Lesson aim:

To learn and enjoy traditional Scottish games.

Contents:Traditional games:

Racing and Guessing Games,

Chasing and catching games,

Ball games,

Duration :

60 minutes.

Material:

Keg (marble, rubber, pencil sharpener…).

Warm up

Tunnel Tig

Depending on the number of participants, two to four people are chosen to be the “chasers” and “guards” and the rest become the “runners”. When someone is tagged they must stand up against a particular wall with one arm outstretched, so that when several runners have been caught they form an imaginary tunnel. The runners who are still free try to run underneath the outstretched arms of those that have been caught and shout “ You're free ”, so that they can escape and run away again. It is therefore tactical for the chasers to have at least one guard near the tunnel to try to prevent people from being freed. Runners might go close enough to a guard to tempt that guard out of position (by chasing them), so that another runner can slip past and set someone free again. It is customary for those who have been caught to try to make the tunnel as long as possible so that the tunnel is more difficult for the chasers to guard.

Variations:

Both arms are held against the wall, or a leg is propped against the wall.

However, if there is no suitable wall available this game is called Underground Tig or Scarecrow Tig. When you are tagged you stay at the spot where you were caught and stand with your legs astride. You can be freed again if one of your side dashes over and jouks through your legs.

Main Part

Sardines

If a suitable spot can be found that has lots of large hiding places then Man Hunt (see session 2 ) can be modified to become Sardines . The game is often played around a house and garden that has lots of nooks and crannies. As each player finds the hider they try to sneak in beside him without any of the others noticing. This continues until only one person is left searching. The first one to find the sardine becomes IT for the next game. You can get rather squashed up during this game, hence the name Sardines.

Hesitation starts

(See flashcard 5: Eatables and Drinkables)

A “caller” is selected to stand in the middle between two chosen lines, and at the start, all the contestants gather along one line. The “caller” will shout something like, “Eatables – bread”, and if they correspond everyone races to the other side. First person across becomes the caller for the next round. If the caller had shouted “Eatables – coffee”, everyone would have to stay put. Otherwise, if they moved they were out. It is also a rule that the last person across is out, so that eventually there should be one winner.

Variation:

This game is often called odds and evens where the “caller” shouts out Odd, or Even, followed by a number.

Catch the ball

Fist, all players except one form a large ring. The remaining player starts out in the middle of the circle. The games begins when the players in the circle start passing the ball to one another. The ball may be thrown to any other player in the circle at any speed. The player in the middle tries to intercept or block the pass or knock the ball out of the hands of another player. The players in the circle quickly figure out that they should get the ball out of their hands as quickly as possible.

If the player in the middle succeeds in disrupting the ball movement, he/she trades places with the last person to have touched the ball. If a player in the circle drops the ball or makes a wild, uncatchable throw, he/she takes a turn in the middle. Play goes on for as long as the participants wish.

Calm Down

Polio

(See flashcard 6:Animals and Colours)

A person is chosen to be IT and everyone else forms a line about ten metres away from a wall. IT stands near the wall and to start the game off he asks for a messenger from the group to join him. He/she whispers a colour in the messenger's ear and the messenger then returns to the group. He/she then goes along the group and to each person he whispers the chosen colour and each person whispers back the name of an animal with that colour.

This completed, the messenger returns to IT and lets IT know the names of all the animals suggested, including the messenger's choice of animal. The messenger then returns to join the line.

IT then calls out the name of one of the animals suggested and all of the people, who chose that animal run over, shout “ Polio ” as they hit the wall, and dash back to the line. IT races in the opposite direction and shouts “Polio” on his return to the wall.

The first one to finish the race is the winner and becomes IT for the next game.