When you live in Southern California, you get enjoyable weather most of the year that is perfect for backyard games. Many kids today are hooked on electronics and have forgotten the pure joy of playing outdoors. Here is a list of backyard games to help encourage your kids to get outdoors!
Get Corny with a Toss
Cornhole is a favorite backyard game among children and adults alike. A board with a triangular design acts as a guide to encourage players to get their bean bag into the opening towards the top. You can also use a ladder and make the game worth extra points for the farthest toss among the ladder rungs. Challenge your kids to outdo you, and laughter will ring throughout your backyard.
Get Competitive and Knock Others Out of Play
Bocce Ball is a backyard game that can be played on and off a court. This is a great game to teach children the importance of taking turns as well as healthy competition. In fact, we even install artificial grass bocce ball courts throughout Los Angeles, Coachella Valley and San Francisco areas.
Another great outdoor game to teach kids competition is croquet. Place tents throughout your lawn and have your kids make two teams to alternatively hit their balls with mallets through the tents. First one to get through the all the tents wins! This game can get competitive when opposing team uses their turn to derail their competitors’ balls.
Get Twisted On Your Lawn
Paint paper plates in the four classic colors of Twister and place them in color-coordinated rows on your lawn. Use a taut string or a long ruler to keep the grid straight. Depending on the height of players, you can adjust the size of the gaps between the plates. Use the same spinner board as the indoor version and get your teammates twisted!
Get Some Time on the Green
A backyard putting green is a great way to teach children poise and proper golf form. There are plastic golf sets for little ones that can let them feel like they’re playing just like you until they are tall enough for a standard set of clubs. When you install an artificial grass putting green, you never need to mow, trim or fertilize the grass.
Get Ready to Scream JENGA!
This DIY game idea is made with two-by-four boards that can be painted for distinction. Creating your own game pieces is a great way to get your kids involved and excited to play with them.
1. To start, buy 60 two-by-four boards cut at 10 feet 5-inch lengths.
2. Cut those again until each plank has three pieces 3 feet 5 inches long.
3. Sand edges to a splinter-free finish (you can paint them now if desired).
4. Lay three pieces side by side on the grass.
5. Build on top of three pieces by laying the next row perpendicular to the original three pieces.
6. Repeat until all pieces are stacked.
7. You’re ready to play! Players take turns removing a plank from the stack during each turn until it topples over. The team that causes the stack to topple loses.
All these backyard games are safe to play on artificial grass surfaces. Once you are done playing these games, be sure to remove all equipment from the grass. This will help prevent matting on your artificial turf. Which game will you challenge your kids to first?
Back Nine Greens is an installer of premium artificial grasses in Orange County and its surrounding cities. We know Southern California residents love our year-round fair weather and want to spend more time outdoors. With artificial turf installation, you have more time in your schedule for outdoor fun with your kids. Get in touch with us today!
