Hobbies And Interests
Lupo Della Ore--What's the Time, Mr. Wolf?
In this popular Italian game, one child is designated as "the wolf" and stands roughly 16 feet from the other children at the start line, with his back facing the group. The other kids then ask, "What's the time, Mr. Wolf?", and the wolf turns to face them while announcing the time (which is of his choosing). Then, the children take as many steps as coordinate with the time, for instance, 5 steps for 5 o'clock. The kids get closer and closer, repeatedly asking the time until the wolf answers with "it's dinnertime" and chases them back toward the starting line. Those who reach the starting line are safe, but if a child is tagged, she becomes the new wolf.
Stuck in the Mud
Imported from Australia, Stuck in the Mud is similar to tag. One child is "it," and the kids "it" manages to tag must stand still with their legs apart and can become unfrozen only if someone crawls between their legs. The game ends when everyone has been successfully frozen, with the last tagged player becoming the new "it."
Ounch Neech
Pakistani children love to play this fun game wherever they are, taking advantage of their setting to make it exciting. One player is chosen to be "it" and selects "ounch," meaning up, or "neech," meaning down. The kids then scatter and run, trying to avoid being tagged. During "neech," kids are safe from being tagged only if they are up on top of something, such as a porch or tree stump. The opposite is true during "ounch," when the ground is safe. Switching quickly between the two settings keeps the game exciting.
Semut, Orang, Gajah
Sumatra has a native variation on rock, paper, scissors, where kids battle one another via rudimentary sign language. Players shake their fist up and down three times, revealing their chosen symbol on the count of four. They can stick out their pinkie to form an ant (semut), extend their pointer finger to create a man, or form a thumbs-up to resemble an elephant (gajah). The elephant defeats the man, as it can crush him underfoot; the man beats the ant, which he can squish with his shoe; and the ant, which can crawl into the elephant's ear to deliver a painful bite, triumphs over the pachyderm.