Overview: “Fly Swatter Hockey” takes hockey to the next level by substituting hockey sticks with fly swatters and substituting the puck with a waffle ball. It requires no ice and no skill and is faster and higher scoring.
Logistics:
Ideal for ages 12-22
Best played with 6-12 students
Equipment: Fly swatters, small golf to larger baseball-sized wiffle balls and four safety cones
Time: 5-20 minutes
How to play ‘Fly Swatter Hockey’
Purchase fly swatters at a dollar store (for a cheap version) or any hardware store (for better quality. You also can get safety cones here).
This game can be played indoors or outdoors. It is best played on a flat carpet or linoleum type floor. Have two teams with as few as three or as many as six players on a team. (You can have more, but it gets a little chaotic, which may be fun). Have a way of identifying the two teams (color of flyswatter, T-shirt color etc). Set up the playing area perimeters. Set up two cones at each end of the playing field to serve as the goals. (Create actual goals out of ¾” PVC pipe and some netting). Students may want to assign a goalie for each team. (Give each goal keeper a broom).
Follow the rules for hockey. Players cannot pick up the ball with their hands or kick it with their feet. Check out “Hockey for Dummies Cheat Sheet” online for free instructions. (Don’t make it as complicated for students. Just have fun.)
Optional:
Play using two or more balls at the same time.
Play the game sitting in two rows of chairs lined up in a straight line with the students facing each other. The two teams need to be about 6 feet apart with the goals at the end of each line. One team is going to its left; the other team is going to its right.
Play “Noodle Hockey.” Substitute hockey sticks with pool noodles by folding the noodles in half and holding the two ends together. Or you could cut the noodles in half, giving one team red noodles and the other team blue noodles. Use a small beach ball for the puck, or cut a couple of inches off the top of a noodle to use as a puck.
Bio:
Les is a 40-year veteran of youth ministry, the Guru of Games and author of 15 books, including Best-Ever Games for Youth Ministry and is the chair of the Youth Ministry Department at William Jessup University in Rocklin, California.
Curtis Jessup is one of his favorite students.
