Great Game! Received our HunnyBall set and put it right to use during the high school lunch break time. They are loving it! We have lines waiting to get into the game. So quick to set up and take down that it makes for more time for the students to play. We love it!

Jonathan L

Hunnyball In Schools

Jump to Educator FAQs

Hunnyball is great for students of all ages. It really is just a fun game of catch, so an ability to catch and throw is all you need. This makes it easy for studnets of all grades and ability levels to join in. That said, the rules of the game, and the skill needed to play at a high level, leave a lot of room for improvement. So no one gets bored!

If you're interested, please tell us a a bit about your school and what questions you may have. We'll follow-up quickly!

Educator FAQs

This is a set of additional FAQs designed to help you understand the basics of Hunnyball, how it supports your learning standards, and how it can be adapted for your students. The basic FAQs can be found here.

THE BASICS

What is the objective of Hunnyball?

Similar to games like wallball, volleyball, or roundnet (e.g., Spikeball), the goal is to make the ball unreturnable by the opposing team. It is unreturnable if the balls hits the ground before the opposing team catches it, if their throw misses the Hunnyball board, or their throw lands outside the boundaries. A typical game is played to 11 points, but this can be adjusted to match the stamina needs of the players or to rotate teams more quickly to meet time constraints.

What grades is Hunnyball best suited for?

Hunnyball can both be enjoyed and act as a good teaching opportunity for students in both primary and secondary educational settings.

1st – 4th: Focus on basics of catching, throwing, running and simple rules to introduce gameplay.

5th – 8th: Introduce more complex game play, specific shots (deep throws, soft throws, throwing off the wings), and aligning with standard goals like tactical awareness and teamwork.

9th – 12: Emphasize advanced teamwork, offensive and defensive strategy, non-verbal cues, feints and potentially plays.

Where can Hunnyball be played?

Hunnyball can be played indoors or outdoors.

Indoors: Play it on gym floors, including wood, rubber or other multi-purpose floors. If the floor is highly polished or smooth we recommend placing the Hunnyball board on a mat or against a wall so it doesn’t move when the ball strikes it.

Outdoors: Easily played on grass or turf fields with no additional equipment. It can also be played on sand or other soft surfaces.

ADAPTING HUNNYBALL

Does Hunnyball always have to be played in a 2v2 format?

Short answer: No!

Longer answer: We recommend adapting the number of players on each team to best match the skill level and number of students in your class. 3v3 and 4v4 and even unlimited players (with the boundaries removed) are all successful formats.

What are common adaptations that can be made with Hunnyball?

The two most common adaptations that were designed into Hunnyball to make it fun and approachable for more students are:

1) The angle of the board can be adjusted to change the trajectory at which the ball leaves the board. A steep angle makes the ball fly higher so students have more time to successfully gauge where it may land and then catch it. A shallower angle means the ball will hit the ground more quickly.

2) You can adjust how inflated the ball is. A ball that is inflated less will bounce less far and may be easier to catch for smaller hands. A ball that is inflated fully can travel 40 feet or more when thrown by a strong arm from close-up to the board.

Does the score required to win always have to be 11?

As mentioned earlier, we recommend adjusting the score to win to match the format you require. Games to 5, 7, and 9 are all great options.

Typically Hunnyball is played in a "win by two" format, and scoring is only possible when your team serves. But you can remove the "win by two" format or shift to "rally scoring" to speed up games as well.

Do I need to use the boundaries?

The boundaries are optional and can easily be removed it not desired. Typically this is done if you are playing with teams larger than 2v2. You can also adjust the size of the boundaries by shortening or adjusting the angle of the sideline boundaries and/or the outfield.

One creative adjustment we have seen includes using two Hunnyball sets facing each other, with much larger teams, so there are two places where a team can throw the Hunnyball ball (in that case, there are typically no boundaries used at all and a team can throw at either Hunnyball board).

We have also seen Hunnyball played indoors on a racquetball style court, with no boundaries, and the players were allowed to catch the ball of the side walls or back wall as well.

Can Hunnyball be adapted for visually impaired students or students with other physical disabilities?

While we have not yet had any teachers tell us they have use Hunnyball with student populations with specific needs like this, we do consider Hunnyball very flexible in its format and recommend you try adjusting it as you see fit.

For example, for students in wheelchairs, we can envision Hunnyball being used to teach students how to use angles to successfully pass the ball to their teammate. In that case, no opposing team needs to be present, the students can earn “points” by successfully catching and throwing a ball off the board.