Traditional playground games
Before screens, a playground ran on chalk, string and whatever was in your pocket. These games are worth passing on.
From your pocket
- Marbles Flick a shooter to knock marbles from a ring.
- Jacks Bounce the ball, scoop the jacks.
- Conkers A horse chestnut on a string. Autumn only.
- Cat’s cradle A loop of string and two pairs of hands.
- Five stones Jacks without the ball.
Chalk and rope
- Hopscotch Throw a stone, hop the grid.
- Skipping With rhymes.
- French skipping An elastic loop round two pairs of ankles.
- Four square
Running
- Tag (it, tig)
- Stuck in the mud Freed by a crawl through the legs.
- British bulldog
- Grandmother’s footsteps
- Forty forty Hide and seek with a home base.
Marbles is the one playground game that has made it onto a touchscreen more or less intact.
More game ideas
Common questions
What are traditional playground games?
Marbles, hopscotch, jacks, conkers, skipping, tag, stuck in the mud and grandmother’s footsteps are among the best known.
How do you play marbles in the playground?
Draw a ring, put marbles in the middle, and take turns flicking a larger marble to knock them out.
Ready to flick?
Marble Rumble is free, runs in the browser and needs no account or download.