10 Swimming Pool Games to Entertain the Kids this Summer!

I learned about this game when I started taking swimming lessons at age 5. It's pretty simple. It's the “everyone hold your breath and see how far you can swim” game. Once you have to come up for air, you have to stand in that spot and see if the next person up can beat it. Competitive, yet safe for the younger ones.

All you need for this game is a clear 2 liter bottle with a white cap, or whatever color matches your pool bottom best. Fill it up with pool water and toss it into the pool. Have your kids lined up on the side of the pool and when they hear the SPLASH* they can dive in to find it. It is a lot harder than you may think and they will enjoy the challenge.

This one is always a hit! It kept me entertained all afternoon as a child. It's simple, grab a bunch of coins & toss them in the water. Whoever brings back the most money, wins. You can opt to use pennies or nickels, and let them keep whatever they find. This will really motivate them to play. (OF COURSE)

More than likely you don't have to mention this to your kids. If they are anything like mine, they are already doing it. So, just make a competition out of it. The person to create the biggest wave, wins. You could make a little goody bowl, and let the winner pick the snack/candy of their choice.

This is a classic! Just like a game of hide and go seek, but in the pool. One person will close their eyes and say “MARCO” and everyone else will reply “POLO”. They will use the sound of their voices to find them. They can say it as many times or as little as they would like. Just remind your child, that the person who is “It” can not see, and to be cautious.

This is just like your typical game of “HORSE”. One person shoots. If they make it, the next person has to as well. If they don't, then they get a “F”. The first one to spell out “FISH” loses. You can even make things interesting for the older kids and apply the same rules towards tricks in the pool. (EX: doing a hand stand for 20 sec., back flip off the diving board, etc.)

SCAVENGER HUNT

Pretty simple and the pool toys are cheap. Just take an odd number of items, like the ones seen here, and toss them into the pool. You could have 9 pools toys and tell them whoever, or whichever team, brings back 5 first, wins. It takes them some time to do this and there will never be a tie.

So this is not exactly your average game of ping pong, but it can still be just as fun. You take a bunch of ping pong balls, or mini beach balls if you really want to get creative, and put either your child's initials or different numbers on each one for point value. Whoever finds all of the balls with their initials on them first, or collects the most points, wins!

WHIRLPOOL

This works best with smaller, more round, pools but it can still be done with larger ones. Get everyone in a line, about 3 feet apart, and start to jog around the pool. Not only will this give them plenty of exercise, but watching them finally getting swept away by the current is quite hilarious. They will literally be able to float while the pool carries them in a circular motion. The really fun part, is telling them to now try jogging against the current.

A fun old fashioned game that requires no toys, or anything else for that matter. This game is not necessarily about keeping them entertained, but more like a last attempt to wear them out. Create two lines of kids facing each other and tell them to have at it!!! You can tell them you'll decide which team splashed the most, but we all know that may not easily be determined. So, we'll just say that everyone won and finally make our way back into the house to enjoy some much needed food. (hehe)