Swimming - activities & games
On-the-spot games:
Still pond (3 or more players)
Everyone floats as still as
possible while one person watches. The last one to move is the
winner.
Kick-of-war (2 or more players)
Races:
Wheelbarrow race (2 or more pairs)
One partner supports the
other’s legs and pushes him forward.
The ‘wheelbarrow’
can either swim with his arms or keep them
outstretched.
Pair swim (2 or more pairs)
Each pair links arms, then pushes
off from the side and swims an agreed distance
together.
Shadow swim (2 or more pairs)
One partner swims underwater,
while the other shadows him at the surface.
Chain swim (2 or more pairs)
Divide into two teams and swim
joined up, lightly holding the ankles of the person in
front.
Chasing games:
Sharks and minnows (3 or more players)
One person is the shark and
stands in the middle of the pool. The others are minnows and line up at one
side. When the shark
shouts ‘sharks and minnows’, they have to try and reach
the other side without being caught. As soon as someone is caught, they change into a
shark and help to catch the remaining minnows.
Last one to be caught becomes the
shark next game.
Crows and cranes (3 or more players)
The players line up on each side
of the pool. One person
stands in the middle with a float. He calls out the names of two
people, one from each side, and they have to race to the middle,
take the float and try to get it back to their side without their
opposite number touching them. If a player is touched, he gets a penalty point or
becomes the person with the float.
What time is it, Mr Shark? (3 or more players)
The shark stands at one side of
the pool, with hands over his eyes and back to the other players,
who line up on the other side. They shout ‘What time is it, Mr
Shark?’; he replies, for example, ‘5
o’clock’, and they can then take five paces
forward.
• The aim is to reach and
touch the other side but when the shark thinks they’re
getting close he suddenly shouts ‘dinner time’, turns
round and chases them.
• If he catches someone
before they get back to their own side, they become Mr
Shark.
Red letter (3 or more players)
The person chosen to be 'on
It’ stands at one side of the pool, hands over his eyes, back
to the other players, who line up on the other side.
The person 'on It’ calls out
letters of the alphabet: whenever he calls a letter that is in a
player’s name, that player can take a step
forward. The aim is to
reach and touch the other side but when they are getting close,
‘on it’ suddenly shouts ‘red letter’, turns
round and chases them. If
someone is caught before they get back to their own side, they
become ‘it’.
Log roll tag (3 or more players)
The person chosen to be 'on
It’ sculls or floats on his back while the others move
round him in a circle, trying to get as close as
possible. He/she suddenly
rolls over and tries to catch someone. When someone is caught,
they become ‘it’.
Tunnel swim (2 or more pairs)
Split into two
teams. Each team stands
in line, one player in front of the other, legs apart.
The person at the back of each team
swims through the team’s legs and stands up at the
front. The next person then
sets off and so on, until all the team has swum
through.
Electricity (3 or more players)
Stand in a circle holding
hands. One player
‘switches on’ the current by squeezing the hand of the
person next to him. This
player squeezes the hand of the person next to him and then ducks
under the water. This
continues round the circle.