Bug Bashers 🐞
YouTube 📺 link for video of Bug Bashers: https://youtu.be/afoat0E5zSk?si=TGgkuZukgll10Lrb
🎯 Objective: Encourage aim, movement, and racket control in a fun, imaginative setting!
🌳 Set-Up: “The Forest”
· Scatter traffic cones (trees) across the hall or court
· Place colourful round cones (bugs) on top of each traffic cones
· Give the kids footballs and tell them to dribble on the ground
🧩 How to Play
1. Children move around the forest, weaving footballs in and out of trees
2. When they reach a tree, they use their racket to hit the football towards it
3. The aim is to knock the bug (round cone) off the tree
4. Coaches or assistants replenish bugs as they are knocked off to keep the game going
🔁 Progressions
· 🏑 Dribbling challenge: Older kids dribble two balls (hockey-style) toward the cone before hitting
· ⏱️ Countdown round: Final 60 seconds — how many bugs can each child knock off?
· 🎯 Distance bash: Create “start zones” for kids to hit from further away
🪶 Feathers – Younger Children
· ✅ Allow younger tots to place the ball near the cone and whack it (no dribbling)
· 🧸 Let them simply walk up and hit the bugs off without using a ball
· 👨👩👧 Encourage parent assistance — one holds the racket, one sets up the ball
End Game
Just let the kids whack the bugs off at the end! Careful, make sure they don’t whack each other!
Seasonal adaptations breakdown for your Bug Bashers / Smash the Bugs game 🐞🎾 — quick themed variations for Easter, Halloween, Christmas, Valentine's, Mother’s/Father’s Day, etc.
🐣 Easter – Egg Bashers
Swap round cones (bugs) for pastel-coloured “eggs” or little chicks.
🗣️ “The Easter Bunny has hidden eggs on top of the trees — knock them down gently!”
Use soft balls or beanbags for little ones, and hide "golden eggs" worth bonus points!
🎃 Halloween – Smash the Spiders 🕷️🦇
Place “spider” or “bat” round cones (black or purple) on top of the trees (cones).
🗣️ “The haunted forest is full of creepy crawlies — whack them off before they scare us!”
Progression: Add “zombie trees” (coaches slowly moving with cones) for older kids!
🎄 Christmas – Knock off the Baubles 🎄🎁
Decorate the forest like a Christmas tree forest — round cones are “baubles.”
🗣️ “Santa needs help clearing the decorations. Tap the baubles off gently without knocking down the tree!”
Feathered: Let kids just walk up and tap with rackets if they're very young.
💘 Valentine’s Day – Pop the Love Hearts 💘💝
Use pink, red, and white cones for “love bugs” or “hearts.”
🗣️ “Cupid’s heart bugs are hiding in the forest — knock them off and bring them back to the Love Nest!”
👩👧👦 Mother’s Day / Father’s Day – Knock the Breakfast Baskets 🧺🍳
Pretend the bugs are “breakfast baskets” stuck in trees — croissants, toast, juice, etc.
🗣️ “We need to collect breakfast for Mum/Dad — knock the food off the tree with your best aim!”