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Head outside! 3 DIY outdoor games kids, parents will love

It's summertime, so take playtime outdoors with these kid-friendly games!
/ Source: FamilyFun magazine

It's summertime, so take playtime outdoors with these kid-friendly games! FamilyFun Magazine's Mary Giles stopped by TODAY to share these three games that both kids and adults will enjoy.

United we stand

FamilyFun Magazine

A steady hand leads to success in this carnival-inspired challenge, in which players try to set a bottle upright using a ring on a string. Here's how to do this game:

  1. Use red and blue washi or decorative tape to embellish two 18-inch wooden dowels (we cut a 3-foot dowel in half), two cleaned and dried plastic bottles (we used 12-ounce soda bottles) and both rings of a 3-inch embroidery hoop (we bought ours at a craft store for $2.50). Use one color for each 3-piece set.
  2. Tie each hoop to its matching dowel with a 28-inch length of string.
  3. Place ½ cup rice in each of two plastic bags.
  4. Add 12 drops red food coloring to one, blue to the other. Seal each bag and shake until the rice is evenly tinted. Snip off a corner of each bag and funnel the rice into its matching bottle. Screw on the caps.

To play: Mark spaces on a flat playing surface with child-size hula hoops or use chalk to draw two 24-inch circles. Lay a bottle in the center of each. At “Go,” players use their rods to right their bottles. If a player’s bottle rolls out of the circle, he must retrieve it and start over. The first to stand his bottle up wins.

Air mail mallots

FamilyFun Magazine

The votes are in, and this simple flying disk game is a runaway winner. Here's how to create this game:

  1. Cut a 5-inch by 13-inch rectangle into a cardboard box as shown (an adult’s job). You’ll want a box that’s at least 18 by 18 by 24 inches.
  2. Cut another rectangle on the opposite side of the box for retrieving the flying disks. Seal the box with tape, then attach card stock and scrapbook paper decorations with glue dots.

To play: Designate a throwing line and give each participant three tries to toss a heavy-duty plastic plate or flying disk into the slot. The first player to score an agreed-upon number wins.

Rocket toss

FamilyFun Magazine

Partygoers will have a blast playing this classic carnival game made from recycled metal cans and homemade "rockets." Here's how to pull off this game:

For the cans, adhere strips of red, white and blue duct tape to six clean, empty 15-ounce metal cans, covering any sharp edges. For thinner lines, simply overlap the tape.

To make the rockets, use a funnel to fill three small socks with rice (we used about 1/2 cup in each) and tie them off with a hair tie or a rubber band. Thread a 3-foot length of sheer ribbon through each tie and knot it in the center to secure it.

To play: Set up the cans in a pyramid. Standing several feet away, each player gets three tries to knock down all the cans with the rockets.