Active Schools
Create healthy schools to help pupils thrive.
Date: 2 September 2026 Author: Bethany Brown
As the new school year begins, it’s a great time to think about how we can make every school day a little more active. Let’s start in the playground…
Not only does regular movement help children feel happier and healthier, but it also helps them to be more focused and have more energy throughout the school day.
Given how much time pupils spend at school, you play an important role in helping pupils achieve their 60 active minutes a day. So here are five easy playground games, with no to limited equipment required, that you could try.
If you’re looking for a no-equipment-needed game that can be adapted for different year groups, this one may do the trick. ‘Traffic Warden’ is also brilliant for developing listening skills, reactions times and co-ordination.
The rules are simple: One child or adult takes on the role of the Traffic Warden and calls out instructions for the rest to follow:
The instructions are endless, so don’t be afraid to get creative. You could shout ‘motorway’ to make pupils sprint, then ‘law enforcement’ for the Traffic Warden to tag someone for speeding.
Get pupils working together by splitting your class into teams and hiding a selection of coloured objects around the playground.
For example, if you had 20 pupils, you could hide: 5 blue items, 5 red items, 5 orange items and 5 pink items. Then you assign each team a colour and challenge them to collect all their items through a relay format.
To make it more challenging, you could ask pupils to find a specific object rather than simply collecting anything in their team’s colour.
If you wanted to adapt this for older children, you could raise the stakes by allowing them to pick up and rehide another team’s object instead of collecting one of their own to slow the other team down.
Sometimes the best ideas come from children themselves. This activity is a favourite at the Hampshire School Games Festival and it’s incredibly straightforward – the children create the game and the rules.
Give pupils a selection of equipment or even just a single item, such as a frisbee, hoop, ball or nothing to make them really tap into their imagination! And in groups, ask them to:
You’ll often be surprised by the creativity, problem-solving and teamwork that comes from it. This activity encourages pupil voice, develops leadership skills and creates a sense of ownership over physical activity.
Everyone knows Simon Says, which is why it’s a great playground activity.
Ask pupils to move continuously, perhaps walking or jogging around a marked area, while listening for instructions such as:
You can even invite pupils to take turns being Simon, giving everyone a chance to lead.
(Psst! This one is also great as an ‘active burst’ in the classroom.)
If the sun is shining, Shadow Tag can be a fantastic alternative to traditional tag. Instead of tagging another player, children must step on their opponent’s shadow.
This simple twist creates lots of movement as pupils dodge, chase and change direction to protect their shadows.
It’s fast-paced and fun, just watch as they laugh!
Physical activity doesn’t have to be limited to PE lessons. Small bursts during breaktimes, lunchtimes and learning time can help children achieve their active minutes throughout the day. Our Active Schools Toolkit has lots of resources and ideas to help you do this.
If you’re looking for more playground activities, check out our Active Playgrounds resource.
Helping us tackle inactivity to boost health and happiness
