Here’s something I discovered in the basement of my childhood home many years ago: Ping pong is one of the best family games ever invented. With the exercise it provides along with improved hand-eye coordination, ping pong is a far better form of entertainment than television or video games. And — as long as competitive impulses are controlled — it can be a great way to keep children occupied while teaching them the value of teamwork and good sportsmanship.

But there are limitations to the game that can be problematic. First, suppose you have three or more children who want to take you on? Do you really want three kids across the net from you, swinging paddles and colliding with each other as they try to reach the ball? Second, suppose you have kindergarten-age children or younger who want to play, but can’t easily get the ball over the net? Two variations can make it easier for you to deal with these situations.

Rotational Ping Pong:  In this variation, you, the adult, can take on three, four, or more young competitors — but not simultaneously. Here’s how it works: The adult faces off against one kid at a time. That kid can stay in the game and win points against you until you win a point against her. When that happens, the kid sits down and a second kid comes to the table to do battle with you. This second kid, like the first, remains your opponent until you score a point and then a third kid replaces the second. When every child competitor has been to the table, the process repeats with the first child.  Even when a child is forced to sit down after losing a point, he should keep track of his score since the first kid who has 10 points* wins the game. On the other hand, if your point total in competition against all the children reaches 21, you win.

Anything Goes Ping Pong: It takes a certain amount of hand-eye coordination to hit a ping pong ball over the net, so it lands on the opponent’s side of the table.  A child younger than six may find this hard to do, which can lead to tears and frustration. But in this variation, a kid need not hit the ball over the net on his first attempt, or even on his second, third, or fourth.  As long as the child can keep the ball from falling to the floor, she may continue to try and hit it over the net.  Depending on the child’s age, the adult may allow or disallow different methods for keeping the ball in play. Maybe you allow a four-year-old to grab the ball on the table and hit it over the net with either a hand or a paddle; maybe you don’t allow a five-year-old to do this but you do let him hit the ball six or more times until it goes over the net.  In any case, the ball — once over the net — must land on the adult’s side of the table. If it clears the net but lands on the floor, the adult wins the point. I might add that on a few occasions, I’ve removed the net completely and just required the child to return the ball over the table’s midsection before it falls to the floor. This can lead to some wild volleys, but give it a try if you like.

Obviously, these two variations can be combined so that multiple children of different ages and abilities can enjoy a game of ping pong with an older friend or relative. With rotational and anything goes ping pong, assuring children have fun is much more important than winning, but the same benefits that come from standard ping pong can still be realized.

* * This number can be raised or lowered depending on the child’s ability. One child might need more points to achieve victory than another child competing in the same game.