Jumping & Running Games

1. Jumping & Running Games

2. Who did Early American Children play with… • Since most families were large and had six or seven children, the children would play with their brothers and sisters, or their neighbors or children at school.

3. Learning Games • To Early Americans these games helped children learn skills that they would need later in life as a farmers and parents. Games taught children how to aim and throw, how to solve problems and do things with their hands, and how to follow directions and rules. They also leaned to be fair, to wait their turn and to use their imaginations.

4. Over a long span of time, one generation of children passes its games on to the next through oral traditions which have allowed plenty of room for regional, local, and neighborhood variations but have also preserved many of the things in tact.

5. Games • Hopscotch • Leap Frog • Buckety-Buck • Hop Step Jump • Jump Rope

6. History of Hopscotch • Hopscotch originated in Britain during the early Roman Empire. It was initially designed as a training regimen for Roman foot soldiers that ran the course in full armor and field packs, as it was thought this would improve their footwork • The word "hopscotch" is a compound of "hop" (short jump) and "scotch" (scratched line). Called "scotch-hoppers", the term dates back at least to 1677.

7. Hopscotch • Today's version of Hopscotch is much the same. To play hopscotch, the course is first laid out. Traditionally, children drew the course in the dirt of a playground, although it was often chalked on pavement when dirt was unavailable. Designs vary, but the course is usually composed of a series of linear squares interspersed with blocks of two lateral squares. Traditionally the course ends with a "safe" or "home" base in which the player may turn before completing the reverse trip. The home base may be a square, a rectangle, or a semi-circle. The squares are then numbered in the sequence in which they are to be hopped.

8. Playing the game (Hopscotch) • The first player tosses the marker into the first square. The marker must land within the designated square and not touching a line or bouncing out. The player then hops through the course, skipping the square with the marker in it. Single squares must be hopped on one foot. For the first single square, either foot may be used. Side by side squares are straddled, with the left foot landing in the left square, and the right foot landing in the right square. Optional squares marked "Safe", "Home", or "Rest" are neutral squares, and may be hopped through in any manner without penalty.

9. Hopscotch continued • Upon successfully completing the sequence, the player continues the turn by tossing the marker into square number two, and repeating the pattern. • If the player steps on a line, misses a square, or loses balance, the turn ends. Players begin their turns where they last left off. The first player to complete one course for every numbered square on the court wins the game.

10. Hopscotch continued • Although the marker is most often picked up during the game, historically, in the boy's game, the marker was kicked sequentially back through the course on the return trip and then kicked out.

11. Leap Frog • Play in partners. Leapfrog is a children's game in which players vault over each other's stooped backs. The first participant rests hands on knees and bends over, this is called giving a back. • The next player places hands on the first's back and leaps over by straddling legs wide apart on each side. On landing he stoops down and a third leaps over the first and second, and the fourth over all others successively, etcetera; the number of participants is not fixed. • When all the players are stooping, the last in the line begins leaping over all the others in turn. Try having races with your classmates by dividing in two teams.

12. Mumblety-Peg • Played with a knife, Mumblety-Peg is a variant of "Follow The Leader". The basic form of the game requires any kind of a knife and two or more players. The object of the exercise is to get the knife to stick in the ground by having it fall or be flipped or tossed or dropped from various parts of each person. The first person to play may balance the tip of the knife blade on his index finger, for instance, and let it fall of the end of his finger toward the ground. If he makes it stick, every player following him must do the same. Each person scores a point for accomplishing the feat. • Should he miss, then the next person has the discretion of choosing how and from where the knife is dropped, thrown, or flipped toward the ground. The game usually continues until the players are bored with the futility of the exercise.

13. Red Rover • In this game, the kids form two opposing lines and attempt to "break through" the opposing team's line. • At first, two teams are chosen of equal size, and they form two lines, facing each other and holding hands. • One side starts by picking a person on the opposing team and saying "Red Rover, Red Rover, send <Jason> right over" • Jason then lets go of his teammates and begins a headlong rush for the other line. His goal is to break through the line by overpowering the kid's hold on each other. • If Jason breaks through, he chooses one person for the opposing team to join his team, and they both go back and join in their line. • If he fails to break through, Jason becomes part of the other team. • Each team alternates calling people over until one team has all the people and is declared the winner. • Note that since all the players are on the winning team at the end, there really are no losers in this game.

