tag, change roles, until all four have chased. Space: a patch about six paces across for each four. Contact: light (joined hands and tags). Safety: the triangle turns no faster than its slowest member can step, and lets go if anyone stumbles. Players: 8 to 60. Time: 10 min. Props: none.
  • Walking Pairs Tag 1. Everyone finds a partner, and each pair decides who is it first. 2. All the pairs play at once inside one marked square, and each player chases only their own partner. 3. It is walking only, and anyone who breaks into a run becomes it on the spot. 4. A tagged partner turns round twice, then chases back. 5. After two minutes call for new partners, and step the square in by a few paces. Space: a square about 15 paces a side for 20 players. Contact: light (tags). Safety: in the crowd everyone walks with hands up at chest height as bumpers. Players: 10 to 60. Time: 8 min. Props: none.

Water games that need no pool 12

  • Backward Cup Pour Relay 1. Teams sit in single file on the grass, all facing forward, each player holding a plastic cup on top of their head. 2. The front player fills their cup from the team bucket. 3. Without turning round, they tip it backward over their head into the cup of the player behind, who does the same, all the way down the line. 4. The last player pours what is left into a measuring pitcher and runs to the front, and everyone shuffles back. 5. When everyone has been at the front once, the fullest pitcher wins. Space: a line about eight paces long for each team. Contact: none. Safety: clean tap water only, since it runs over faces, and plastic cups only. Players: 10 to 60. Time: 12 min. Props: a plastic cup each, and a bucket and a pitcher for each team.
  • Colander Dash Relay 1. Each team has a full tub at the start, a plastic colander, and a pitcher standing 15 paces away. 2. The runner scoops water with the colander, holds it overhead with both hands and hurries to the pitcher. 3. Whatever is still in the colander goes into the pitcher, and the runner jogs back to hand over. 4. When everyone has run twice, compare the pitchers. 5. In the second round two players carry the colander between them, and a third may cup hands underneath. Space: a lane of 15 paces for each team. Contact: none. Safety: plastic colanders only, and stand each pitcher on flat ground where a runner cannot kick it. Players: 10 to 50. Time: 12 min. Props: a tub, a plastic colander and a pitcher for each team.
  • Float the Ball Up the Leaky Pipe 1. For each team, stand a drainpipe about one pace tall, capped at the bottom and drilled with 20 small holes, and drop a table tennis ball inside. 2. The team has one cup each and a tub of water ten paces away. 3. Players ferry water to the pipe while teammates plug the holes with their fingers. 4. Nobody may tip the pipe or reach inside it. 5. The first team whose ball floats out of the top wins. 6. Replay with each player allowed to plug with one hand only. Space: ten paces between each team's tub and its pipe. Contact: light (crowding round the pipe). Safety: file the drilled holes smooth before the night, and one player holds the pipe upright the whole time. Players: 10 to 40. Time: 15 min. Props: a drilled and capped pipe, a table tennis ball, a tub and cups for each team.
  • Four-Sheet Water Balloon Volleyball 1. String a rope at head height and put two groups on each side, each group of four to six holding the edges of an old bedsheet. 2. The serving sheet launches a water balloon over the rope by snapping the sheet tight together. 3. A receiving sheet has to catch it unburst, and may pass it once to its partner sheet before sending it back. 4. A balloon that bursts or lands on your side is a point to the other side. 5. Serve alternates; play to 7, then swap the wet sheets round. The teen party version on this site uses towels in pairs; bedsheets and two sheets a side are what let 40 play. Space: a quarter of a field. Contact: none. Safety: ask about latex allergy beforehand, tie bandanas on the rope, and pick up every scrap of balloon afterwards. Players: 16 to 48. Time: 20 min. Props: a rope, four old bedsheets, about 40 filled water balloons and a tub.
  • Hose Limbo by Team Total 1. A leader holds a garden hose so that the stream makes a level bar of water at shoulder height. 2. Teams line up and go under in turn, leaning back, with no hands on the ground. 3. A player who touches the stream or the ground scores nothing at that height. 4. Each clean pass scores 1 for the team. 5. Lower the stream a hand's width after every full round, for five heights in all. 6. The highest team total wins, so one flexible player cannot carry the game alone. Space: ten paces of grass near a faucet. Contact: none. Safety: stop at waist height, and move along when the grass turns to mud. Players: 10 to 40. Time: 15 min. Props: a garden hose on a faucet.
