10 Great Kids Games for a July 4th Barbecue

July 4th / Independence day is a wonderful time to meet with friends, watch fireworks, relax, barbecue, and (of course) play games! If you are hosting a July 4th celebration this year, here is a list of fun games for children to play. Enjoy!

1. Patriotic/ Name a President Freeze Tag: This game is a variation of TV tag. It is best for older youth who know the names of at least one president. (If necessary, give them a quick lesson, naming off president's names.) Gather the children together on a lawn or large area. Determine boundaries where children must stay in during the game. Pick one child to be the "tagger" (perhaps the one with the closest birthday), and one child to be the "rescuer" (perhaps the oldest child.) Children will then run around and be tagged by the tagger, if they aren't fast enough. When they are tagged, they must freeze in place. However, they can be untagged ONCE by the rescuer. in order to be untagged they must yell out the name of a president when the rescuer touches them. Game continues until all but one child is frozen. The last child is determined the winner and is the tagger for the next game. He/She can pick the child to be the rescuer. Keep playing until the kids are worn out!

2. Abe Lincoln Beard Relay Contest: Divide the kids into 2-4 teams of equal members. Designate some adults to be the "beard makers" - one adult is needed per team. You can either use shaving cream, or canned whipped cream. Children must line up and run one at a time to the beard maker, who will then decorate their faces with an Abe Lincoln type beard. They must then run back and tag the next member of their team to be bearded. The first team to all be wearing beards wins! (If you want to make the game really creative you could make Peanut Butter Marshmallow Beards instead!)