14. Needle’s Eye • A common game in the Appalachian Mountains, the Needle’s Eye is based upon a chant that large groups of children would call out as they played the game. Children would line up in two rows with a space of six or eight feet between them, each line facing the opposing line. In practice much like "Red Rover", the chant was • The needle’s eye that doth supplyThe thread that runs so true;I stump my toe and down I go,All for wanting (or "want of") you. • At the conclusion of the chanted verse, one child would be invited to run across the open area between the two lines and attempt to break through the clenched hands of the other line. Another variation involved the children forming a ring and appointing one person to stand in the middle, much like the game "Farmer in the Dell" is played. That person would choose a person from the line to join them, and that person would join the first person in the center of the ring. In some games, the person who got to choose was then permitted to try to run through the ring and choose others to join him or her until that one could break through the ring, while in other variations they simply added to the inner group of children until no more could fill the center of the ring.

15. Buckety-Buck • A Roughed-up version of Leap Frog. Played by two teams. • Team A players link themselves into a line. The biggest and strongest player is the post. Each player holds a team mates head under their arm all the way down the line. • One at a time players from team B run and jump onto Team “A’s” line, trying to break it down. • If team A does break down, then it has to form another line, and team B has the fun of trying to break it down again. If team A holds the line then team B is IT.

16. Hop, Step, Jump • This is a centuries-old playground game, tracing its origins back to England. • To begin the game, a mark is made on the playing surface. This is called the “starting point.” At a distance of 25 feet from this mark, another mark is made. This is called the “spring.” • The players arrange themselves at the starting point, and one after another, run to the second mark called the spring. From this point, each player first makes a HOP on one leg, and from this makes a long STEP, and from the step a long JUMP. • Those players who cover the greatest amount of ground are declared the winner.

17. Running Games • Just like children of today children of the past had lots of energy to burn. They enjoyed games that allowed them to run and compete with one another.

18. Sticky Apple • Sticky Apple can be very fun. When you are tagged you must put one hand on the spot that was tagged. Running while holding a hard to reach spot like a knee or an ankle is not easy to do.

19. Running Games • Cracking the Whip • Hide and Go Seek • Blind Man’s Bluff • Duck, Duck, Goose • Drop the Handkerchief • Spin the Trencher • Post Office • Tiger in the Corner • Red Lion • Buck • Home Free • Crows and Cranes • Sardines • Kick the Can • Nine Hole • Dodge ball

20. Cracking the Whip • Any number can play. Someone is chosen as the "leader". Players form a line behind the leader and hold tightly to the belt or garment of the person in front of them. • The "leader" quickly changes pace and speeds up or slows down. Sometimes the leader goes in circles and moves very fast - the others try to hold on. The leader attempts to get those holding on to let go. If they do, they must drop out of the game! • This game is very hard for the person on the outside of the line as they may have to take 4 steps for every one that the person in the center takes. Painting by Windslow Homer

21. Hide and Go Seek • The game use to be called Whoop! When all the children who were hiding were hidden they called out Whoop and the game began. • In a standard game, one person is designated to be it. That person counts to 50 in a spot away from everyone else. Everyone else hides. The “IT” person needs to find everyone no matter where they are hidding.

22. Blind Man’s Bluff • The popular game consisted of one person who is blindfolded and chases the other players by their footsteps and movements. The rest of the players scramble around in all directions, trying to avoid being caught by the one that is blindfolded. The player who is caught is the one that becomes it.

23. Duck, Duck, Goose • All the players sit in a circle, except the player who is it. He or she walks around the outside of the circle and touches each players head, saying “duck.” After calling out Duck a few times, It suddenly calls out “goose.” The player who is the goose has to jump up and chase It around the circle. It runs around the circle and sits in the goose’s spot without being tagged, the goose becomes it.

24. Drop the Handkerchief • Number of players 8+ • To begin, all the players except one stand in a circle. The odd player runs around on the outside of the circle carrying a handkerchief, which he will eventually drop behind one of the circle players. • The main idea of the game is to drop the handkerchief without the other players knowing. The players in the ring must look toward the center at all times, and can't turn their heads to watch the runner behind them. If the runner is creative, they can try to trick the other players. For instance, they may speed up the pace after the drop, or not vary in pace at all to leave no clue. The runner can also make a lot of noise to distract the other players. • As soon as the player in the circle discovers that the handkerchief has been dropped behind him, he must pick it up and chase the runner who dropped it. The runner may run around the outside of the circle, or at any point through or across the circle. The goal is to reach the vacant space left by the person chasing. The circle players should lift their hands to allow both runners to pass freely through the circle. Whichever player reaches the vacant space first stands there, the one left out taking the handkerchief for the next round.

