Each year for Field Day, I try to come up with a new, fun theme the kids will enjoy. This year I came up with a Barnyard Field Day theme. Our school mascot is the Trailblazer, so it’s a fitting theme for our school. The Field Day stations encompass many different skills such as underhand rolling (bowling), striking with a paddle, galloping and jumping, and throwing at a target.
These Field Day activities are being used for my students in Pre-K – 3rd grade. For each station, I have 6 students and they rotate to the next station every 5 minutes.
Set up:
The gym is set up with 13 different stations in which students rotate around in a circle. I use cones with number sleeves on them to help students know where to go next.
Modifications:
I have very little outdoor space, so my stations are set up inside the gym. Stations could also be used outside. Distance can be increased or decreased for target throwing and bowling stations based on the age of students.
“Barnyard Fun” Themed Stations
1. Watering Hole
Students can take a break and have a free snow cone or use the water fountain (also take a bathroom break if needed).
2. Barnyard Photo Booth
Students can have their picture made at the photo booth with the barnyard props and backdrop, then use sidewalk chalk to decorate the sidewalk.
Equipment:
- A variety of barnyard photo props
- Cowboy hats
- Barn backdrop
- Bucket of sidewalk chalk
3. Horseshoe Toss
Students stand on a designated mark (x made with floor tape) and toss the horseshoes underhand around the stake.
Equipment:
- 1 Stake with 2 horse shoes for each student
- Floor tape
4. Giddy up Horsey
Students ride stick horses and jump over the “hay bales”. Students gallop around and jump over 3 hay bales going forward then turn and jump over 3 more hay bales coming back to the starting cone. You can use hurdles or step stones, or make your own DIY boxes for them to jump over an cover with the yellow table covers.
Equipment:
- 6 Step stones or hurdles
- Plastic table cloths (yellow)
- 1 Stick horse per student
5. Scoop the Poop
Students will use their jumbo tennis rackets to scoop the animal “poop” and hit it back and forth with a partner or in the air to themselves.
Equipment:
- 1 Jumbo tennis racket or paddle
- 1 Poop emoji splash ball per student OR you can use brown pom poms
6. Bouncing Barnyard
Students can have fun jumping in the bouncy house we rented. Rules: shoes off; no flipping or horse playing.
Equipment:
- Bouncy house
7. Horse flies
Students will use the bounce rings to make their stuffed horse fly (bounce the horse up and down on the paddle).
Equipment:
- 1 Bounce ring or trampoline paddle
- 1 Stuffed horse (or pig, cow, etc.) per student
8. Rope the Farm Animal
Students will stand on a designated mark (red tape “X”) and toss rings or hula hoops around cones with animal faces.
Equipment:
- Large cones
- Barn animal bandanas
- Eye stickers
- 6 Large foam rings or hockey ring
- Laundry baskets
- 1 Medium hula hoop per student
9. Riding through the Corn Fields
Students will ride “tractors” (scooters) through the corn fields (mats standing up with a cornfield backdrop attached).
Equipment:
- 2 Large mats standing up to make a pathway
- Cornfield backdrop
- Life size structures set
- 1 Scooter per student
10. Chunkin’ Chickens
Set up 6 designated marks with red tape X in a circle with a large bucket in the middle, surrounded by 6 medium sized buckets with 18 smaller sized buckets in front of those. Students will stand on the designated mark and toss their rubber chickens into the buckets. Closest bucket is worth 1 point, middle bucket is worth 2 points, and bucket farthest away is worth 3 points.
Equipment:
- Floor tape
- Large bucket
- 6 medium sized buckets
- 18 smaller sized buckets
- 4 Rubber chickens per student
11. Barnyard Bowling
Students are in 2 groups of 3 for this station. Students will take turns rolling the jumbo plastic egg at the chicken faced or pig faced bowling pins and see how many they can knock down. Students get 1 roll then rotate to pin setter then to egg returner to bowl next. Six pins have chicken beaks and six pins have pig snouts attached, all 12 pins have silly eye stickers.
Equipment:
- Floor tape
- 12 bowling pins
- Chicken beaks & pig snouts
- Eye stickers
- Jumbo eggs
(Printed farm animal face cutouts taped on is an alternative option)
12. Down on the Farm
Students will take turns shooting basketballs into the Connect 4 Basketball game board. Objective is for one team to get 4 of their team color basketballs in a row while trying to block the other team.
Equipment:
- Connect 4 Basketball game board
- Basketballs
13. Bucking Broncos
Students will bounce around in the designated area on the single or double spring balls.
Equipment:
- 3 Double spring balls (hippity hops) and/ or 6 single spring balls
About the Author
Michele Ragsdale is a PE teacher at Poole Elementary School in Dallas, Georgia. She received her Bachelor of Science degree in Physical Education and Health from the University of West Georgia and her Masters degree, also in Physical Education and Health, from Jacksonville State University. She just completed her 20th year teaching PE (16 of those years at Poole Elementary). She was Teacher of the Year at Poole Elementary School in 2016. She loves spending time with her family and watching or playing sports of any kind. Follow her on Twitter @mmrgdale
Where did you purchase the farm bandanas? Great ideas – love them!
Thank you
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Where did you buy the connect 4 basketball game?
where did you get your bowling pins?