15 Outdoor Games That Will Make You Miss Being a Kid



So, why not recreate your childhood? Grab your friends, head to a nearby park, and play like it's 1999 (Or 1969, 1979, 1989 ... we're not judging.) all over again.

1. Four Square

Four square

Image: Flickr, Stewf

Before you and your sibs battled over who was the mayor of your house on FourSquare, you might've played Four Square, the old-school recess classic.

2. Tag


Image: Flickr, hannah8ball

A quick game of Tag settled which sibling was destined for the track team and which was destined for the library early on in life.

3. Monkey in the Middle

Monkey in the middle

Image: Flickr, Tom and Lauren

Older (read: taller) siblings loved Monkey in the Middle because it could go on for hours over their poor, shorter siblings' heads.

4. Red Rover

Red rover

Image: Flickr, tgidenver

You secretly hoped to be called over in Red Rover, giving you an excuse to run directly into your crush's arms.

5. Hide and Seek

Hide and seek

Image: Flickr, erase

You may or may not have played Hide and Seek at your eighth grade graduation party with the intent of "seeking" your middle school boyfriend for a kiss. You may or may not have broken up a week later. Love hurts.

6. Hopscotch


Image: Flickr, lincolnblues

You had to be careful with hopscotch; if you stepped on a crack, you would break your mother's back.

7. Jump Rope

Jump rope

Image: Flickr, adwriter

Jump rope with friends at recess was always so much fun. So why aren't your aerobics classes at the gym just as entertaining?

8. Red Light, Green Light

Red Light, Green Light

Image: Flickr, furiousgeorge81

All those years of playing Red Light, Green Light as a kid finally paid off when you got your license. Score!

9. Spud


Image: Flickr, Library and Archives Canada

Spud looked like a fun, innocent game on the surface, but you chucked the ball at your brother's head every time he got on your nerves.

10. Horse


Image: Flickr, no focus

Nineties kids shot hoop after hoop in Horse until they could make baskets blindfolded, just like on Hey Arnold.

11. Simon Says

Simon Says

Image: Flickr, stevendepolo

Simon Says practice as a kid made you a pro at following your boss's directions at work as an adult.

12. Marco Polo

Marco Polo

Image: Flickr, giest

The soundtrack of childhood summers: "MARCO?" "POLO!"

13. Freeze Dance

Freeze Dance

Image: Flickr, Maria Teresa Adalid

Accusations of cheating always ran rampant, but freeze dance was still one of the best games to play at birthday parties and in big groups.

14. Musical Chairs

Musical Chairs

Image: Flickr, David Maddison

Way back when, you played musical chairs with your friends. Now, you scramble for a seat at parties because your shoes hurt too badly to stand for the duration of the party.

15. Telephone


Image: Flickr, Fort Carson

Before "Telephone" became the greatest Lady Gaga/Beyoncé collaboration of all time, you played telephone - and rarely ended up with the innocuous phrases that started the game.

Homepage image: Flickr, lincolnblues

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