Summer camp games are all about adventure, teamwork, and making lifelong memories, and the right games can take the fun to the next level. Whether planning activities for day camp, sleepaway camp, or backyard summer fun for the family, having a collection of go-to games is essential.
This roundup features engaging, easy-to-set-up summer camp games that keep kids moving, thinking, and laughing. Each includes simple instructions, supplies needed, and pro tips for adapting the summer games to different age groups. Bookmark this list and get ready for endless summer smiles!
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Outdoor Summer Camp Games
Capture the Flag
How To Play: Divide players into two teams, each with their own designated playing zone and a hidden flag. The goal is for players to sneak into the opposing team’s zone, find their flag, and return it to their side without getting tagged. If a player is tagged while in the opposing team’s territory, they must go to “jail” and can only be rescued by a teammate.
What You’ll Need: Large playing field, two flags or fabric strips, cones or markers for boundaries, Hula-Hoops for “jail”
Why Kids Love It: This classic game feels like a real-life adventure with strategy, stealth, and surprise. It keeps campers moving, thinking, and working as a team.
Pro Tip: Add natural or man-made obstacles to encourage sneaky tactics and hiding places!
Kickball
How To Play: It’s like baseball and soccer had a baby! This team game follows a baseball-style format with a pitcher, catcher, and fielders. Instead of swinging a bat, the player at home plate kicks a playground ball and runs the bases, aiming to score before getting tagged or forced out. Teams switch sides each inning, so everyone gets a chance to kick and field. Just like in baseball, an inning ends when the fielding team gets three outs.
What You’ll Need: Kickball, cones or markers for bases, paper and pencil to keep score, an open playing field
Why Kids Love It: It’s active, easy to learn, and taps into their love for both soccer and baseball.
Pro Tip: Use shorter base paths or smaller playing areas for younger children.
SPUD
How To Play: One player tosses a ball straight up while calling out another player’s name. The named player runs to catch the ball while everyone else runs away from the ball. Once the ball is caught, the named player yells “SPUD!” and everyone must freeze. The player with the ball then tries to tag someone below the waist. They can take up to three steps toward their target to make the tag easier. The player who gets tagged becomes the one who throws the ball next.
What You’ll Need: Bouncy, soft playground ball; open space
Why Kids Love It: It’s fast-paced, unpredictable, and filled with hilarious moments of surprise.
Pro Tip: Make it a bit trickier by requiring the person throwing the ball to aim for different parts of the body, like only tagging the knees or feet.
Chuck the Chicken
How To Play: Split players into two teams. Team A starts by throwing a rubber chicken as far as they can as they yell “Chuck the chicken!” Team B runs to the chicken, forms a line, and passes the chicken through the legs and over the head until it reaches the last person in line. Meanwhile, Team A forms a tight circle, and one member runs around it while the counselor keeps track of their number of laps. Once the chicken reaches the end of Team B’s line, they yell “Chuck the chicken!” and Team B throws the chicken as far as possible away from Team A. Then the teams switch roles, and the process repeats. After a set amount of time, tally the points from each team’s throws and laps—whoever has the most points wins!
What You’ll Need: Rubber chicken or soft stuffed toy, an open field to play
Why Kids Love It: The ridiculous name and running around with a rubber chicken make it instantly funny and unforgettable.
Pro Tip: Add an extra twist by requiring the team passing the chicken to perform different movements or sing a song as they pass it. This adds a fun element and encourages teamwork.
Gaga Ball
How To Play: This fast-paced, high-energy game combines elements of dodgeball and tag and is played in an octagonal area. It’s easy to learn, fun for all ages, and perfect for keeping everyone moving. Players will dodge, jump, and strike a ball to avoid getting hit and will attempt to eliminate others. All players start with one hand touching the boundary wall. A referee throws the ball into the center, and players call out “GA” for the first two bounces and “BALL” on the third. Now that the ball is in play, players hit it with open or closed hands, aiming to strike opponents below the knees. If a player is hit below the knees or catches the ball on a fly, they’re out. The last player remaining in the pit wins. Check out Everything You Need To Know About Gaga Ball. Plus grab our free Gaga Ball Rules Poster.
What You’ll Need: Gaga ball pit (or makeshift boundaries using benches, cones, or other markers) and a soft ball
Why Kids Love It: It’s inclusive, action-packed, and over quickly, so everyone gets lots of turns.
Pro Tip: Create mini-tournaments or theme days for added excitement.