  • Leaky Bucket Brigade, Fingers on the Holes 1. Before the night, punch about 12 holes in the sides and base of one bucket for each team. 2. Teams of six fill their leaky bucket at a faucet or a big tub. 3. They carry it 25 paces as a group, plugging holes with fingers, palms and elbows, and pour what is left into their team bin. 4. Two players carry and the rest plug, and the roles change every trip. 5. After eight minutes the deepest bin wins. Space: a lane of 25 paces from the water to the bins. Contact: light (shoulder to shoulder around a bucket). Safety: punch the holes from the inside out and tape any sharp edge, and the group walks with the bucket, never runs. Players: 12 to 48. Time: 15 min. Props: a holed bucket and a bin for each team, and a faucet or a large tub.
  • Over-Under Sponge Pass Relay 1. Teams stand in single file, all facing forward, with a full bucket at the front and an empty one at the back. 2. The front player soaks the sponge and passes it back over their head; the next player passes it between their knees, and so on, over then under. 3. The last player squeezes it into the back bucket, runs to the front with it, soaks it and starts again. 4. The line shuffles back one place each time. 5. The race ends when the first player is at the front again, and the deepest back bucket, measured with a stick, wins. Space: a line about ten paces long for each team. Contact: none. Safety: say before the game that everyone in the line gets wet, and keep dry jobs such as judge and refiller for anyone who would rather not. Players: 12 to 60. Time: 12 min. Props: two buckets and a big sponge for each team, and a measuring stick.
  • Soaked Sponge Shuttle Relay 1. Teams of six to eight line up behind a full bucket, each with an empty bucket 15 paces away that has a fill line marked inside. 2. The first runner soaks a big sponge, carries it any way they like, squeezes it into the far bucket and runs back to hand it on. 3. Keep going round the team until one bucket reaches its line. 4. In the second race the sponge rides on the runner's head, hands off until the far bucket. 5. In the third race two runners carry it between their elbows. 6. The team with most wins over the three races takes it. Space: a lane 20 paces long for each team. Contact: none. Safety: wet grass by the buckets turns slippery, so shift the lanes a few paces after each race. Players: 12 to 60. Time: 15 min. Props: two buckets and a big sponge for each team.
  • Soaked Sponge Snatch by Number 1. Two teams face each other on lines 20 paces apart and number off, so every number has an opposite. 2. A dripping sponge sits on an upturned bucket in the middle. 3. The leader calls a number, and those two players run out. 4. Whoever grabs the sponge scores 2 for getting it home untagged; the other scores 1 for a tag. 5. Call two numbers at once, or a sum to work out. 6. Soak the sponge again after every go. Space: 20 paces between the two lines. Contact: light (tags). Safety: the grass round the bucket gets slick, so move the bucket a few paces every five calls. Players: 10 to 40. Time: 12 min. Props: a big sponge and two buckets.
  • Sponge Storm, Below the Shoulders 1. Mark an arena about 25 paces square with a refill tub in each corner, and scatter 30 soft sponges. 2. On the whistle everyone grabs sponges, soaks them and throws. 3. A hit below the shoulders sends that player on a jogged lap round the outside before rejoining. 4. A hit above the shoulders, or a caught sponge, sends the thrower on the lap. 5. Play three-minute storms with a minute between them to refill the tubs. Space: a quarter of a field. Contact: none. Safety: soft car-wash sponges only, and mark a dry zone outside the arena for anyone sitting out. Players: 10 to 50. Time: 15 min. Props: 30 soft sponges, four tubs and cones.
  • String Cup Squirt Relay 1. For each team, thread a plastic cup onto a string through a hole in its base, and tie the string taut at chest height between two posts ten paces apart. 2. The first player squirts a spray bottle into the cup to push it along the string to the far end. 3. They slide it back by hand and pass the bottle on. 4. A bottle that runs dry is refilled from the team bucket by the player at the back of the line. 5. The first team through wins. Space: two posts or trees ten paces apart for each lane. Contact: none. Safety: squirt at the cup only, and tie a bandana on each string so nobody walks into it. Players: 8 to 40. Time: 12 min. Props: string, a plastic cup, a spray bottle and a bucket for each team.
  • Tarp Water Carry 1. Give each team of eight a small tarp and lay it flat beside the faucet or tub. 2. Pour two buckets of water into the middle; the team lifts the tarp by its edges to make a pool. 3. They carry it 30 paces, around a cone, and tip it into their team bin. 4. One dropped edge and the water is gone, so the team has to talk. 5. Make three trips each; the deepest bin wins. 6. Run a last trip in silence. Space: a lane of 30 paces with a cone to turn around. Contact: none. Safety: walking only, lift together on a count of three, and keep the load to two buckets so the lift is easy for eight. Players: 8 to 48. Time: 15 min. Props: a small tarp, a bin and a bucket for each team, and cones.

