Grasshopper New Media Presents...

It’s been August in June here in New England, and the air conditioners are blasting. I am not complaining. I vowed all winter long not to complain about extreme heat this summer. I can not wait to hit the beach, both Sebego Lake and Maine’s spectacular coast.

But alas, I must wait, at least a few more days.

Our secret ingredient to enjoying the heat? Water Balloons!

Yesterday I filled up dozens of water balloons for my 5 charges to enjoy. It was the 1st time and they plowed through all of them in 6.6 seconds. I did manage to save a few for some games. I also have plans for many more games next time!

Towel Toss
Number of Players: 4+
Ballpark Ages: 6+
Supplies Needed: 1 towel for each team of 2, filled up water balloons, if you have a large group of kids you can have 2 teams using a bed sheet instead of a towel.

Object: To use the towel to toss the balloon to the other team (each player holds 2 corners of the towel), and to catch the balloon when it is tossed to you.

Variations: You can separate the teams using a jump rope, a clothes line, a volleyball net or even a driveway. Smaller towels can be used with younger kids or until the older kids get the hang of it. This is NOT easy!

Slow Leak
Number of Players: 2+
Ballpark Ages: 1+
Supplies Needed: a tack, water balloons

Object: To um, get wet.

How: Use the tack to poke a hole in a couple of balloons, then fill with water and have one of the players plug the hole with their finger. Repeat and repeat again. I won’t pretend that this part isn’t a total nightmare. It is. You really need a couple of adults for the fill up. It’s hard to tie a balloon and plug a hole simultaneously. Question: if you place the filled balloon with the hole in a bucket full of water, will it empty? (FYI: Poking a hole in a full balloon, even an under filled balloon does not work.) Have the players sit in a circle. When you say “GO” the players pass the balloons around the circle until they are empty.

Variations: You can vary the position. The kids can stand in a line and pass the balloons over their heads to the person behind them. You can add a lot of balloons. With only a few kids you can make it a math game, where they need to hold the balloon over there head until they solve an equation. And you can switch up the number of balloons used.

Water Balloon Bocce
Number of Players: 1+
Ballpark Ages: 3+
Supplies Needed: water balloons, ball, court

Object: To toss your balloon closest to the “pill” (the ball) without popping it.

How: A court can be a soft grassy area or sandy area. Each player gets several filled water balloons. A “pill” or small ball is gently tossed. Start with a very short distance. Players take turns gently tossing their balloon as close to the pill as possible. The player whose balloon lands closest to the pill without popping is the winner.

Variations: Players can toss balloons towards a bucket, getting points for each one that lands in the bucket. Use severely under filled balloons for the youngest crowd, and start quite close. You can also use small air balloons filled with water instead of the super thin water balloons.

Relay
Number of Players: 2+
Ballpark Ages: 3+
Supplies Needed: filled water balloons, midway marker (rope/chalk/

Object: To pop all of the balloons before your opponent.

How: This is a twist on the balloon popping relay. Each team gets a pile of balloons. They must run to the midway marker and sit on their balloon to pop it and return to the starting point. Multiple team members will take turns. Individual teams will repeat until the balloons are all popped.

Variations: Players can use different parts of their bodies to pop the balloons. If it is very hot out, players can carry the balloons in different ways so that they are not running: under their armpit, tucked under their chin, between their knees, etc. Players can also hop, skip, or walk backwards to switch things up.

Clean Up
Number of Players: Everyone who was playing
Ballpark Ages: All
Supplies Needed: popped balloons scattered throughout your yard

Object: To clean up. The balloons I use are biodegradable. It’s not the end of the world if they miss a couple of pieces, however, the goal is to get every scrap so that we can do these activities again, without driving me completely bananas by finding a rainbow of scraps throughout the lawn.

How: Whoever collects the biggest pile of popped balloons wins! What do they win? Nothing.

My Tips:

Do not underestimate the number of the balloons you will use.

Do not underestimate the amount of time it takes to fill them.

Do not underestimate the pain your fingers will feel after you’ve tied 100 water balloons.

Store them in the fridge until you are ready to use them. Brrrr…

Under inflated balloons are much more forgiving, they will often bounce instead of bursting immediately.

And you: what are your tips for occupying the family in the high heat?

Oh, before I forget: have you checked out Mom, I’m Bored? Great new site for kid’s activities!

by Megin Hatch

Photo graciously provided by Steve Wilhelm, through a Creative Commons license, some rights reserved.