Summer Camp Games Using Water
Water Balloon Toss
How To Play: Pair up campers and give each pair a water balloon. The pairs stand close together and toss the balloon back and forth. After each successful catch, they take one step backward. If the balloon breaks, the pair is out. The last pair to keep their balloon intact wins.
What You’ll Need: Water balloons
Why Kids Love It: There’s anticipation, competition, and splashy fun. Plus it’s a built-in way to cool off on a hot day!
Pro Tip: Make sure to use balloons that are slightly overfilled for a more challenging toss, as they’ll burst more easily with a harder throw.
Sprinkler Obstacle Course
How To Play: Set up an obstacle course using cones, tunnels, pool noodles, and sprinklers. Kids take turns running through the course, completing challenges (like crawling through a tunnel or jumping over cones and pool noodles) while getting sprayed with water. Time each participant to see how fast they can complete it, or make it a team relay.
What You’ll Need: Sprinklers, cones, hoses, pool noodles
Why Kids Love It: It’s a water park-meets-obstacle course that offers nonstop action and a fun way to beat the heat.
Pro Tip: Have kids design their own water obstacle courses in groups. They can sketch their ideas and gather the materials needed to create it.
Leaking Cup Relay Race
How To Play: Each team has a cup with a small hole in it. The first player fills the cup with water from a bucket and races across the field to dump it into a designated bucket marked with a red tape line. Once they empty the cup, they run back and hand it off to the next teammate, who repeats the process. The first team to fill their bucket past the red line wins!
What You’ll Need: Cups with small holes, buckets, water source, red tape
Why Kids Love It: It’s a fun mix of teamwork, speed, and problem-solving to manage the leaky cup while racing against the clock.
Pro Tip: Use a sponge instead of a cup with a hole if you want less mess and easier handling. Just squeeze the sponge into the bucket to transfer water.
Drip, Drip, Drop
How To Play: This game is a wet twist on the classic Duck, Duck, Goose. Players sit in a circle, and one player walks around the outside of the circle holding a full cup of water. As they walk, they lightly drip water onto the heads of the seated players, saying “drip, drip, drip …” When they say “drop,” they pour the entire cup of water onto someone’s head. That player must then jump up and chase the one who poured the water, trying to tag them before they return to the empty spot in the circle.
What You’ll Need: A cup of water
Why Kids Love It: It’s a fun, wet variation of a classic game that keeps everyone moving and laughing while staying cool.
Pro Tip: Use small amounts of water so the game is more about the chase than the soaking. That way, everyone stays engaged and excited.
Splash Tag
How To Play: In this wet take on the classic game of tag, one player is chosen to be “it” and holds a squirt bottle filled with water. The objective of “it” is to tag other players by spraying them with water. When a player gets sprayed, they must freeze in place. To unfreeze, another player must run up and tap the frozen player, allowing them to continue moving. Rotate the role of “it” regularly so everyone gets a turn.
What You’ll Need: Squirt bottles filled with water
Why Kids Love It: Kids love running around and trying to avoid getting sprayed while also having the chance to cool off. The added unfreezing element makes the game more dynamic and engaging.
Pro Tip: Set up a “safe zone” where frozen players can rest for up to 10 seconds, but limit it to just three players at a time. This ensures everyone gets a break without overcrowding and keeps the game flowing efficiently.
Indoor Summer Camp Games
The Floor Is Lava
How To Play: Campers must travel across the room without touching the floor—because, of course, the floor is lava! Using only mats, chairs, paper squares, or other designated “safe zones,” they’ll strategize how to get from point A to point B as a team. Add a storyline like escaping from a volcano or crossing a molten river to make it even more exciting.
What You’ll Need: Chairs, mats, foam pads, paper squares, or any safe objects to serve as stepping zones
Why Kids Love It: This game instantly transforms any room into an imaginative obstacle course. Kids love the thrill of navigating the “lava,” and it gets their bodies and brains working together in creative ways.
Pro Tip: Let campers design their own lava courses or add bonus challenges like carrying an “egg” (ball) across the path without dropping it.
Four Corners
How To Play: Choose one camper to stand in the center of the room with their eyes closed, or blindfolded. The rest of the group silently picks one of four corners to stand in. After a 10-second countdown, the person in the middle calls out a number (1 to 4), and everyone in that corner is out. Keep playing until one camper remains—that person becomes the new caller.
What You’ll Need: Four clearly marked corners (use numbers, colored signs, or cones), blindfold (optional)
Why Kids Love It: It’s suspenseful, silly, and totally addictive. The thrill of guessing which corner is “safe” keeps everyone moving and engaged.
Pro Tip: To make the game more challenging, the player in the middle can call out more than one corner at a time.
