Menus From the PE Store
Key Stage 1 Games
Key ingredients:
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Bean Bags
Quoits
Playground Markings / Surface Spots / Lines / Chalk / Tape
Tennis Balls
Footballs
Hula hoops
Object Control Skills:
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Monster, Monster
Bean Bag Boules / Golf
Bean Bag ‘Simon Says’
Treasure Chest (with object control focus)
Pizza Game
Four Square
Locomotor Skills:
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The Cat and the Rat
Evolution
Treasure Chest (with locomotor focus)
Traffic Light Bumper Cars
Wildlife TV
Giants, Wizards, Elves
Stability Skills:
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Stability ‘Simon Says’
Hopscotch Square
Hopping Stones
Hotspots
Sneakers
Monster Monster (can be played on the 10 metre target)
The Monster stands with their back towards the rest of the group and throws a ball
backwards over their head. If another player catches the ball, they become the
Monster. However, if the ball is dropped, one player must hide the ball behind their
back. The other players also place their hands behinds their backs to disguise who
has possession of the ball. The Monster must then guess who has the ball and the
following chants can be used.
Monster, Monster big and tall, can you guess who has the ball?
Monster, Monster big and tall, I’m the one / not the one with the ball?
The chants continue until the ball is found and the pupil with the ball becomes the
‘Monster’.
Bean Bag Golf/Boules (can be played using markings as targets)
Using quoits as targets, pupils are given one bean bag each and the aim of the
game is to hit the target in the least number of throws. All pupils start from the
same point (the ‘Tee’) and count their number of throws. Pupils must take their
next throw from where their beanbag has landed and stopped. Following the first
throw, the order of play is determined by the bean bag furthest away from the
target (furthest first). Vary the distance of the holes each time and consider exciting
obstacles in the playground to play over and around.
Bean Bag ‘Simon Says’
As the traditional game of ‘Simon Says’ but with an emphasis on object control:
Simon Says:
Balance the bean bag on your head
Balance the bean bag on your foot
Balance the bean bag on the back of you hand
Throw the bean bag in the air and catch with two hands
Hold the bean bag between you knees
Throw the bean bag and clap before it hits the floor
Swap bean bags with a partner
Replace the bean bag with different objects such as quoits / balls but keep the tasks
very simple and relevant to the age group.
Treasure Chest (can be played on the 9 square grid)
This game involves four teams with a base each and a ‘treasure chest’ of bean bags
in the middle of all the bases. In their teams, pupils collect beanbags on at a time in
a relay style activity. Emphasise avoiding contact with others as they approach the
treasure chest. Once all the beanbags have disappeared from the ‘treasure chest’
pupils can steal bean bags from other teams’ bases (still in relay style). To emphasise
object control skills, the colour of the bean bag determines a different skill to return
the bean bag to the base:
Red – Balance on head
Blue – Bowl bean bag (keeping arm straight) back to another pupil who is ready
to receive
Yellow – Throw bean bag back to another pupil who is ready to receive
Green – Travel with bean bag between knees
To emphasise Locomotor skills, the colour of the bean bag determines a different
skill to return the bean bag to the base:
Red – Run
Blue – Bound
Yellow – Yomp (fast walk)
Green - Gallop
Pizza Game
(can be played using the ring step / target)
Pupils throw bean bags into hoops / rings to see who can create the cleanest pizza.
Pupils must throw the bean bags in the following order:
Red = Tomato base
Yellow = Cheese
Green = Peppers
Blue = Blue cheese
Pizzas can be judged according to the amount of bean bags in the hoop / ring
Four Square (can be played within the 9 square grid)
In groups of four, pupils use one hand to strike the ball into an opponents’ area.