25. Spin the Trencher • Many settlers families owned large wooden trenchers. Trenchers were long shallow dishes that were used for preparing or serving food. But for children they became a game. • The bowl is put into the center on the floor and the players sit around it in a circle. One player is it. He or she spins the bowl and calls out the name of an animal. The player who is that animal has to run to the bowl and keep it spinning. As the animal gets up the person who is it tries to take their spot. If he succeeds the animal is now it. If a player allows the bowl to stop spinning he or she is out of the game.

26. Post Office • In this game, each player chooses the name of a city. One player is the postal clerk. The rest of the players sit in a circle. The clerk calls out “ The mail is going from Asheville to Weaverville” The player who chose those cities have to exchange seats without letting the postal clerk steal either of their seats.

27. Tiger in the Corner • Five people play this game of tag. Four people stand to make corners of a large square. The fifth person is the “tiger” who stands in the center. When the tiger shouts, “Tiger wants a corner!” the other players must switch corners. The tiger tries to run to a corner before one of the other players does. If the tiger gets there first, the player who lost the corner becomes the new tiger.

28. Shadow Tag • "It" tries to step on another player's shadow. If a player gets tired of running away, he/she must lie down so "it" cannot tag them.

29. Red Lion • One person is the Lion and another is the Lion Keeper. The lion selects and area to be a den. The lion keeper stands near by the den. The rest of the players walk slowly toward the den singing “Red Lion, Red Lion, come out of your den. Whoever you catch will be one of your friends.” When the players get close the lion keeper shouts ‘LOOSE!” and the lion runs out to chase everyone except the lion keeper. If the lion chases someone and catches them they must say red lion while holding onto their capture. The person captured returns to the den and everything starts over this time with two lions until all the players get caught and become lions.

30. Amoeba Tag • Two people are it. They hold hands and chase people, the person they catch joins the chain by linking hands. When another person is caught they can stay together or spilt 2 and 2 they must split even numbers and can link together at will. This game is played till' nobody is left.

31. Colored Eggs • One person is the "wolf". The other people line up next to each other, with the wolf facing them. Everyone in line picks a color in their mind. The wolf then says..."knock-knock", the line answers "who's there?". Wolf replies "a big bad wolf with (curly or some other variation) hair". • The line says.."what do you want?" Wolf answers "colored eggs". The line yells "what color?". The wolf then says a color. Whoever had "picked" that color then runs around a selected area (to the far oak tree in the yard and back to the line, for example), with the wolf giving chase. • If the wolf catches the "egg", then that person becomes the wolf with the game starting over. If not, and all eggs make it back to line successfully, the wolf then calls out the next color, etc.

32. Buck • This is a chase game for 6+ players. The players gather in a circle and count off using the “One Saw” verse. • The players who’s line is “Buck” can start running. The countdown gets to two players the one that does not have the buck line is it. It is in charge of chasing and tagging. Anyone It tags has to help chase everyone else down.

33. Home Free! • When the player that is It finds someone, they shout 1,2,3 and the players name. And both players run back to home base. If the hider gets to home base first, they shout 1,2,3, HOME FREE! That player is now safe, and must look for the other players. If the person that was it reaches home base first then the person that was caught becomes it in the next game. The game continues until all the players have been caught or have made it home safely. If no players get caught, the same person is It in the next game.

34. Crows and Cranes • Line the girls up in two lines facing each other, one side being the cranes and the other the crows. When the YL calls "cranes" or "crows", all of the team called must turn and run to the wall behind them, hotly persuade by the other team. If a girl is tagged she joins the other team. This is kept up until one side has everyone in it. When "crab" is called no one moves, if they do they must go to join the opposing team. This helps keep the suspense going as they must wait to see exactly what you are going to call.

35. Sardines • To play Sardines, one person hides while the rest count. When a seeker finds the hider, s/he must hide in the same place without being spotted by the other seekers. Eventually, all but one of the seekers end up crammed into the hiding spot-just like sardines in a tightly packed can. The first seeker to find the hiding spot is the hider in the new game.

36. Kick the Can • Players draw a circle on the ground about sic feet wide and place an empty can in the middle of the circle. The person who is it has the job of guarding the can. One of the players outside the circle runs in and kick the can and everyone runs to hide. The person who is it gets the can and brings it back to the circle and sets it right side up and yells FREEZE! The other players must immediately stay where they are at. The person that is it calls out all the people that he can see. All those names that are called must return to the circle and they become the prisoners. While the person that is it tries to find the rest that are hiding the others that are hiding can run and kick the can over and free the prisoners. If there are no prisoners then the people hiding can run to the circle and yell home free. The last player to make it to the circle then becomes it for the next game.

