Protect the President

For this game, you need a volleyball-sized Nerf ball. Have your students stand in a wide circle with two people in the middle.

One person in the middle is the President, the other is the Bodyguard. The people in the circle have the Nerf ball, and throw it at the President. The bodyguard may do anything to block the ball with his body: jump, squat, dive, etc. The ball may NEVER touch the President. If the ball touches the President at any time, the person who threw the ball (or the last person to touch it) then becomes the Bodyguard, the Bodyguard becomes the President, and the President goes back into the circle.

What makes this exciting is that from the moment the President is hit, the new President is vulnerable because the transition is instantaneous. The new bodyguard must be fast at getting into the circle to defend him or her. This sometimes makes presidential turnover pretty quick, but it’s exciting.

This game is EXHAUSTING, especially if the people in the middle are good. Be ready to sweat if you play. One strategy for the “shooters” is to pass the ball around the circle and keep it moving to wear the people in the middle down. They’ll eventually tire and the President will get hit. As the kids get more experience at the game, they will develop strategies and tactics, and will thoroughly enjoy themselves.

Added by J. Hart