50 indoor recess games
Indoor recess goes best when students choose from a short menu they already know, instead of waiting for you to invent something. Teach five or six of these on a dry day, post the menu, and keep the materials in one labeled bin. Each game below says how to play, what you need and the grades it suits.
Whole-class games
1. Four corners
One student closes their eyes and counts to ten while everyone tiptoes to a corner. The counter calls a number, and students in that corner sit down. Play until one student is left, then everyone is back in and that student counts next.
Grades K–5You need Four corners of the room numbered 1 to 4
2. Silent ball
Students stand at their desks and toss a soft ball to each other without a sound. Anyone who talks or drops an easy catch sits and becomes a judge until the round ends; everyone is back in for the next round.
Grades 1–8You need A soft foam ball
3. Heads up, seven up
Seven students stand at the front. Everyone else puts their head down with one thumb up. Each of the seven quietly presses one thumb down, then returns to the front. The tapped students stand and each gets one guess at who tapped them.
Grades 1–5You need Nothing
4. Simon says
Give movement commands, and students follow only the ones that start with "Simon says." Instead of sitting out, a student who moves at the wrong time simply joins in again on the next command.
Grades Pre-K–2You need Nothing
5. Charades
A student draws a slip and acts it out with no words while the class guesses. Use themed slips (winter sports, ocean animals, jobs) and give each actor thirty seconds.
Grades 2–8You need Slips with actions or animals in a cup
6. Draw and guess
One student draws the word on their slip on the board, with no letters or numbers, while the class guesses. The student who guesses right draws next.
Grades 1–8You need The whiteboard and slips with simple nouns
7. Telephone
Sit in a circle. Whisper a sentence to one student, who whispers it to the next, all the way around. The last student says it aloud, and you read the first version. Start with a short sentence for younger grades.
Grades K–5You need Nothing
8. Who started the motion
One student waits in the hall while you choose a leader. The class copies the leader's motions (clapping, tapping knees), changing when the leader changes. The guesser comes back and has three tries to spot the leader.
Grades K–5You need Nothing
9. Sleeping lions
Everyone lies still on the carpet like a sleeping lion. Two hunters walk around and try to make lions giggle or move without touching them. Lions who move become hunters. It is the quietest game on the list.
Grades Pre-K–2You need Nothing
10. Hot and cold
One student leaves the room while the class hides an object. When the student returns, the class says "warmer" or "colder" as they get closer or farther from it.
Grades K–3You need A small object to hide, such as a chalkboard eraser
11. Freeze dance
Play music and students dance in place; when it stops, everyone freezes. Nobody is out: anyone who wobbles does a silly pose for the next round instead.
Grades Pre-K–3You need Music from your school's approved list
12. Cooperative musical chairs
Play music and walk around the chairs. Each time the music stops, remove one chair, but nobody leaves: students have to share chairs and laps, so the whole class works out how to fit on fewer and fewer.
Grades K–2You need Chairs in a circle
Quiet games at desks
13. Twenty questions
One student thinks of an animal, place or object. The class asks yes or no questions, up to twenty, and tries to guess it. Keep a tally of the questions on the board.
Grades 2–8You need Nothing
14. I spy
Say "I spy something that is blue and round" and students guess the object in the room. The student who guesses gives the next clue.
Grades Pre-K–2You need Nothing
15. Category game
Roll or pick a letter. Students write one item starting with that letter for each category (an animal, a food, a city, a sport) in two minutes. Answers nobody else wrote score a point.
Grades 3–8You need Paper, pencils and a list of categoriesUse Letter wheel A–Z, 2 minute timer
16. Story chain
Start a story with one sentence. Each student adds one sentence in turn around the room. Write it on the board as you go, and read the whole story aloud at the end.
Grades 1–8You need Nothing
17. Back-to-back drawing
Partners sit back to back. One describes a simple picture of shapes without naming it; the other draws from the description. Then they compare and swap.
Grades 2–8You need Paper, pencils and simple pictures
18. Guess the number
Pick a secret number from 1 to 100 with the random number generator and keep it hidden. Students guess, and you answer "higher" or "lower." Count the guesses and try to beat the record.
Grades K–5You need The random number generatorUse Random number generator
19. Would you rather
Spin a question and students point left or right for their choice, then a few give a reason. It works seated, with no moving around.
Grades K–8You need The would you rather wheelUse Would you rather wheel
20. Rock, paper, scissors cheer
Pairs play rock, paper, scissors. The loser becomes the winner's cheering section and follows them to the next match, so by the end, two students face off with the whole class cheering.
Grades K–5You need Nothing
Paper and pencil games
21. Dots and boxes
Partners take turns joining two dots with a line. Whoever completes a box writes their initial in it and goes again. Most boxes wins.
Grades 1–8You need Dot paperUse Dot paper
22. Tic-tac-toe tournament
Play best of three with a partner, then switch partners. For older students, try a four-by-four grid where you need four in a row.
Grades K–5You need Paper and pencils
23. Word search
Keep a stack of themed word searches in the recess bin. Students can work alone or race a partner on the same puzzle.
Grades 1–5You need A printed word searchUse Word search maker, Winter word search
24. Mazes
Make a stack of mazes at three levels so students can pick one that suits them. Mark the start in green and the end in red for younger students.
Grades K–5You need Printed mazesUse Maze maker
25. Sudoku
Start with four-by-four puzzles and move up to six-by-six and nine-by-nine. Pencils with erasers matter here.
Grades 3–8You need Printed sudoku puzzlesUse Sudoku maker
26. Secret code messages
Students decode a message with a symbol key, then write their own coded message for a partner to crack.
Grades 2–5You need Printed secret code sheetsUse Secret code maker
27. Word scramble race
Partners race to unscramble a list of themed words. The first pair to finish reads the answers aloud for the others to check.
