PE Games for High School: 41 Classic & Original Games to Play

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Ready to channel the energy of your high schoolers? Carefully chosen physical education (PE) games get students moving, build lifelong habits, foster teamwork, develop social skills, boost focus, and heighten engagement! 

Revitalize your PE lesson plans and keep your students motivated by introducing activities that challenge them physically and mentally. From gym class to brain breaks, these PE games for high school will have your students laughing, learning, and moving toward a healthier future. 

Energize your PE class with engaging outdoor games

Changing the scenery and taking your students outside is a great idea, whether it’s winter, spring, or anything in between. You’ll all enjoy some fresh air, and it creates a fresh vibe. Plus, these outdoor games align with the National PE Standards. So, grab your volleyballs, kickballs, mats, and soccer balls, and head out to the track, court, or field. 

• Master the soccer dribble relay: Divide students into four groups, placing two groups on opposite ends of the field. Students dribble a soccer ball relay-style to their teammates across the field.
• Charge into survivor flag: Turn the classic capture-the-flag game into an all-out free-for-all. There are no teams, and each student starts with two flags. If they lose both, they’re out. The winner is the last one standing. 
• Dodge and dash in pinball dodgeball: Split the class into two teams. Each team sets up a group of pins. The first team to knock over the opposing team’s pins wins.
• Launch into a human foosball game: You’ll need two teams, pool noodles, and a kickball. Students act as human foosball players, using pool noodles to hit the ball. The twist is that they can only move side to side across the field.
• Try your skills with noodle hockey: Replace the puck with a kickball and give students pool noodles for hockey sticks. Players try to move the ball down the field and score a goal.
• Ace a snowball toss: Grab your coats and craft some snowballs. Teams toss their snowballs back and forth, trying not to break them. The team with the last intact snowball wins. No iceballs allowed!
• Perfect your shot in mini golf: Set up cups on the field as holes, and have students use pool noodles or plastic golf clubs to play a few rounds. Add creative obstacles to increase the challenge and fun, like hitting the ball around a cone.

PE Games: 50+ Fun Games and Activities for Elementary, Middle and High School
By Health Education Today – Health and PE Resources
Grades: 4th-12th

This 50-activity unit includes 21 rainy-day classroom games and group challenges. Plus, you’ll get a complete hula hoop unit to round out your program!

Fitness Assessment Tests and Tracking Sheets for PE or Personal Fitness
By Elliott’s Active Academy
Grades: 9th-12th 

Use these tracking sheets to help students stay on top of their fitness goals. The set includes 10 test sheets, including the push-up test, body fat percentage, and curl-up test. It’s designed to be conducted three times a year for consistent progress monitoring.

Leave the inside voices behind with invigorating indoor PE games for high school

Going outdoors is more of a privilege than an everyday option. Most high school PE games take place on the gym’s basketball courts. Fortunately, the gym floor has everything you need to get the ball rolling — literally and figuratively. These activities use equipment like balls, pins, mats, and cones, and are designed to build focus, discipline, and teamwork.

• Dive into castle ball showdown: Split the class into two teams and give them plastic balls. Teams will use foam blocks or cones to build their “castle.”  Set clear boundaries, and the first team to knock down the other’s castle wins.
• Conquer the disc frisbee challenge: Set up targets around the gym and split students into teams. Teams take turns throwing frisbees to hit as many targets as possible.
• Crush the balloon stomp battle: Tie a balloon with a string to each student’s ankle. Players try to stomp others’ balloons while protecting their own. The last one with a balloon wins.
• Seize victory in take back your bags: Divide the class into two teams and split the gym in half — stack beanbags on each side. Teams race to retrieve their bags while defending their stash from the other side.
• Rule the hula hoop showdown: Place a hula hoop on the floor for each student. Start the music and begin hula hooping! If a student drops their hoop, they’re out. The last one spinning wins the showdown.
• Roll to victory with exercise fun: Use two dice and a list of six exercises. One die determines the exercise, and the other is the number of reps. Students work in pairs; whoever taps out first loses the round!
• Leap through hoops and own the challenge: Set up a hula hoop obstacle course with jumps and hoop exercises. Every student runs through the course at least once for a fun and active challenge.
• Spike into balloon volleyball: Turn up the energy with a fun twist on volleyball. Blow up a few balloons and split the class into teams. Players volley the balloons back and forth; get ready to sweat and laugh!

