Pool Games For Kids To Help Beat The Heat This Summer

Every family is looking for pool games for kids this time of the year. Summertime is such a fun season. Schools out for a few months and families everywhere are looking to get out and enjoy some water fun at the beach or in their family pool.

If you and your kids are planning to swim in a pool this summer, then you’re going to want to think about some pool games for kids.

Pool Games for Kids

Pool games for kids like Marco Polo or a good ole fashion Belly Flop Contest brings back memories of my own childhood. These activities encourage laughter, creativity, bonding, and fun for hours. Have I mentioned a break for mom? LOL!

My list today will give your kids hours of enjoyment, but will also give you peace of mind. Perhaps you can have an afternoon off from hearing those dreaded words – I’m BORED. A parent’s worst nightmare.

Marco Polo

Marco Polo is pretty easy to play. One kid has to be “it” and that child needs to try to find everyone else in the pool. Sounds easy enough, right? The only problem is that the kid who’s “it” has to keep their eyes closed and needs to rely on SOUND to find the other players. They say Marco while the rest of players have to reply with Polo as a response.

The “it” kid can say Marco as many times as they need until they eventually find someone and touches them – or tags them. The first kid tagged now becomes the new “It”. This can go on for hours. I suppose it all depends on how big your pool is and how many children are playing.

Sharks and Minnows

This pool game for kids is perfect for children that are comfortable swimming in deep water. Gather up the kids in the pool and have a vote to determine which kid will be the shark.

All of the other kids become the minnows. The shark starts at the deep end of the pool, while the minnows gather at the other end. To start the game, the shark must recite, “Sharks and minnows, one two three, fishies, fishies swim to me!”

The minnows have to try to swim and reach the wall on the other side of the pool without the shark tagging them. The first minnow to be tagged by the shark becomes the shark for another round of pool games for kids.

Chicken Fight

This pool game for kids used to be played a little differently when I was growing up. Well, I guess you can still play it the original way. Let’s talk about the current rules for now.

Chicken fights bring back so many memories for me. This was one game that adults would always participate in during family parties. In fact, I can’t think of a single party when we didn’t have a chicken fight in the pool as kids. The 80s and 90s were filled with these types of pool games for kids.

Gather four friends in the pool and place two kids on top of the shoulders of two friends. The kids seated on the shoulders are meant to try to push each other off their bases – or the kids standing in the pool.

The kids that are in the pool holding onto their friends should be like mountains – holding on for dear life. Doing anything to not fall! It’s a test of will power and might. But oh how the mighty have fallen!

Related: Water Games for Kids

What Time Is It, Mr. Fox

It’s very common for kids to play What Time Is It Mr. Fox in a field but you can use this as a pool game for kids as well. Simply gather the kids on one side of the pool while “Mr. Fox” is stationed on the other end.

Kids ask Mr. Fox what time it is and Mr. Fox replies with a time. The kids will swim forward that many steps. The kids creep closer and closer to Mr. Fox with each question. It is up to Mr. Fox when he wants to change the game.

Mr. Fox can change the game by answering the question differently. Instead of literally answering the time with a number, he can announce that he is ready to attack the children by saying “lunchtime”! So, for example, instead of saying “6:00” and having the children move forward 6 steps, Mr. Fox will say “lunchtime” and begin to chase the children in the pool.

The word “lunchtime” is the trigger the children need to know that Mr. Fox is hungry and ready to get them. This is when the kids should swim away from Mr. Fox and back to home base – which is the other side of the pool. The first kid caught will be the next Mr. Fox in this pool game for kids.

Volleyball

This section contains affiliate links

There are many volleyball nets and volleyballs made specifically for pools. But growing up, we didn’t have any nets and we survived the long hauls of summer. You can designate a center by placing cups on the edges of your pool or you can just have fun and play until someone doesn’t volley the ball back. It’s entirely up to you.

Volleyball can be a really fun physical activity for your kids to play in the pool all summer long.

Noodle Jousting

Noodle Jousting is a great pool game for kids that can be enjoyed in many ways. Your kids use foam noodles to try to joust each other into the pool water and pretend they are knights in shining armor. Consider combining noodle jousting with chicken fighting. Shazam!

Belly Flop Contest

This pool game for kids is only for the brave or seriously adventurous type of kids. Belly flop contests can hurt your belly so badly, but it’s fun to see what kind of splash the kids can make as they compete in this just for fun belly flop contest.

Each kid takes turns jumping off the side of the pool to a flap in the water – belly first. See who can make the biggest splash for this contest. If belly flopping is too intense, consider flip contests or dive contests. Something along those lines. You could even do a synchronized swimming contest!

There you have it! A list of pool games for kids that are easy enough for just about anyone to enjoy this summer season. If you or a family member has an outdoor pool, then I hope you’ll take advantage of some of these pool games for kids.