Grades 2–5You need Printed word scramblesUse Word scramble maker
28. Guess the word
One student picks a word and draws a blank for each letter. Classmates guess letters; wrong guesses build a snowman, one part at a time. Guess the word before the snowman is finished.
Grades 2–8You need The whiteboard
29. Paper fortune teller
Show the folds once on the projector, then students make a paper fortune teller and write kind messages or riddles under the flaps.
Grades 2–5You need Square paper
30. Coloring bookmarks
Keep a stack of bookmarks to color in the bin. Quiet, calm, and students take something useful home.
Grades K–5You need Printed bookmarks to colorUse Pattern bookmarks to color, Nature bookmarks to color
31. Crossword
Hand out a themed crossword. Partners can share one puzzle and take turns reading the clues aloud.
Grades 3–8You need A printed crosswordUse Crossword maker, Winter crossword
Card, dice and board games
32. Go fish
Deal five cards each. Players ask another player for a rank they hold ("Do you have any sevens?") and collect sets of four. Good for number recognition.
Grades K–3You need A deck of playing cards per group of four
33. Memory match
Lay the cards face down in a grid. Players turn over two at a time and keep any match. Use playing cards or a set you print with sight words or pictures.
Grades Pre-K–3You need Pairs of matching cards
34. Crazy eights
Play a card that matches the top card's number or suit; eights are wild and change the suit. The first player to play every card wins.
Grades 2–8You need A deck of playing cards per group
35. Pig, the dice game
Roll as many times as you like and add up the total, but rolling a 1 loses that turn's points. Decide when to stop and bank your score. First to 50 wins.
Grades 1–5You need One die per pair and paperUse Dice roller
36. Dominoes
Play the classic matching game, or for younger students, use dominoes to practice counting dots and making matching ends.
Grades K–5You need A set of dominoes per group
37. Checkers and chess corner
Set up a board game corner with two or three sets. Post a sign-up list so the same students don't keep the boards every day.
Grades 2–8You need Two or three checkers or chess sets
38. Classroom bingo
Print a set of themed bingo cards and let a student be the caller.
Grades K–5You need Printed bingo cards and countersUse Bingo card generator, Winter bingo
Building and making
39. Building brick challenge
Post a challenge card: build a bridge that holds a book, a tower taller than your ruler, an animal with four legs. Students build alone or in pairs.
Grades K–5You need A bin of building bricks
40. Cup stacking
Groups build the tallest tower they can in three minutes, then try a pyramid of a set size without it falling.
Grades K–5You need Twenty plastic cups per groupUse 3 minute timer
41. Index card tower
Groups build the tallest free-standing tower they can from the cards and one strip of tape in ten minutes. Measure them at the end.
Grades 3–8You need Twenty index cards and a strip of tape per group
42. Paper airplane contest
Students fold planes and fly them from a line on the floor. Measure the longest flight and the most accurate landing on a target.
Grades 2–8You need Scrap paper and a hallway or open floor
43. Play dough challenge
Students make what the card says: a snake longer than a pencil, five balls from big to small, the first letter of their name.
Grades Pre-K–2You need Play dough and challenge cards
44. Paper chain challenge
Who can make the longest paper chain from a single sheet of paper in ten minutes? Measure the chains against the classroom wall.
Grades 2–8You need One sheet of paper, scissors and tape per student
45. Tangram puzzles
Students make the picture on a card (a cat, a boat, a house) with all seven pieces. Turn the card over to show the solution if they get stuck.
Grades 1–5You need Tangram sets or printed tangram pieces
46. Pattern block pictures
Students cover a printed outline with pattern blocks, or make their own symmetrical design and draw it on graph paper.
Grades K–3You need Pattern blocksUse Centimeter graph paper
Active games for a small space
47. Keep it up
The class tries to keep a balloon off the floor, counting each tap aloud. Nobody taps twice in a row. Check for latex allergies before using a regular balloon.
Grades K–5You need A latex-free balloon or a light beach ball
48. Paper basketball
Students crumple a sheet into a ball and shoot from three lines at different distances. Closer lines score one point, farther ones three.
Grades 1–8You need Scrap paper and a recycling bin
49. Mirror me
Partners face each other. One moves slowly and the other copies like a mirror. Switch leaders after a minute.
Grades K–5You need Nothing
50. Get moving cards
Draw a card from the energizing deck and the whole class does it beside their desks. Each card is safe for a crowded room.
Grades K–5You need The energizing brain break cardsUse Energizing brain breaks
Making it work
- Teach the games on a normal day, so the first rainy day isn't spent explaining rules.
- Post a menu of six to eight games and let students choose. Rotate a few new ones in each month.
- Keep all the materials in one labeled bin, with the printables already copied.
- Set a timer for the end of recess and a two-minute clean-up, so the next lesson starts on time.
- Use random groups for group games, so the same students don't always play together.
Questions teachers ask
- How do I keep indoor recess from getting too loud?
- Give it structure: a menu of choices, a set place for each game, and the noise meter on the projector. Active games work best one at a time, with quieter desk games running alongside.
- What do I need for an indoor recess bin?
- Two decks of playing cards, a set of dice, dominoes, a soft foam ball, building bricks, scrap paper, and a stack of printed word searches, mazes and coloring pages. Most of it is already in a classroom.
- Should students be able to just read or draw?
- Yes. Some students need a quiet break more than a game. Keep a reading and drawing spot on the menu, so choosing it feels normal rather than left out.
- How do I stop the same students taking the best games?
- Use a sign-up sheet or a rotation for the popular games, and pick turns with the name picker so it is visibly fair.
Written for teachers by Peabody Teach. No ads, no affiliate links. Something wrong or missing? Tell us.