It is the universal dilemma of the indoor dad: You want them to burn energy. You want them to play sports. But you also want your 65-inch television to remain in one piece.
A baseball in the living room is a tragedy waiting to happen. A soccer ball in the kitchen is a recipe for broken crockery.
But a balloon? A balloon is nature’s slow-motion, gravity-defying, destruction-proof ball.
When you combine a 5-cent balloon with a $1 fly swatter, you unlock a world of safe indoor ball games that rival the Olympics in intensity but carry zero risk to your lamps.
Welcome to the league of Fly Swatter Games. Here is how to turn your hallway into a stadium for balloon tennis DIY and other high-energy events.
The Equipment: Simple DIY Sports Equipment
The beauty of this lies in the cost. This is cheap party games for kids territory.
The Ball: A standard latex balloon. Blow it up, but not too tight (a little squish prevents popping).
The Racket (Option A): A fly swatter. Crucial Dad Note: Please go to the dollar store and buy new fly swatters. Do not use the one currently residing behind the fridge.
The Racket (Option B): If you don’t have swatters, make a paper plate tennis racket. Tape a paint stirrer or a ruler to the back of a sturdy paper plate. This adds a craft element to the afternoon.
Event 1: Balloon Tennis (The Classic)
This is the ultimate hand eye coordination balloon activity. Because the balloon moves slowly, it gives toddlers and preschoolers extra time to track the object and swing. It is physics of balloons for kids in action—learning trajectory without the frustration of a fast-moving tennis ball.
The Court: Clear a space in the living room. Use a piece of painter’s tape on the floor or the back of the sofa as the “net.”
The Rules: Keep the balloon off the floor. Hit it back and forth using only the swatters.
The Variation: Balloon volleyball indoor. If you have multiple kids, this becomes excellent team building for siblings. 2 vs 2, trying to spike the balloon over the couch.
Event 2: Balloon Hockey
Drop the balloon to the floor. Now you are playing balloon hockey.
The Goal: Laundry baskets turned on their sides at opposite ends of the hallway.
The Gameplay: Using the fly swatters as hockey sticks, they have to sweep and slap the balloon into the opposing goal.
Why it works: It forces them to get low, squat, and shuffle—massive gross motor balloon play that tires them out faster than running.
Event 3: The “Keepy Uppy” Obstacle Course
Fans of Bluey know the keepy uppy balloon game. We are going to upgrade it to a reaction time game.
The Setup: Build a balloon obstacle course. Pillows on the floor (lava), chairs to crawl under, boxes to step over.
The Challenge: They must navigate the course from start to finish while tapping the balloon with the swatter to keep it in the air. If the balloon touches the ground, they start over.
The Benefit: This requires split-second decision making (step over the box OR hit the balloon?) and balance.
Event 4: Static Electricity “Tag”
This is less of a sport and more of a science experiment turned into a funny balloon activity.
The Setup: Rub the balloon on their hair (or a wool blanket) to generate static.
The Game: The person with the swatter has to defend themselves while the other person tries to stick the static balloon to the defender’s back. It turns into a hilarious dance of dodging and weaving.
Why This Beats The Park on a Rainy Day
Rainy day sports for kids are usually hard to organize. Active toddler games indoors often result in crying or broken items.
But Balloon Tennis is different. It is soft. It is quiet. It burns calories.
It is energy burning balloon games at their finest. Even if they take a full-force swing and miss the balloon, hitting their sibling with a light fly swatter or a paper plate rarely results in injury (though we always recommend supervising the refereeing).
So, grab a pack of balloons. Buy the neon fly swatters. Let the Indoor Games begin.
Download FunDad on the App Store. Point your camera at a balloon, a plate, or a swatter, and let our AI referee generate new game rules for you instantly.
FunDad.app - No Prep. Just Play.