Minute To Win It Games
How To Play: Minute To Win It Games are quick, high-energy challenges that get everyone moving and laughing. Choose a few fun tasks—like stacking plastic cups, bouncing Ping-Pong balls into containers, or unwrapping candies while wearing oven mitts—and give campers one minute to complete each one. You can play individually, in pairs, or in teams, rotating through different stations or taking turns center stage. These games are easy to set up and exciting to play, making them perfect for indoor camp days. Check out Fun and Easy Minute To Win It Games.
What You’ll Need: Household or classroom items like cups, Ping-Pong balls, marshmallows, plastic spoons, oven mitts, straws, paper plates
Why Kids Love It: They love the race against the clock, the variety of challenges, and the chance to cheer each other on. It’s all about focus, teamwork, and having a blast while trying something new.
Pro Tip: Keep a list of favorite Minute To Win It challenges handy so you can set up a quick game anytime you need to re-energize the group.
Indoor Game Fest
How To Play: Turn any afternoon into a mini tournament of board games and card games! Set up stations around the room with classics like Uno, Connect 4, Jenga, Pictionary, and Guess Who. Campers rotate through each game in teams or pairs, collecting points or stickers as they play. End the day with small prizes for participation, sportsmanship, or total points to keep the energy upbeat and inclusive.
What You’ll Need: Assorted games (board games and card games), tables/chairs, scorecards, stickers, pencils
Why Kids Love It: It turns free play into a fun competition and gives kids choices—whether they love strategy, guessing, or dexterity-based games. The chance to try different games and maybe even win a prize adds excitement to every round.
Pro Tip: Use a time limit at each station to keep things moving and ensure everyone rotates smoothly.
Mystery Bag Challenge
How To Play: Fill paper bags with random, safe mystery items (like a spoon, toy car, feather, or eraser). Without looking, children stick their hands in and try to guess what’s inside just by touch. You can make it competitive (points for correct guesses) or collaborative (guess together as a team).
What You’ll Need: Brown paper bags, random tactile objects, blindfolds (optional)
Why Kids Love It: The suspense is real! The sensory challenge is appealing to students, and the thrill of making weird guesses or surprising discoveries is interesting to kids.
Pro Tip: Make it themed (e.g., nature items, school supplies, camp gear) or try a “gross” version with safe, squishy items like peeled grapes or wet sponges.
Scavenger Hunt Games
Photo Scavenger Hunt
How To Play: Divide campers into small teams and hand out a creative photo checklist with items like “a bug,” “a unique shadow,” “a group pyramid,” or “something that floats.” Campers must take a photo of each item, marking it off as they go. Encourage them to be creative, posing with the items or adding their own flair. At the end, gather everyone to share the photos and celebrate what they captured.
What You’ll Need: Digital cameras or tablets (one per team), Photo Scavenger Hunt Printable
Why Kids Love It: They get to explore, be creative, and work as a team—all while using tech they enjoy. Plus, the goofy group photos become instant camp memories!
Pro Tip: Create a slideshow or digital gallery to show off everyone’s snapshots at the end of the week. You can even vote on “funniest photo” or “most creative interpretation.”
Indoor Scavenger Hunt
How To Play: Make a list of everyday or themed items hidden throughout the room or building—like “something fuzzy,” “a red triangle,” or “a tiny shoe.” Campers search individually or in teams, racing against the clock to find and collect as many items as possible within the time limit. Add a twist by including riddles or clues instead of straight item names to challenge older campers.
What You’ll Need: Indoor Scavenger Hunt Printable (printed or projected), optional themed clues, pencils, and checklists
Why Kids Love It: It turns familiar spaces into an epic hunt, full of surprises and quick decisions. Kids love the competitive energy and the satisfaction of checking off tricky items.
Pro Tip: Add a collaborative twist by assigning teams and giving each group a slightly different list, or do a blackout challenge where the first team to find everything wins!
Nature Scavenger Hunt
How To Play: Provide campers with a list of items to search for in a designated outdoor area—things like “something rough” or “something red.” They can work individually or in small groups, checking off as many items as they can within the time limit. Add an extra layer of fun by including sensory or action-based prompts like “something soft” or “a spot where you hear birds.”
What You’ll Need: Nature Scavenger Hunt Printable, pencils or clipboards, optional bags or baskets to collect items
Why Kids Love It: They get to explore nature, move their bodies, and experience the outdoors with a fresh perspective. Every find feels like a mini-adventure—and they love sharing their treasures with friends.
