6 Playtime Ideas Dad & Kids Will Love!

There is literally nothing my boys love better than playing with their dad. Moms spend so much time taking care of all the physical needs of their children – and playing with them of course too, but there’s just something special about playtime with dad. The thing about dads is they really know how to rock playtime. I could do the exact same games and ideas as my husband, but when daddy calls all the kids in for a NERF gun fight or to build a fort, it always turns into a really fun time for the whole family! Here are just 6 fun ideas for dads to play with the kids – and a creative twist for each, also!

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Duracell. The opinions and text are all mine. Affiliate links are used in this post. 

6 Unique Twists for Dads and Kids Playtime!

Have an ‘arcade’ day – No one is better for an arcade date that going along with dad. He won’t be afraid to jump in beside you and play the games too. If video games aren’t your thing, they can play some simple games right from home and have a blast! It doesn’t take much to set up skee ball using laundry baskets and cardboard. Include other activities such as Pin the Tail on the Donkey, Minute to Win It games, and any other active games you can think of.

Kid-friendly sports – Dads can easily share their love of sports with their kids. Can anyone say “HORSE”? Grab a mini basketball hoop and play a round together right in the family room. Another favorite dad and the kids both love is mini golf! Or try a homemade version of tennis – using balloons and rackets made from paper plates and paint stirrers, everyone will love it!

Make a fort – Blanket forts have been loved by kids and dads for years and it’s still true today. These days however, people have gotten pretty creative with how they turn the living room into really rad forts. Dad’s have a knack for making these super fun hideouts; let everyone’s imagination run wild and have a day full of fort living. My boys and their dad’s favorites: setting up the fort in front of the big screen for a movie night or planning an epic sleepover in the family room fort.

Build something – Dad may not think he’s an artist and shy away from craft projects, but if you call it ‘building’ he’ll be totally game. There are lots of models on the market that are for various skill levels. Kids will have a blast finding the right pieces, helping out, and they’ll be so proud when they have a final piece to display. Legos are a great dad activity as well. You can build anything out of these brightly colored blocks. You’ll be surprised how much time will pass as everyone gets involved with the building – you might just find that your hubby is really a big kid at heart.

Play wrestle – What kid doesn’t like to rough house with Dad? With a bed or the floor covered in pillows, kids and their dad can get on the ground and wrestle. Dad may seem like he has the upper hand, hoisting his kid in the air, but don’t look now, your child just got him to the mat and is pinning him! Plus, if you have a few kids it’s always fun to gang up on dad. Wrestling is a fun physical activity to do as long as safety measures are thought about beforehand.

Heck, my husband always turns the laundry pile into a jumping, wrestling, everyone all in play ground. It’s those moments where it’s super easy to see that dads are pretty awesome at playing with their kids.

NERF wars – My kids love to play with the NERF toys together, but there’s something magical that happens in the home when dad grabs his NERF blaster. Somehow, it always turns into a huge war throughout our family room and kitchen with darts flying everywhere. They’ll play capture the flag or NERF tag with the object of not getting shot and making their way across the room. Their favorite, though, is to just let dad shoot them, and see if they can dodge the darts. Laughter always ensues.

All of these ideas are perfect for summertime, but my boys favorite always ends up being the NERF wars with their dad. Sometimes, I’ll even join in on the battles. NERF just release two new toys, the NERF N-Strike Modulus ECS-10 Blaster that you can make over 30 combinations by mixing and matching which parts you add on. You can even add some of the parts onto your other NERF toys for keeping the action interesting. This powerful blaster has a range of up to 90 feet. The other new toy is the NERF N-Strike Elite Stryfe Blaster lets you load up 6-darts and fire one-handed at your opponents or targets up to 75 feet away.

Just setup an outdoor battlefield – take your NERF toys to the park if you don’t have space at home, and let the battle ensue. After each round, everyone goes off on a dart search to round up all the Elite Darts and prepare for the next battle.

When you’re picking up your new NERF blasters, make sure you grab a big pack of Duracell batteries to keep your blasters ready to go.

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