Field Day Activities for Middle School

Archery is a field-day activity kids should remember.

Planning a field day for middle-schoolers runs the risk that they'll disregard the activities so they can socialize with their friends. But a field day provides a valuable break from middle school learning to get some exercise and enjoy the spring weather in a spirit of friendly competitiveness.

Archery

Adults must carefully supervise archery for middle school students, but the activity is sure to draw a crowd. Many middle schools have archery equipment and targets for gym classes, but you can borrow equipment from archers or get donations from sporting goods stores in the community. Use twine to rope off the range, and mark an area for students to line up safely outside the course. Let the students file in and try their luck with three or four arrows. Mark scores and announce the winners at the end of the day.

Pingpong Blow

You need an equal number of 2-liter bottles and pingpong balls to set up pingpong blow. Fill the bottles with water and place them in a row on a table. Put a pingpong ball on top of each bottle. Students should hold their hands behind their backs and blow the balls off the bottles as quickly as possible. Time them with a stopwatch and record the fastest times. Or make it a head-to-head race. Place bottles on each side of the table, and have one student start at each end at the same time. Whoever clears all of his balls first is the winner.

Musical hula hoops

Musical hula hoops is like musical chairs with hoops in place of the chairs. Lay out a circle of hula hoops, using one fewer hoop than people playing and leaving plenty of space between the hoops. Or lay the hoops sporadically across the playing area so the students will run around like drunken sailors. The middle-schoolers move around without stepping into the hoops while the music plays. When the music stops, they jump into the hoops and pull them up around them like a large pair of pants. Sometimes two students try to pull one hoop around both of them, but such silliness is part of the fun.

References

• Teach Net: Field Day Activities