Pro Tip: Mix it up by offering themed hunts (like “colors of nature” or “summer textures”) or assign a camp counselor to be the “roaming bonus item” for extra points.
Alphabet Scavenger Hunt
How To Play: Campers receive a list of the alphabet with a space beside each letter. Working solo or in pairs, they must find or think of an item that relates to the camp theme for each letter—like “B for backpack,” “L for lanyard,” or “S for sunscreen.” They can draw it, write the word, or even snap a photo if allowed. Choose themes like nature, summer, camp gear, or kindness to match the day’s vibe.
What You’ll Need: Alphabet Scavenger Hunt Printable or notebooks, pencils, optional dictionaries or tablets for help with tricky letters
Why Kids Love It: It’s part scavenger hunt, part brain teaser, and totally satisfying to complete. They love the challenge of coming up with creative answers, especially for the hard letters like Q, X, or Z.
Pro Tip: Make it screen-free but encourage campers to consult a dictionary if they get stuck—it builds language skills while keeping the activity grounded and independent.
Acts of Kindness Hunt
How To Play: Instead of collecting things, campers take a week to complete kind acts from a list, like “hold the door open,” “give a compliment,” or “invite someone new to join your group.” As they check each one off, they reflect on how each action made them (and others) feel.
What You’ll Need: Kindness checklists, pencils, stickers for completed tasks
Why Kids Love It: This is feel-good fun! Campers love seeing their positive impact ripple through the group and being celebrated for their kindness.
Pro Tip: Give campers kindness badges or bracelets after completing a certain number of tasks from their checklists—these little rewards spark pride and keep the momentum going.
End-of-Day Summer Camp Games
Would You Rather
How To Play: Gather campers in a large space and present them with fun or thought-provoking “Would You Rather” questions, like “Would you rather have an elephant-sized hamster or a hamster-sized elephant as a pet?” Campers move to one side of the room or the other based on their choice, then take turns sharing why they picked it. You can play it rapid-fire style or slow it down to encourage discussion and laughter. For added fun, let campers take turns coming up with their own questions.
What You’ll Need: A pre-made list of “Would You Rather” questions (or allow campers to create some); a space large enough for campers to move between sides
Why Kids Love It: This game sparks laughter, imagination, and connection. Campers are intrigued to find out who shares their opinions—and who thinks completely differently—while getting to move around and be heard.
Pro Tip: Make it a daily wind-down ritual for your summer camp games and keep a running list of camper-created questions to revisit later in the week.
Two Truths and a Lie
How To Play: Each camper shares three statements about themselves—two that are true and one that is a lie. The rest of the group has to guess which statement is the lie. After everyone’s guessed, the camper reveals the truth.
What You’ll Need: Nothing—just a group of campers!
Why Kids Love It: Kids love revealing fun facts about themselves and trying to outsmart each other with their lies. It’s a great game to wrap up the day and allows campers to get to know each other better in a relaxed way.
Pro Tip: Encourage campers to share creative or surprising truths to keep the game interesting!
Who Am I?
How To Play: Have campers stand in a line, then secretly assign each camper a character, animal, or famous figure by placing a sticky note on their back (so they can’t see it). Campers walk around the room and take turns asking each other yes/no questions to try to figure out who they are. For example: “Am I alive?”, “Am I a cartoon character?”, or “Do I have fur?” Play until everyone guesses correctly, or set a time or turn limit to keep things moving.
What You’ll Need: Sticky notes with pre-written names, animals, or characters; a marker (if customizing on the spot)
Why Kids Love It: It’s like real-life 20 Questions—kids love figuring out who they are while laughing at their wild guesses.
Pro Tip: Group by theme (e.g., “sea animals,” “book characters”) to tie it into your daily activities or curriculum focus.
Simon Says
How To Play: A classic! One camper (or counselor) is Simon and gives commands to the group. Players must only follow the commands if they start with “Simon says.” If Simon doesn’t say “Simon says” and someone follows the command anyway, they’re out.
What You’ll Need: Just your voice and a group of campers.
Why Kids Love It: It’s a simple but hilarious game that requires both attention and quick reflexes. Campers love testing each other and trying to get their friends out!
Pro Tip: Spice it up with fun or wacky actions like “dance like a chicken” or “do five jumping jacks.”
Quiet Color Hunt
How To Play: Call out a color, and campers must quietly find an item in the room or area that matches that color. They can walk around, but they must remain silent. The first camper to return with an item of the color called out wins the round.
What You’ll Need: Nothing specific, though a preset list of colors is helpful. Make sure there is a variety of colors available in the environment.
