Hobbies And Interests
Netball
The game of netball, similar to basketball, dates to 1891 and is now played by girls and women across the world, particularly in Commonwealth countries. Many girls schools include netball as a sport into school timetables from the age of about 10, sometimes younger. Netball teams consist up to 12 players, with seven being allowed on the netball court at any one time. Positions are divided into attack and defense roles, with different players being allowed into different areas of the court. The aim of each competing team is to get the ball to their goal shooters at the end of the court, who attempt to score goals into the net. The team with the most goals at the end of four 15 minute quarters wins the game.
Synchronized Swimming
Synchronized swimming is one of the only women-only sports at the Olympics. A combination of art, athletics and swimming, synchronized swimming teams are competing to create a perfect display. Synchronized swimming teams have to follow rules and standards to stand a chance of winning a competition. The teams of eight swimmers must appear as one body, rather than several, such is the synchronicity of their sport. They are marked for accuracy, control, stability and clarity, and the team with the highest score is the winner. While synchronized swimming is not often taught in mainstream schools, girls must learn synchronized swimming skills from a young age if they want to be good enough to compete in national and international competitions.
Hopscotch
While some say hopscotch was used by Roman foot soldiers to improve their footwork, in modern times it is widely associated with being a game that girls like to play across the world. The game can be played in a playground hopscotch board, or on a hopscotch board that has been drawn on in chalk on any flat, hard surface. The squares on a hopscotch board are marked from one to 10. The first player has to throw her marker, which can be a stone or small rock, so that it lands inside the first square. The player must hop through the court, straddling adjacent squares with both feet and hopping on single squares with one foot. Once she has reached the end of the court, she must turn around and hop through the squares in reverse order, picking up her marker on the way. If she completes this without stumbling or making a mistake, she can take her marker and aim for it to land in the second square. If she is successful, she can perform the same routine again, and so on with the higher numbers. The winner is the girl who gets the furthest without making any mistakes.
Dancing Games
A much newer type of game that has become popular with girls across the world is a dancing game that is performed on dancing mats. Dancing mats are divided into squares that the girl has to move her feet onto in time with the music and according to some instructions she is being given by an accompanying video game or program. The game and music is playing on a television screen in front of the girl and it tells her to move her feet to various points on the dancing mat in the correct time and rhythm. She may be given movements to complete with her arms at the same time, giving the effect that she is dancing. At the end of the song, the girl will be given a score according to how accurate her movements were, and girls can compete against each other to see who can get the highest score.