Cool-down circle games 6

  • Keeper of the Keys 1. Everyone sits in a wide circle on the grass, with one keeper in the middle, blindfolded, and a bunch of keys on the ground in front of their knees. 2. The leader points silently at one player, who creeps in to lift the keys and carry them home without a sound. 3. A keeper who hears something points straight at it, and a correct point sends the creeper back to their place. 4. A creeper who gets the keys home is the next keeper. 5. In a big circle, send two creepers from opposite sides. Space: a circle about 12 paces across, away from road noise. Contact: none. Safety: the keeper sits the whole time, so the blindfold never moves around. Players: 8 to 40. Time: 10 min. Props: a bunch of keys and a bandana.
  • One-Breath Highlights 1. Sit in a circle in the shade with water bottles. 2. Each player in turn tells their highlight of the session, and it has to fit into one breath. 3. Nobody comments; the group answers every highlight with two claps. 4. Anyone may pass, and the leader comes back to them once at the end. 5. The leader goes last and names something they saw a quieter player do well. With more than 30, sit in two circles. Space: a seated circle in the shade. Contact: none. Safety: this is the moment for a head count and a drink of water before anyone goes home. Players: 6 to 60. Time: 8 min. Props: none.
  • Pass-the-Stretch Circle 1. Stand in one big circle, an arm's length apart. 2. The leader shows one slow stretch, and everyone holds it while the group counts down from ten together. 3. The player on the left shows the next stretch, and so on round; anyone may say pass. 4. No stretch may be repeated. 5. With a big group go halfway round, then finish with three slow breaths together, in for four counts and out for six. Space: a standing circle. Contact: none. Safety: hold still without bouncing, and stop short of pain. Players: 6 to 60. Time: 8 min. Props: none.
  • Shoulder Tap Pulse Race 1. Two teams sit in two lines side by side, all facing forward and looking ahead, each player within reach of the shoulder in front. 2. The leader stands at the back and shows the two back players a thumb, up or down. 3. On a thumbs up, each back player taps the shoulder in front, and the tap travels up the line. 4. The front player who feels the tap shoots both hands up, and a judge at the front names the faster line. 5. The winning line sends its front player to the back; a line that taps on a thumbs down sends its back player to the front. 6. The first line to rotate all the way through wins. Space: two lines on the grass. Contact: light (a tap on the shoulder). Safety: a tap is two fingers on the shoulder, never a slap. Players: 10 to 40. Time: 10 min. Props: none.
  • This Is a Stick, a What 1. Sit in a circle. The leader hands a stick to the player on the right and says, this is a stick. 2. That player asks, a what; the leader repeats, a stick; and the player says, oh, a stick, and takes it. 3. The stick travels on the same way, except that every a what has to be passed all the way back to the leader, and every answer all the way out again. 4. At the same moment the leader sends a pine cone round to the left: this is a cone. 5. The muddle peaks where the two objects cross, and the game ends when both are home. Space: a seated circle. Contact: none. Safety: choose a short, smooth stick with no splinters. Players: 8 to 30. Time: 10 min. Props: two small things from the ground, such as a stick and a pine cone.
  • Two-Minute Sound Count 1. Everyone sits or lies back on the grass, a little apart, and shuts their eyes. 2. For two minutes nobody speaks, and each player raises a finger for every different sound they notice. 3. At the leader's quiet signal, eyes open and everyone shows their count. 4. Go round the circle, each person naming one sound that nobody has said yet. 5. Play one more minute, listening only for the farthest sound and the nearest. Space: any quiet patch of grass. Contact: none. Safety: check the grass for ants, thistles and litter before anyone lies down. Players: 5 to 60. Time: 8 min. Props: none.

How this list was compiled: Written for an outdoor youth night of 10 to 60 teenagers with one or two leaders, in our own words; player ranges, minutes and spaces are our estimates. Several games are our own variants: nobody throws a ball at a runner, every tag is a flat hand on the arm or back, and nobody sits out for long. Your organization's rules on supervision, ratios, consent forms, water and sun come first. The general shape of four traditional games was checked on 2026-09-19 against Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capture_the_flag, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matball, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newcomb_ball, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danish_longball. Licence: own work

How it works

One or two leaders, 10 to 60 teenagers and a field: these 50 youth group games outside are written for that. Wide games, one-ball field games, no-props tag, water games and cool-down circles, each with a safety line.

Read the full guide

Start from what is in the car

Kind sorts the list by what you brought. No props shows 13 games, One ball or disc 12, and Wide games need flags or cards and 20 to 40 minutes. Group keeps what fits your head count, which matters with outdoor team games for youth: Two-Disc End Zones stops at 30 players and Streets and Alleys needs 14.

The water set

Water shows the 12 water games for teens, and none needs a pool: a faucet, buckets and big sponges cover most. The site keeps its water relays here, such as Colander Dash Relay. Say beforehand that everyone gets wet, and that anyone who would rather stay dry can referee. The full list gives the water games their own heading.

  • Let the group vote between two picks: fun outdoor games for teens are mostly the ones they chose.
  • End on Cool-down: six circle games, and One-Breath Highlights doubles as the head count.
  • Print puts the picked games on paper with their steps.

Questions and answers

Which youth group water games work without a pool?

All 12 here. Soaked Sponge Shuttle Relay needs two buckets and a big sponge for each team, and Hose Limbo by Team Total needs only a garden hose. Ask about latex allergy before Four-Sheet Water Balloon Volleyball, and pick up every scrap afterwards.

Do these work as outdoor games for middle schoolers?

Yes. Every entry suits ages 11 to 18, and nobody throws a ball at a runner. For ages 11 to 13, halve the field and pick games with no jail, such as Medic Capture the Flag, so rounds stay short.

How do one or two leaders run a wide game safely?

Walk the boundary with the whole group first, agree that three whistle blasts mean come straight back, and count heads at the start and the end. In woods, send players out in pairs. Your organization's rules on supervision and ratios come first.

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