Indoor Recess Games: 13 Easy, No-Supply Games for Rainy and Snowy Days

November 2026  ·  20 questions

The best indoor recess games need no supplies, get kids moving and take less than a minute to explain. Our top pick is a would you rather “stand up, sit down” game: read a question, kids stand for the first choice and sit for the second. After that come classics like four corners, heads up seven up, Simon says, silent ball and freeze dance. Below are 13 indoor recess games for the classroom, plus a ready-to-play question deck for snowy and rainy days.

Put the card below on your board or projector, read it out loud and let the class pick.

Game 1: Stand up, sit down would you rather

This is the perfect indoor recess game when kids have been sitting all morning and need to move without running into desks. Read a question. Kids stand up for the first choice and sit down for the second. Then the next question. Ten questions take about three minutes, and every child gets to move and have an opinion.

Here are 20 questions that work for kindergarten through 5th grade:

• Would you rather have a snow day or a pajama day at school?
• Would you rather build a snowman or have a snowball fight?
• Would you rather have indoor recess with games or outdoor recess in the cold?
• Would you rather be a penguin or a polar bear for a day?
• Would you rather have hot cocoa or warm soup for lunch?
• Would you rather have a class pet hamster or a class pet fish?
• Would you rather read a book or draw a picture during free time?
• Would you rather be able to fly or be invisible?
• Would you rather have a dinosaur or a dragon as a pet?
• Would you rather eat pizza or tacos every Friday?
• Would you rather jump in a pile of leaves or a pile of snow?
• Would you rather go to school on a spaceship or a submarine?
• Would you rather have a talking backpack or a lunchbox that makes any food?
• Would you rather do math with your teacher or teach the class for five minutes?
• Would you rather slide down a rainbow or bounce on a cloud?
• Would you rather wear mittens or gloves?
• Would you rather play in the rain or play in the snow?
• Would you rather have a recess that’s twice as long or a lunch that’s twice as long?
• Would you rather be the line leader or the door holder?
• Would you rather have super speed or super strength?

Need more? The would you rather classroom list and the winter would you rather for kids deck are both made for school.

12 more indoor recess games (no supplies needed)

Game 2: Four corners

Number the four corners of the room 1 to 4. One child is “it” and closes their eyes and counts to ten while everyone tiptoes to a corner. “It” calls a number, and everyone in that corner sits down. Keep going until one player is left. They’re “it” next.

Game 3: Heads up, seven up

Pick seven kids to stand at the front. Everyone else puts their heads down and a thumb up. The seven tiptoe around and each gently presses one thumb down. When they’re back at the front, everyone whose thumb was pressed stands and guesses who did it. Guess right, and you switch places.

Game 4: Simon says

The classic, and it never gets old. Make it a brain break with moves like “Simon says touch your toes,” “Simon says do five jumping jacks” and “Simon says stand like a flamingo.” Let a student be Simon after a few rounds.

Game 5: Silent ball

Kids stand by their desks and toss a soft foam ball (or a ball of scrap paper) to each other in total silence. Talk, drop the ball or make a bad throw, and you sit down. It’s surprisingly calming, which makes it great before a test.

Game 6: Walk to a side

Like the stand-up game, but kids walk to one side of the room for each answer. Use this or that questions: “Snow or sand? Cats or dogs? Pizza or pasta?” It’s great when you have a little floor space.

Game 7: Twenty questions

One student thinks of an animal, a food or something in the classroom. The class gets 20 yes-or-no questions to guess it. Write a tally on the board so everyone can count down together.

Game 8: Freeze dance

Play music and dance. When it stops, freeze. Instead of making kids sit out, let anyone who wiggles become a “judge” who helps spot the next wiggler. Nobody’s out for long.

Game 9: Categories clap

Everyone sits in a circle and keeps a steady beat: pat, pat, clap, clap. Pick a category, like animals, and each child names one on the beat. Miss the beat or repeat a word, and the class starts a new category.

Game 10: Classroom charades

Whisper an action or animal to one student: brushing teeth, a kangaroo, building a snowman, a firefighter. They act it out with no words while the class guesses. Pre-readers can play because you whisper the word.

Game 11: Mystery word

Draw blanks on the board for a word, one for each letter. Kids guess letters, and you fill in the ones that are right. Draw a snowman one piece at a time for every wrong guess. Spell the word before the snowman’s finished, and the class wins.

Game 12: Story chain

Start a story: “One snowy morning, our class hamster escaped and…” Each student adds one sentence. It’s a sneaky writing warm-up, and it’s always hilarious.

Game 13: Follow the leader, mirror edition

Pair kids up facing each other. One is the leader and moves slowly; the other copies like a mirror. Switch after a minute. It’s quiet, it builds focus and it works in the tightest classroom.

Which indoor recess game fits your class?

Rainy and snowy day recess tips

Indoor recess days stack up in January and February, when it’s icy, snowy or just too cold to go out. A few tips from teachers who’ve been through a long winter:

• Keep a list by the door. Pick three games for this week so you’re never deciding on the spot.
• Mix moving and calm. Start with a moving game, end with a quiet one so kids settle before the next lesson.
• Let kids run it. A student leader for Simon says or the question deck gives you a breather and builds confidence.
• Keep it kind. Choose games where kids aren’t “out” for long, and skip anything that singles one child out.
• Save a favorite for Fridays. A game kids look forward to makes the whole week of indoor recess feel easier.

Indoor recess ideas for the classroom, by time

Five minutes: stand up, sit down would you rather, or a round of Simon says. Fifteen minutes: four corners or heads up, seven up. A full indoor recess: rotate three games, moving to calm, and finish with a story chain. If you want more short movement breaks during lessons, see our guide to classroom brain breaks using would you rather questions, and the questions for elementary students list has plenty more for the deck.

What most people get wrong about indoor recess

Treating it as free time with no plan. Thirty kids with cabin fever and no structure turns loud fast. You don’t need a big plan, just one simple game to start. Once kids are moving and laughing, they settle into free play much more calmly. Indoor recess at home on a snow day? Our best games for a rainy day are made for the living room. When you want a fresh deck, play the full Would You Rather game on your classroom screen.

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