Games to Play at a Fun Fourth of July Barbecue

Patriotic Pastimes for Independence Day Parties

Independence Day is a time for fun. All across America, families and friends gather to celebrate the nation's birthday with great food and good times.

What fun Fourth of July patriotic games can you play at your party, barbecue, picnic or potluck? Here are a few of our favorites for your Independence Day entertainment.

Bombs Away!

Here's an entertaining Fourth of July party game for participants of all ages. Bombs away is sure to be an all-American hit at a Fourth of July party.

Materials Needed:

Several water-filled balloons

How to Play:

Bombs Away can be a structured balloon-toss game or an all-out, all-American water war.

In structured play, players form two lines. Bombs Away partners face one another (from one line to the other).

At the caller's instruction, players from one line toss their water balloons to their partners in the other line. After catching the balloons, players in the second line take one step backwards.

If a balloon is dropped and breaks, that pair is disqualified from Bombs Away.

Play continues until one pair remains as the winners of this Fourth of July party game.

Capture the Flag

This team-building Fourth of July party game is an excellent ice-breaker, pulling together Independence Day celebrants in every generation.

Materials Needed:

1 red bandanna

1 navy blue bandanna

How to Play:

Form two teams for Capture the Flag at your Fourth of July party. Assign each team to a predetermined territory (perhaps two sides of the yard or park). Clearly mark the Capture the Flag boundary lines. (Spray chalk works well for this.)

Designate a jail for each team, located deep within that team's Capture the Flag territory.

Give each team a bandanna, which will serve as the team flag. Instruct each team to place its flag in a permanent location within the team's Capture the Flag territory.

Once the Capture the Flag game begins, players on each team try to capture the other team's flag and carry it to their own territory without being tagged. (Players may only be tagged in the opposing team's territory.)