37. Capture the Flag • There were two teams. • Team 1 had the front yard and Team 2 had the back yard, or a field was split between the two teams.  The teams were given a time period, like 5 minutes, to hide their flag in their part of the yard.   • [optional] During this period spies were sent out to see were the flag was hidden as well as look-outs to catch the spies.  • When the flag was hidden you call out that you were finished. Then you simply try to get the other teams flag. If you get caught and tagged by the opponent on their territory you had to go to jail and could only be freed by a teammate who grabs you when your opponent isn't looking.  • The first team to capture the flag wins.  In most versions you had to both get the flag, and bring it back to your side.

38. Nine Hole • Each Player digs a hole near a wall, a line is drawn about sixteen feet (5M0 away from the holes. Each player stands next to their hole, except for one called a pitcher. The pitcher stands on the line and tries to get the ball into one of the holes. If the pitcher gets it in a hole everyone but the person the hole belongs to runs away. The person who owns the hall retrieves the ball and throws it at the other players. The person to get hit with the ball becomes the pitcher for the next game. If the person misses, however, they become the pitcher. A player is out of the game after missing 3 times. The winner is the last person remaining in the game.

39. Dodge Ball • Divide into two teams. One team forms a large circle and the other stands inside the circle. One person on the team forming the circle starts the game by throwing the ball at a person inside the circle. To avoid people getting hurt you must hit below the knees. When a player gets hit they join the other team.

40. Who has the button? • The players form a circle and the person who is "it" leaves (or closes his/her eyes) while the others pass a "button" or another object around the circle. One person hides the object behind his/her back. All the other players put their hands behind their backs, too. Then "it" is allowed three guesses as to who is hiding the object. If "it" guesses correctly they exchange places and a new person is "it".

41. Poor Doggie • "It" is the doggie who must try to make someone laugh. The players sit in a circle and Doggie goes to each player and barks, whines and imitates a dog. The players have to pet Doggie and say "Poor Doggie, Poor Doggie, Poor Doggie!" The player must not smile while saying this or he/she will become the next Doggie.

42. Ships Captain • One player is chosen as the captain. S/he calls out orders to the rest of the players who are the crew. If a player does not follow an order correctly, s/he is out. (This decision is made by the captain who is always right.) • Orders: To the ship: run to the captain's right To the island: run to the captain's left Hit the deck: lay down on your stomach (or if players don't want to get dirty, they can crouch down) Attention on deck: salute and yell, "Aye, aye captain!" -- players may not move now until the captain gives the order of, "At ease!" (ie even if the captain gives a different order such as "to the ship" the crew must continue to remain at attention until told "at ease") Three men in a boat: the crew must form groups of three and sing "Row, row, row your boat" Anybody who is not in a group of three is out. The love boat: crew members grab a partner and dance. Anybody without a partner is out. Clear the deck: everyone must have their feet up off the floor Scrub the deck: everyone on their knees scrubbing Captain's Quarters: everyone ran towards the captain. Man-over-board: Players must find a partner as quickly as possible.  One partner must lay on their stomach while the other places their foot on their partner's back.  Children without a partner or pairs that are too slow are eliminated. A Periscope: Every player falls on their back and sticks one leg in the air.  The last ones are eliminated. SHARK!!!!: Everyone must run to a designated base (multiple bases can be used).  The last player to the base is eliminated. Crow's nest: All players must find a partner.  The lightest player rides on their partner's back.  Those without partners or who assemble the crow's nest too slowly are eliminated. Three maids in a row: Children form groups of three and sit in a vertical row.  The players who are the odd-man-out are eliminated. Sick turtle: Everyone falls onto their backs and waves hands and feet in the air. Bow: Run to the front of the boat Stern: Run to the back Port: Run to the left side of the boat Starboard: Run to the right side of the boat. Row the Boat: Each player finds a partner, sits face to face, holds hands, and pretends to row a boat.  Players who can't find partners or who are too slow are eliminated. Alternative rules: If playing in a pool, all of the orders stay the same except for "hit the deck" which becomes "walk the plank." This means that crew members must bob underwater. • To make the game less competitive, player do not get "out." Instead, if the captain notices that they do not follow an order, they must stand out for a count of 20.