The weather in Dubai is perfect for outdoor fun at the moment, and it’s time to make the most of it before the long hot summer creeps back in.
With physical activity an important factor in promoting wellness and growth, it makes sense to introduce your child to fun activities that can not only offer much needed exercise, but also help develop their social skills. We’ve rounded up our favourite Dubai outdoor games for children today.
Frisbee
Frisbee is perfect for older children, and can be played anywhere, but really it’s an ideal game for the park or the beach. It’s a great game, that can be played in groups or teams, and will leave the children tired but highly entertained as they chase the disk over a large area.
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Water Balloons
The fun of water balloons never gets old. This is a great game that has to be played outside, for obvious reasons, but thanks to the dousing of water with every hit, it keeps children cool. Just fill balloons with water and let the children tire themselves out throwing them around on a fun and stress-free afternoon. This works best in a larger group and ideally on the beach, in a park, or in a big garden, away from innocent bystanders who may not find it quite so funny.
The Newspaper Game
The newspaper game is a pretty nifty party game, perfect for children, and even more played fun outdoors. Essentially, you spread newspapers on the ground and let the children dance around it to music. When you pause the music, all the children jump on the newspaper and make sure that no part of their shoe is outside the paper. You then fold the paper and repeat the exercise, each time folding the paper so that it becomes smaller and smaller. The last person who manages to balance themselves on the small piece of newspaper wins.
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Ball Games
Whether it’s basketball, volleyball, or football, it doesn’t have to be an intense game. Just set up the court or pitch (this can be marked with chalk, water bottles, or discarded Tshirts or bags), divide the children into teams and let them battle it out. Don’t talk about winners or losers – your goal is to simply make sure that they all enjoy the game without any fallouts in between.
Bullseye Chalk
Using chalk, try drawing a bullseye onto your driveway and assigning different points for each level, with the centre obviously getting the highest marks. Now, give each child a wet sponge and instruct them to throw it at the target, trying their best to hit the centre mark. The child who gets closest to the centre wins, and the watery sponges can turn into much more than just a game of bullseye.
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Outdoor Art
There’s nothing like being artistic when outdoors – the environment is an inspiration in itself. Look for a huge chalkboard and place it outdoors together with different coloured chalks. Let the children loose and watch how they have fun with pictures and colours. This is something that can keep them entertained for most of the day.
The list of games that could be played outdoors is endless, these are just a few of the simple ones to coax your children outside. Children will enjoy anything as long as it’s fun and involves others their own age. You can invent games or, even better, let the children invent their own rules to promote creativity. Just remember to bring plenty of drinking water and plenty of sunscreen. Also make sure that there are refreshments and toilets available… because once you have them playing games outside, we’re pretty sure that they won’t want to go back in.
Words: courtesy of CreaKids
Images: Getty Images
