Are you beginning to make your summer bucket list yet? How about adding some DIY outdoor games to play in the backyard or when camping?
Kids love games…
Kids love rocks…
Combine the two and you have a winning combination!
Creative, inexpensive, and fun
Games don’t have to come in a box and they definitely don’t need to be battery operated to be enjoyable. In fact, the best games are sometimes the simplest. I think we all remember playing games outdoors as children with little more than simple natural materials, companions (siblings, friends, parents…), and our imaginations.
Here are 10 simple DIY outdoor games you can make yourself with stones found in your backyard. Perfect to make with the kids this summer!
10 DIY Outdoor Games You Can Make with Rocks
1. DIY Tic Tac Toe with Rocks (on Thrive 360 Living)
2. Painted Rock Dominoes (This was on Childcareland Blog, and although the link is no longer active you can use the image above for ideas on how to paint stripes on rocks that kids can match end to end.)
3. Quick Rock Dominoes with a Paint Pen (this was from Clever Thursday. Although the link is no longer active, you can see from the photo how to use a white paint pen on darker rocks to create your own set of natural dominoes.)
4. DIY Outdoor Checkerboard (on DIY Del Ray)
5. DIY Outdoor Chess Game (on My Heart & My Home)
6. A Nature Treasure Hunt (on Red Ted Art)
7. Rock Toss with Chalk Shapes (on Smile and Wave)
8. Tin Can Rock Toss (on Simple as That)
9. Make a simple rock memory game (on Spell Outloud). Or try this other version of a rock memory game (with free printable) on Handbook of Nature Study…
10. I just had to include this rainbow hopscotch (on Happiness is Homemade) because it is so seriously awesome. But of course, you can also just draw a hopscotch with chalk then play with a pebble marker. Use pebbles from the backyard or make your own special melted crayon rock markers.
And if you’d like to have some more clever rock-related fun idea up your sleeve for indoor activities, check out these three posts:
- Art with Rocks: 18 Ways to Use Rocks in Kids Art
- Making Learning Fun (With Rocks!)
- 5 Story Stones Ideas: Storytelling with Rocks
Which games will you try this summer?
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What an awesome list! My boys would go crazy for all of these, thanks for sharing! Looking forward to the summer and getting outside more!
Thank you….now I know what to do with the children on Monday :)
These will be the perfect games to play with the Grand kids when they come to stay on vacation and I know they would love to help paint the rocks. Thanks Jean, great ideas!
Great idea for all parents ! Love it !
Cool rock art
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I’m the coordinator for children church and these games would be great for them. Plus I’m a counselor for our tits as well. It would be great.
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Love the color match domino game. It inspired me to do an upper case/lower case matching game for my preschool class. Thanks for sharing the great ideas!