Why Kids Love It: Kids love the challenge of searching for items while keeping everything hush-hush—plus, the thrill of finding just the right color makes them feel accomplished.
Pro Tip: To make it easier, provide a list of colors to look for, or increase the challenge by calling out more specific shades, like turquoise or burgundy.
Circle Games
Black Magic
How To Play: Two leaders pretend they can read each other’s minds. One leader leaves the group while the others secretly choose any object in sight, like a book, a shoe, or a sign. When the second leader returns, the first leader starts pointing at random objects, asking, “Is it this ___?” The trick is that the correct answer will always come right after the first leader points to something black. The second leader uses that clue to “magically” guess the correct item every time, leaving campers amazed and eager to figure it out.
What You’ll Need: Just a group of campers and some objects nearby (make sure that some items are black).
Why Kids Love It: They love trying to crack the mystery, and once they figure it out, they’re excited to play the trick on their friends. It feels like a real magic trick!
Pro Tip: Once a few campers catch on, let them become the leaders to keep the game fresh and fun.
Campfire Stories
How To Play: Gather campers in a circle and start a story with one sentence, like “One summer evening, a group of campers decided to explore the mysterious forest.” Each camper then adds one sentence to the story, creating a fun, collaborative tale. Or let students read from a selection of these printable scary campfire stories.
What You’ll Need: Nothing but imagination! Optionally, assign a scribe to write, type, or record the story so it can be shared or read back later.
Why Kids Love It: It taps into their creativity and lets them build on each other’s ideas. The results are often hilarious and unpredictable.
Pro Tip: Encourage funny or spooky twists to make the story even more entertaining, or set a theme like “adventure” or “mystery.”
Category Game
How To Play: Gather campers in a circle and choose a category like “animals,” “foods,” or “sports.” Going around the circle, each camper must name something that fits the category, without repeating anything that’s already been said. If someone hesitates too long, repeats an answer, or says something off-topic, they’re out! Keep going until only one player remains, then start a new round with a fresh category.
What You’ll Need: A group of players and a list of categories (or let campers come up with their own)
Why Kids Love It: It’s fast, fun, and keeps everyone on their toes! Campers get a kick out of the friendly competition, the brain challenge, and the chance to get creative with their answers.
Pro Tip: To boost engagement, let campers vote on silly or unexpected categories like “gross foods,” “superpowers,” or “things you’d find on a pirate ship.”
Cooperative Summer Camp Games
Build a Bridge
How To Play: Campers are divided into small teams and challenged to build a bridge across a designated space using only the materials provided. Once the bridge is built, the entire team must find a way to cross safely without touching the ground. They’ll need to strategize, test different setups, and adjust their design as they go. It’s all about teamwork, problem-solving, and staying balanced.
What You’ll Need: Assorted safe materials, such as pillows, pool noodles, boxes, wood planks
Why Kids Love It: There’s no single “right” way to build the bridge, so kids feel empowered to try their own ideas. They can experiment, invent, and feel proud of their creations.
Pro Tip: Vary the materials or add “lava” zones for extra challenge.
Blanket Volleyball
How To Play: Divide children into two teams and give each team a large blanket. Campers must work together to cradle a beach ball in the blanket, then launch it over a net (or rope) to the other team. The receiving team must catch the ball in their own blanket and return it the same way. The goal is to keep the ball in play while using only the blanket—no hands allowed!
What You’ll Need: Volleyball net or rope, large blankets or sheets (one per team), beach ball
Why Kids Love It: This is volleyball meets teamwork, a fun activity where no one can succeed alone, and the chaos is laugh-out-loud funny.
Pro Tip: Use lighter balls for younger campers or add a “two-hit” rule before tossing.
Human Knot
How To Play: Campers stand shoulder-to-shoulder in a circle and each reaches across to grab hands with two different people who are not directly beside them. Once everyone is connected, the group must work together to untangle the knot without letting go of hands. They’ll need to twist, duck, step over, and communicate to return to a full, untangled circle. This challenge can be surprisingly tricky, and surprisingly fun!
What You’ll Need: Just enough space for everyone to stand in a circle
Why Kids Love It: It’s a great icebreaker and teaches teamwork while getting everyone involved in a shared challenge.
Pro Tip: If the group gets stuck, offer gentle hints to encourage problem-solving and communication.
With these fun summer camp games, you’ll be ready to bring joy, teamwork, and creativity to every day of camp. Whether you’re looking for exciting activities, quiet games, or team challenges, there’s something for everyone. These summer camp games keep campers engaged and help them build connections while having fun.
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