Like in tennis, the ball must land within an opponents’ area and is only allowed to
bounce once. Use different equipment make the game easier (beach ball) or
harder (football)
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The Cat and the Rat (can be played on the multi-games column)
The cat chases the rat through corridors that are created by other players standing
side by side and linking hands. On the call of ‘change’, players in the corridor turn
90 degrees to change the direction of the corridors. The Cat and Rat must not
break through the arms of corridors. Encourage the Cat and Rat to use different
locomotor skills e.g. hopping, galloping. Be careful when changing direction to
avoid contact with the Cat and Rat.
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‘Change’
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Evolution
Everyone begins as an ‘egg’, so people have to pretend to be an egg.
Find another egg and play ‘rock, paper, scissors’ with the other egg.
Whoever wins gets to ‘evolve’ into a chicken, so now the chickens have
to pretend to be chickens. Whoever loses remains an egg. Then the
chickens must find other chickens in order to play rock, paper,
scissors; the winners evolve the losers go back to being an egg. The game continues
in this fashion and children can suggest different progressions. Suggested
progressions:
 Egg
 Chicken
 Dinosaur
 Human (the winner!)
Traffic Light Bumper Cars (Can be played within the 9 square
grid)
A warm up game that focuses on locomotor skills and ‘spatial awareness’. The aim
of the game is to avoid contact with other players whilst responding to different
movement commands based on traffic signals. To increase difficulty and challenge
spatial awareness, the children can hold a hula hoop at waist level which makes it
harder to avoid contact.
Traffic signals:
Red light: Stop
Amber: Run on spot
Green: Run fast
Roundabout: Turn around on the spot
Roadworks: Run in single file
Speedbump: Jump in the air
Wildlife TV (Can be played within the 9 square grid)
A warm up game that focuses on locomotor skills and stability. All pupils move
around in the style of an animal and respond to the person pretending to carry a
video camera on their shoulder. The Camera person can control the movements of
the group as follows:
Play – move at normal pace
Fast forward – move fast
Pause – Freeze and perform a balance
Rewind – Move backwards taking care to avoid contact with others
Giants, Wizards, Elves
Based on the principle of Rock, Paper, Scissors.
Teach everyone the following three characters:
Giant - Tip-toes, raise hands above head, curl fingers, growling sounds
Wizard – Step forward, wave and point a magic wand, shouting "kazaam!"
Elf – Squat down and put hands to the air and move fingers to tickle.
Giants beat Elves
Wizards beat Giants
Elves beat wizards
This can be played as a team game where the whole team agrees what action they
will perform against the opposing team. The teams stand in parallel lines facing
each other and present their action following a countdown. The winning team can
chase the others to a safety zone. If a player is caught by being tagged, they simply
join the other team.
Stability ‘Simon Says’
As the traditional game of ‘Simon Says’ but with an emphasis on stability:
Simon Says:
Stand on one leg
Pivot around in a circle
Jump and turn
Touch the floor whilst standing on one leg
Perform a balance (e.g. arabesque)
Hopscotch Square
This is like the traditional game of hopscotch but with a multi-directional emphasis.
Using markings, encourage pupils to work around a hopscotch circuit performing
forwards, sideways and backwards hopscotch patterns. To increase difficulty, place
counters in squares that need to be avoided.
Hopping Stones (can be played on the Multi-games column)
A variation of stepping stones but encouraging children to ‘hop and stop’ to
develop stability skills. This can be played on the Multi-games column or on throw
down spots. Increase difficulty by using the whole width of spots; encouraging side
ways movements as well as in straight lines.
Hotspots (can be played on the Multi-games column)
Played on the Multi-Games column, the teacher has a card displaying one safe
route across the spots. Taking turns, the children attempt to cross the spots without
standing on a hotspot (the non-safe spots). Children have three choices each time:
forward, forward right, forward left. The children take turns until they stand on a
hotspot and must try to remember the safe route across.
Sneakers (can be played on the 10 metre target)
One person is the spotter and must stand with their back to the rest of the group.
The other children must advance towards the spotter but as soon as the spotter
turns around, everyone must freeze. If the spotter catches anyone moving, they
must go back to the beginning.