Kickball facts for kids
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Kickball is a fun team sport that's a lot like baseball. In kickball, one team tries to score points by kicking a big rubber ball and running around bases. The other team tries to get them "out" before they can get back to home plate.
Instead of hitting a small, hard ball with a bat, players kick a soft, inflated rubber ball. This makes kickball easier for younger kids to play. Just like in baseball, teams take turns kicking and playing defense. The team with the most points after a set number of turns wins!
Kickball is often played by kids in schools, both during recess and in physical education (PE) classes. It doesn't need special equipment or super skilled players like a pitcher in baseball. This makes it a great way to learn about sports like baseball and softball. Lately, many adults have also started playing kickball in organized leagues in cities.
Kickball probably started around 1910 in the United States. It became popular in the 1920s, especially through PE classes. By the 1970s, it was a favorite game on playgrounds across the country. Today, people play different versions of kickball in many countries, including Canada, England, Japan, and South Korea.
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World Adult Kickball Association
The World Adult Kickball Association (WAKA) was started in 1998. It helped make kickball popular for adults.
How Kickball Started
Kickball was first called "Kicking Baseball." It might have been invented as early as 1910 by Dr. Emmett Dunn Angell. He wrote about it in his book Play. He said the game was fun for kids and helped them understand baseball without being too rough.
Another person, Nicholas C. Seuss, also wrote about the game in 1917. He was a supervisor for playgrounds in Cincinnati, Ohio. He called it "Kick Base Ball" and shared 12 rules and a field drawing.
Kickball in Schools
In the 1920s, "Kick Ball" was used by PE teachers in US public schools. It helped teach boys and girls the basic rules of baseball. Back then, people often used a soccer ball or volleyball to play.
Early games had 10 to 30 players. The field had a "Neutral Zone" where players couldn't go until the ball was kicked. There was no pitcher. The ball was kicked from a 3-foot circle at home. Players could only move one base at a time on balls kicked into the infield. Teams would switch sides only after everyone on the team had kicked.
Playing with Adults
In 1922, Daniel Chase described the first known game of kickball played by adults. This happened at a meeting for teachers in Mooers Forks, NY. They didn't have a ball, so they made one from an old stocking and rags! The teachers played a game of "Kick Baseball" to decide a championship.
During World War II, American soldiers also played kickball. It was even promoted by the United States Department of the Army as a fun game for soldiers.
Kickball became very popular as a playground game and after-school activity in the US in the 1970s.
The Kickball Field
Kickball is usually played on a softball field. You use a big rubber ball that's about 8.5 to 16 inches wide. Just like baseball or softball, the game uses three bases, a pitcher's mound, and home plate.
Sometimes, for less formal games, the field might not have a fence. This can change how home runs are counted, like by how many times the ball bounces instead of how far it goes.
Kickball can also be played on a hard, flat surface like an outdoor basketball court. You can use chalk or paint to mark the bases and lines.
Adults Love Kickball Too!
For a long time, kickball was mostly seen as a game for kids in the United States and Canada. But now, it's become very popular with adults as a fun way to exercise and socialize.
In 1998, the World Adult Kickball Association was created. Since the late 1990s and early 2000s, many cities in the US and Canada have started kickball leagues for adults. Some cities even have many different adult leagues! Kickball is also a popular intramural sport at many colleges.
Kickball Around the World
Kickball is popular with young people in South Korea. It's called balyagu [발야구], which means "foot-baseball." It's a regular part of PE classes in elementary schools there.
In Japan, elementary school students play kickball, and it's known as キックベース (Kickbase).
In Canada, kickball is a popular game for elementary school children. It's usually called "soccer baseball" or "kickball." In some places, it might also be called "Chinese baseball" or "California kickball."
In England, a version often played in school PE lessons is called "Football-Rounders." It's a mix of association football (soccer) and rounders.
A similar sport called "kickingball" is popular among Venezuelan refugees in Argentina.
See also
In Spanish: Kickball para niños
- Baseball
- Softball
- Matball
- Leg cricket
- Baseball5
- Tee-ball
- Little League Baseball
- Safe haven games
- Wiffle ball
