Old Fashioned Children’s Games

Whatever happened to the old-fashioned children’s games and songs? Old favorites like Kick the Can, Fox and Geese, and Red Rover encouraged camaraderie, physical activity, coordination and social interaction—as electronic and computer games never can. Family and campfire singalongs helped preserve the folksong and storytelling tradition while instilling in children a sense of community and a confidence in their musical capability.
Writer and poet Sharon O’Bryan has gathered a collection of the old games and songs. She brings the old days back to life with instructions for outdoor games like King of the Mountain; car games like Graveyard; card games including Old Maid; and favorite party games such as Blind Man’s Bluff. Lyrics and music to singing games and campfire songs are added to this collection to offer old style amusement for every child and occasion.

Award-winning writer Sharon O’Bryan lives in Florence, Kentucky.

Sharon O’Bryan
Drawings by Mary Anne Fitzgerald
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 143
Bibliographic Info: photos, musical notation and lyrics, index
Copyright Date: 1999
pISBN: 978-0-7864-0558-9
eISBN: 978-1-4766-0259-2
Imprint: McFarland

Acknowledgments      6
Introductory Note      10

Outside Games
Angels in the Snow      12
Balloon Toss      12
Bear and Beasts      12
Bird, Beast or Fish      13
Birds      13
Chain      14
Chinese Ball      14
Circle Relay      14
Circle Tag      15
Come and Get It      15
Cross Tag      15
Do This, Do That      16
Dodge Ball      16
Dress Up      16
Fast Act      17
Flower Jewelry      17
Follow the Leader      17
Fox and Geese      17
Gypsy      18
Hang Tag      18
Heel and Toe Race      18
Hide-and-Seek      19
Home Tag      19
Hopscotch      19
Horse      21
Hound and Rabbit      21
I’ll Draw the Frying Pan on Your Back      21
Jacks      22
Jump Rope      23
Kick the Can      26
King      26
King of the Mountain      26
Leapfrog      27
Lemonade      27
Letting Out the Doves      28
Lightning Bug Hunt      28
Lion in the Pit      29
Marbles      29
Marco Polo      30
Midnight Sardines      30
Minuteman Run      30
Mother May I      31
Nut Race      31
Pass the Ball      31
Pitch Pebbles      32
Poison      32
Pom, Pom, Pullaway      32
Red Light      33
Red Rover      33
Ringolevio      33
Rock School      34
Run, Sheepie, Run      34
Scavenger Hunt      35
Serpent      35
Shadow Tag      35
Snowball Tag      35
Spinning Bottle Tag      36
Spoon Race      36
Statues      36
Still Pond      37
Stoop Tag      37
Three-Legged Sack Race      37
Touch-Wood Tag      38
Treasure Hunt      38
Tug-of-War      38
Twenty Steps      39
Wolf      39
Zigzag Relay Race      39

Car Games
Alphabet Game      42
Animal, Vegetable, Mineral      42
Car Count      42
Ghost      43
Graveyard      43
Hangman      43
Minister’s Cat      44
Odd and Even      45
Old Dead Horse      45
Paper, Rock, Scissors      45
Riddly, Riddly, Riddly D      46
Squaring Dots      46
State License Plates      46
Tic-Tac-Toe      47
Twenty Questions      47

Card Games
Authors      50
Beggar My Neighbor      50
Crazy Eights      51
Donkey      52
Fish      52
I Doubt It      53
Memory      53
My Ship Sails      54
Old Maid      54
Seven Up      55
Slap Jack      55
Snap      56
War      56

Singing Games and Campfire Songs
A-Hunting We Will Go      60
Billy Boy      61
Bingo      62
Blue-Tail Fly      63
Clapping Rhythm      64
Did You Ever See a Lassie?      64
Down in the Valley      65
Farmer in the Dell      66
Found a Peanut      67
Froggie Went A-Courtin’      68
Git Along Little Dogies      69 & 70
Here We Go Looby Loo      71
Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush      72
Home on the Range      74
Hush, Little Baby      75
I Am a Funny Little Dutch Girl      76
I’m a Nut      77
In and Out the Windows      78
Itsy Bitsy Spider      79
John Brown Had a Little Indian      80
Little Bo Peep      81
London Bridge Is Falling Down      82
Mary Had a Little Lamb      84
My Mother Told Me      85
Oats, Peas, Beans and Barley Grow      86
Oh, Dear, What Can the Matter Be?      88
Oh My Darling Clementine      90
Old MacDonald Had a Farm      91
Playmate      93
Pop Goes the Weasel      94
Ring Around the Rosie      96
Row, Row, Row Your Boat      97
She’ll Be Coming Round the Mountain      98
Sing a Song of Sixpence      100
Skip to My Lou      101
There’s a Hole in My Bucket      103
This Old Man      105
Three Blind Mice      106
A Tisket, a Tasket      108
Two, Four, Nine      109
Where Is Thumbkin?      110
Yankee Doodle      111
You Are My Sunshine      112

Party Games
Air, Water, Fire      114
Balloon Ball      114
Blind Bell      114
Blind Man’s Buff      115
Blowing Feathers      115
Bobbing for Apples      115
Button, Button      115
Buzz      116
Cahoots      116
Cat and Mice      117
Clothespins in the Jar      117
Coffeepot      117
Ditto      118
Do as I Say      118
Drawing in the Dark      118
Duck, Duck, Goose      119
Ducks Fly      119
Eggshell Race      119
Farmer Is Coming      120
Feelings      120
Finger in the Bucket      120
Fire in the Mountain      121
Fish Race      121
Fisherman      122
Frog in the Sea      122
Fruit Basket      122
Geography      123
Gossip      123
Grandmother’s Trunk      124
Guess the Beans      124
Guess Who?      124
Ha! Ha!      125
Here’s the Church      125
Hidden Treasures      125
Hide the Thimble      125
Hold Fast, Let Go      126
Hot Potato      126
How Many Words?      126
Hunt the Slipper      127
I Am Very Tall      127
I Love My Love      128
I Say      128
Jack Be Nimble      128
Jerusalem and Jericho      129
Kaleidoscope      129
Keep Moving      129
Lost Child      130
Mother Cat      131
Musical Chairs      131
My Name Is      131
Noah’s Ark      131
Numbered Chairs      132
One Potato, Two Potato      133
Pass the LifeSaver      133
Penny Pastime      133
Pickup Sticks      134
Pin the Tail on the Donkey      134
Puss in the Circle      135
Puss in the Corner      135
Questions      135
Remember      136
Simon Says      136
Stop, Thief      136
Tell the Smell      136
This Is My Nose      137
Touch It      137
Up, Jenkins!      137
Where’s the Leader?      138
Who, Sir, I Sir?      138
Zoom      139

Index      141

“has all the standard games together in one place…a quick easy reference…a useful title”—Reference & User Services Quarterly; “recommend[ed]…an excellent resource”—Library Reviews; “a collection of more than 200 outdoor, car trip, song, card and party activities…target audience is parents, grandparents, teachers, camp counselors, scout leaders, babysitters or anybody who works with kids”—The Cincinnati Enquirer.