Games that liven up festivals. Ideas that children can enjoy.
Festivals and fair days are fun events that kids can take part in, aren’t they? In addition to local festivals, many kindergartens, nursery schools, and elementary schools also plan summer festivals, don’t they? In this article, we’ve gathered ideas for festival games and activities recommended for those who want to find games that kids will love or want to know about events beyond food stalls.
It’s packed with fun ideas you can enjoy both indoors and outdoors, so please use it as a reference.
If you’re making the games by hand, having the children help will make great memories!
Games that liven up a festival. Ideas that children can enjoy (51–60)
All-you-can-fill candy
From a child’s perspective, an all-you-can-pack candy game is a dream come true.
There are all sorts of “pack-as-much-as-you-can” activities out there, but for kids, candy is the way to go! Prepare lots of individually wrapped treats like gummies and hard candies, set them out, and add a time limit—the excitement will skyrocket.
You can even have a contest to see who can pack the most by being the most clever.
Just be sure to avoid meltable sweets like chocolate if the festival is held outdoors in the summer.
New Year's gift game
First, make a tray-like shape using a piece of cardboard.
Cut a hole in the center that’s slightly larger than the balls.
Put in ten or more balls, and compete to see who can drop all of them through the hole the fastest.
At first, since there are many balls, they fall quickly, but once there are only a few left, it gets quite tricky.
You’ll need to tilt it deliberately to aim, or they won’t drop easily.
Do your best and try not to get frustrated!
ladle scooping
Try ladle scooping instead of goldfish scooping! Just put balls of various sizes into a box and have them scoop them up with a ladle.
It’s a simple idea that lets you enjoy a summer festival vibe.
You don’t need to fill anything with water or prepare the delicate paper scoops used for catching goldfish, so it’s super easy.
When they manage to scoop up a ball, celebrate together! As a twist, you could add a rule like “How many can you get within the time limit?” to make it even more exciting.
Children’s Dedication Sumo Tournament
Local festivals are Shinto events held to pray for a bountiful harvest and safety for the year.
Among these is children’s offering sumo.
It is held to wish for children’s health and growth.
Let’s have not only boys but also girls participate and make it lively and fun together.
It’s a good idea to divide matches by gender or by age.
Let’s also make a handmade sumo ring so both adults and children can enjoy it!
Games that liven up festivals: Ideas kids will enjoy (61–70)
Haunted house
A haunted house is something people tend to be split on—even adults either love it or can’t stand it.
Even when you know the ghosts aren’t real, it’s scary and can really make you jump.
Haunted houses are a popular attraction at school festivals and the like, and they’re sure to be a hit with kids too, right? When it comes to haunted houses, you need ghost actors, sets, and BGM.
Prepare eerie, spooky background music to build the atmosphere.
These days, there are plenty of makeup supplies for costumes, so go all in and try some ghost makeup too!
In conclusion
We introduced some exciting games and events for festivals—what did you think? Once you decide which games to play, it could be fun to make them together with the kids, or have the kids act as stall vendors on the day.
If you’re busy and short on time, there are plenty of items you can rent, so feel free to use those without overdoing it!