Here’s A Ball: Let’s Play Outside!

Enjoying this summer in our neighborhood with my children brings back so many fun memories of my own childhood. Remember when life was so simple as a kid? You chased your friends, stayed outside until the sun went down around 8pm and woke up to a bright sun and then rushed through breakfast so you could be the first outside to see your friends. Bikes, rollerblading, swimming, skip-it, tag, beach days, ice cream and talent shows…ah, what a life of a kid.

Now, I get to watch my own little ones enjoy the same games with their friends while on summer break. While I have a fun Summer Bucket List  full of activities to look forward to, it’s the simple days at home spent outside that I cherish the most. Lately, our neighborhood has been in a constant four square competition. My soon-to-be five-year-old just learned the rules of the game and can play with the older kids. So that you can introduce this fun summer game to your kids, here’s a refresher of the four square game rules.

Four Square~Rules of the Court

This is a simple game with little equipment required—all you need are chalk, a ball and at least four players.  Start by drawing a large square at least six feet wide and divide it into four smaller squares, marked one through four.

To start, one player stands in each of the four squares and the player in square number four serves the ball by bouncing it in her own square and then hitting it toward another player. The receiver then hits the ball to a player in any other square.  A player is out if he hits the ball incorrectly, the ball bounces more than once in his square or if he hits it out of bounds. When a player is out, everyone moves up to a higher ranked square and the eliminated player moves to the last square (number one) or to the end of the line if there are more than four players. The game goes on as long as everyone likes and the object is to reach square number four at the end.

Rules of Elimination:

• Failing to hit the ball into another square
• Hitting the ball out of turn
• Hitting the ball incorrectly (such as on the full into another player’s square)
• Hitting the ball out of bounds
• Missing the ball from another player
• Letting the ball drop twice on a player’s own square
• Hitting a shot from another player when it was double bounce or not hit correctly. Holding the ball

Now that you are educated with the rules of four square, you can show your kids this fun game. I found the cutest colorful rubber ball at CVS of all places…go figure.