Team up with small-group PE games for high school 

Large group games can be fun, but they often exclude students who get eliminated early and end up sitting on the sidelines. While a short rest is fine, competitive games can limit active participation for many. Small group games help alleviate this while promoting collaboration, skill development, and confidence-building. Many students enjoy the more relaxed small group vibe, where activities can be easily scaled up or down to match their comfort and skill levels.

• Launch into wall ball action: This activity is best for groups of 2-4. Each student gets a bouncy ball. It’s like racketball with your hands. Keep track of points to see who wins. 
• Jump into the hula hoop pass challenge: Form several small human circles with students holding hands. Place a hula hoop on one student’s hand, then close the circle. The goal is to pass the hula hoop around the circle without letting go of the hands.
• Master the group juggle mayhem: Organize students into small circles and give them soft plastic balls. The objective is to juggle the balls around the circle, with each student passing them to the next. If a ball is dropped, you reset. 
• Dash through fitness tic-tac-toe: Create a board on the floor. Assign each square an exercise. Small groups of students complete the exercises to win a tic-tac-toe. 
• Fire away in knockout showdown: Grab basketballs and get ready to dribble. In teams of 2-4, players try to knock the other team’s basketballs out while maintaining their dribbling ball.
• Weave through the dribble obstacle course: Divide students into groups and set up cones as obstacles. Teams must work together to dribble a soccer ball through the course in a relay style. The first team to finish wins.
• Serve up some fun with volleyball tennis: Set up low nets on the court and divide students into four teams. Players must volley the ball using light bumps, ensuring it bounces before hitting it, just like in tennis.

Physical Education Workout Program – Individualized Resistance Training Plans 
By Cap’n Pete’s Power PE
Grades: 8th-12th

Develop a tailored resistance training program with comprehensive workout plans and exercise guides for your high school students. This unit includes split plans ranging from 2-day to 4-day schedules, along with a detailed list of exercises. It also features printable workout logs in a PDF format to help track progress. 

Create Your Own Game for PE
By All Things Health and PE with Mrs D
Grade: 6th-12th

Tap into your students’ creativity by having small groups work to create games to play in the gym. This packet includes a grading rubric, peer assessment worksheets, a self-reflection worksheet, and teacher instructions to guide students through each process step.

Take the equipment out of the equation in low-prep PE games for high school students

Do you need a plan that doesn’t require pulling out the entire equipment room? PE can be packed with action and friendly competition without equipment. All you need is a group of students ready to move. From high-energy tag games to team challenges, these activities build strategic thinking, promote social interaction, and get hearts pumping.

• Score big in high five tag: Tag isn’t just for younger kids. Add a twist by having everyone who’s not “It” run around with both hands up in the air. The tagger must high-five people to get them out.  
• Race to victory in four corners frenzy: Assign each of the four corners a number and an exercise. One caller stands in the middle, eyes closed, while the students choose a corner. The caller then reveals a number, and students in that corner must complete the assigned exercise before sitting out. The play continues until all are out. 
• Twist, turn, and power up for fitness fun: Space students out on the floor and call out different body parts they need to place on the floor. Students must balance using just one body part, encouraging strategic thinking and body control.
• Sneak to success in the silent movement challenge: Have students stand around the gym. A caller calls out unusual body movements that they must perform in complete silence. Anyone who laughs or makes a noise is out.
• Untangle the chaos in the human knot relay: Arrange students in a circle and have them grab hands with someone who isn’t directly next to them. On “go,” they must work together to untangle themselves without letting go of hands.

Kick it old school with classic PE games for high schoolers

When thinking about a good goal for high schoolers in PE class, you don’t want to forget the basics. Classic PE games are designed to foster movement while promoting fitness and health. Games like basketball, kickball, and pickleball are excellent for encouraging teamwork and sportsmanship, but they aren’t the only ones. Try using Shape America Secondary Physical Education resources to add a unique twist to old favorites. 

Get your class involved by challenging them to reinvent these classic games: 

• Volleyball
• Flag football
• Tug-of-war
• Handball
• Floor hockey
• Tag
• Wiffle ball
• Frisbee
• Badminton
• Relay races
• Dance 
• Crazy 8s
• Bowling
• Golf

Tap into your students’ PE potential with TPT activities

Tried-and-true games can start to feel repetitive, especially for seniors who have been in gym class for practically their whole lives. Keep your lesson plans fresh by incorporating more high school physical education resources into your curriculum. From team-building activities to inventing new favorites, there’s something for everyone to keep students engaged while improving their overall health.