Outdoor Games
How to play Kick the Can
Hide from a finder, race to the central can when spotted, and free captured players with an unnoticed kick. This is a hiding-and-rescue game, not a team scoring sport.
What you need
A soft cone or safe empty container, clear boundaries, hiding places and a marked holding area
Set up the game
- Choose a finder and show everyone the play boundary, central target and holding area. Do not use sharp cans, traffic areas or hiding spots outside supervision.
- For this house timing, count to thirty with eyes covered while others hide; use a ten-minute round so the finder’s job cannot continue indefinitely.
Playing Kick the Can
- The finder announces that searching begins, then looks for hiders.
- On seeing someone, call their name. That hider and finder race toward the can. No physical tag is required in this version.
- If the hider kicks first, they are safe and may hide again. If the finder kicks first, that hider goes to the holding area.
- An unspotted hider may sneak up and kick the can, releasing captured players to hide again. Reset the target before continuing the search.
- A finder succeeds by capturing all hiders before the agreed time. Otherwise end at ten minutes and choose a new finder. There are no cumulative points or eliminated players across rounds.
A rescue changes the holding area
Two players are captured while the finder searches behind a tree. Ari approaches unseen and kicks the target. Both captured players may leave and hide again. The finder cannot keep them captive because they personally were not the kicker. If Ari had already been spotted, resolve Ari’s race instead of treating every kick as an automatic mass rescue.
Make close races easy to judge
Use a wide, unobstructed approach and a gentle target touch rather than a hard swinging kick. Stop and replay a genuinely uncertain race instead of letting players collide to establish priority. If someone leaves the boundary accidentally, pause and return them; if a repeated boundary issue continues, reduce the play area. These are organizing choices, not a claim of one official tournament code.
Beginner decisions
- As a finder, move far enough to identify hiders but keep a workable path back to the target. Staring only at the can prevents discoveries; wandering without a return route makes rescue easy.
- As a hider, watch where the finder is facing before approaching. A shorter clear path can be better than an elaborate hiding place that traps you behind obstacles.
Common rule mix-ups
- Adding physical tagging mid-round because a race was lost.
- Treating a released player as permanently out or allowing the holding area to block the route to the target.
Questions about this game
Does a rescue kick free everybody?
Yes in the chosen Playworks version. Some households free only one; announce that as a different rule beforehand.
Can we use multiple finders?
Playworks suggests that for large groups. Decide how captures work before starting rather than adding a finder during a chase.
Sources and edition notes
Playworks no-tag neighborhood version, with declared 30-count hiding time and ten-minute rounds. Tagging is a separate variation.
Sources and stated format checked October 14, 2026. This records a document check, not a claim of hands-on testing.
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