My
fifth grade teacher used to play this
game with us in
P.E.. It is sort of like
dodgeball, only more
fun.
Set Up:
The game is played out on a
squarish/
rectangular court.
Sidewalk Chalk is advisable for setting up boundaries if no ready-made courts are present. Get a
group of people and divide yourselves up into two
teams (in our class it was always
girls against boys, hmm..) Once you've decided where you want your
court to be, designate a dividing line down the middle. Each team stays on their side of the line. The area behind each team's side of the court is where the "
Jails"/"
Prisons" are. Set one or more
rubber balls on the dividing line between the two teams.
How to Play:
At the
signal (any signal, make one up) people on both teams
run forward to grab the
balls, and
throw them at people on the opposite team. For a hit to count, the ball can't have
bounced on the ground more than one time. Once you're hit,
you're out and you must go to the jail that is behind your opposing team. If you
catch the ball however, the person who threw it at you must go to jail.
Players are not allowed to leave their side of the court, or else they go to jail too. The last team left with members free of
incarceration is the winner.
Jail:
Fret not! You still have (
minimal)
power even while in captivity. If any of the flying balls get past your
rival team and make it into your jail space, you can pick them up and
chuck them at your oppressors. If you hit any of them, you are free once more.
The
rules are, of course,
bendable according to taste. Sometimes there are no restrictions about the # of bounces allowed. Sometimes people
play without jails at all, instead simply
disqualifying players who get hit.
Whatever floats your boat..
But note: The more balls you play with; the harder and crazier it is. And the more
challenging; the more fun. I recommend a ratio of at least 1:5 balls to people.