Posts Tagged ‘Classic’
Playing games with your children generally brings to mind images of noisy, boisterous arguments and colourful game pieces being strewn around the kitchen table while peanut butter-and-jellied fingers roll dice or try to count out play money.
The shrieks of laughter or hoots of winning can fill a young household, but are quickly silenced when your children grow tired of these childhood games. Boxes of torn, dog-eared board games with missing pieces are stacked up in the dusty corners of family rooms everywhere, but there is one game that will never be banished in such a way.
The family chess set.
When you play a game of chess, you can put your busy world aside long enough to refuel and relax. It’s a game of strategy and skill, certainly, but it can offer you and your family so much more than that.
A quiet moment; an opportunity to spend a little time with a loved one; the satisfaction of a mental challenge – such are the rare pleasures we all could use more of these days.
How do you know when your children might be old enough to learn to play chess?
Amazingly, children as young as 4 and 5 years old can pick up the basic rules and skills required to play a simple version of the game. If your child enjoys board games, has a moderate attention span, follows instructions well and shows an interest, then it may be the right time to consider pulling out your faithful chess set.
There has been some debate as to whether playing chess actually does make children smarter. Several international studies have been conducted in countries like Belgium and Venezuela which seem to lean towards a positive answer to this question.
However, regardless of the studies and their conclusions, some of the skills and benefits that playing chess teaches are generally accepted to be true; such as:
* Focused, disciplined thinking
* Improved concentration
* Forethought, planning and strategy
* Understanding actions and consequences
* Problem-solving
There are also benefits to your family.
The bonding of parent and child can be strengthened over time spent on a shared game of chess. The child feels pride in being considered an equal partner in an adult game. Playing the game in a quiet environment generally has a calming effect on child and adult alike.
Watching a father and son together, for instance, heads bowed in tandem concentration, is a beautiful sight. A mutual respect emerges; the child may exhibit a maturity the parent may not have noticed before, or a child may understand that challenges can be won with strategy rather than aggression. Soon, a chess set becomes more than a game board, but a state of mind as well.
The pleasures of the game can be outweighed by the happiness of such small, shared moments.
And once grown, looking back at the elegant pieces of a handsome chess set that becomes a family heirloom, a child will recall the fond memories and quiet times spent together… and that, as they say, is priceless.
The author is the owner of Quality-Chess.net, an online site where you can browse for numerous chess related products including wood and metal chess sets. http://www.quality-chess.net
Playing outdoor games is part of growing up. We all have childhood memories of playing our favorite outdoor games with the kids from the neighborhood and our best friends from school. Now it is up to us to pass down the legacy to our children. Show them that playing outside is fun and teach them that physical activity is essential to their wellbeing.
Below is a list of five classic outdoor games your children are sure to love.
1) Hopscotch
Hopscotch is a simple jumping game that is easy to set-up and easy to learn. To play outdoors, all you need is a package of colored or plain white chalk, child-safe items like colored stones for the players to use as their markers, and a patch of concrete to draw the hopscotch board on.
Since there are a number of ways to draw a hopscotch board, experiment with a few different patterns and use the version your children like best.
The classic, old school way to create a hopscotch board is to use chalk on concrete to outline eight blocks in the shape of a lowercase letter “t.” Masking tape can be used as a substitute if chalk is not available or if you are playing indoors. Every player will need to find a small object that can be used as a marker. This is where you can get creative! Just make sure you don’t pick your mom’s favorite breakable figurine. Think more along the lines of a button, beanbag, or bottle cap.
Each player takes turns tossing his or her marker in block number one. The objective is to keep your balance as you hop over block one standing on one foot, then onto block two, three, four, etc. until you have reached the eighth block. To complete your turn, you must jump back through each number back to block two, bend over (still on one foot!) pick up your marker, and jump into block one and out of the hopscotch board. This completes the turn of one player. It is then time for the other players to take each of their turns.
There are a quite a few factors that determine whether a player is out and loses a turn. These things include failure to place your marker in the proper block for that particular turn, stepping into the block your marker is in, and losing your balance while attempting to pick up your marker. A player is also considered out if he or she steps on a line or uses both feet to hop into the next block. That player then loses his or her turn and must leave the marker in the block to try again after all the other players have taken their turn.
2) Red Rover
This game is fun when you have a big group of kids involved. Pick teams of equal size. Each team member holds hands tightly to create a chain. One side starts by picking someone on the opposing team to invite over to their team. Everyone shouts, “Red Rover, Red Rover, send Emily right over!” Emily then breaks free and runs toward the other team. The goal is to break the link of the other team. If Emily is successful, she gets to pick someone from that team to join her team. If Emily is unsuccessful, she has to join the opposing team. This continues until one side has all of the team members. The best thing about this game is that everyone is a winner in the end!
3) Four Square
Much like hopscotch you can create your own four square arena by drawing one with chalk or using masking tape. You will also need a rubber ball, or any ball that is good for bouncing. Draw or lay out a large square that is divided into four inner squares. There is one person per square. The first player in the top square bounces the ball to the player in the square to the left of his or herself. This sets off the play. Everyone has to use hands to bounce the ball, in one bounce, around the square until someone fumbles and is out. The players rotate bringing a new player into the square to replace the person who fumbled. A person is out if they catch the ball, if it takes more than one tap to bounce the ball to the next person, or if a person steps out of his or her designated square. The goal is to move up into the top square. Like Red Rover, in this game, everyone is a winner.
4) Tag
Tag is one of the oldest and most exciting outdoor games for children. An added benefit of playing tag is the level of physical activity – it is a great source of exercise! While there are many variations of this classic chasing game, two remain the most common with kids today: traditional tag and freeze tag.
In traditional tag, one person is chosen to be “it,” the person who must try to catch the others. When the person who is “it” touches another person, that person must chase after another and the game continues.
Another variation of tag is freeze tag. The player who starts out as “it” can tag as many people as he or she likes. When the person who is “it” tags a player, that player must stands still or “freeze.” The frozen players can only be unfrozen once a free player crawls in between their legs. The object of the game? For the “it” player to freeze all other players. As you can imagine, freeze tag can go on for quite some time if players are fast!
5) Duck Duck Goose
This is an all time favorite. All the players sit in a circle. The “it” player walks around the outside of the circle tapping the other players on the head saying, “duck, duck, duck, etc.” When he or she gets to the person they choose to be the new “it” person, they say “Goose!” The “goose” then has to chase the other player and tag them before he is able to sit down in the goose’s spot. If the “it” player gets to the seat before being tagged the “goose” is the new “it” and the game continues.
These are five classic old-school games that every child should know. While a playground with swings and slides and monkey bars is always fun, nothing beats these basic games you can play almost anywhere. With spring in the air, now is the perfect time to take your kids and their friends outside and show them how to have a good time. Get going!
Alicia Randall is a full-time nanny living in Santa Fe, New Mexico, who writes about topics related to children’s play in her spare time. For more information on playground equipment, please visit www.swingset.com.
Lisa Austen is a mother of three from Sacramento, CA. She writes about topics related to children’s play in her spare time. For more information on Playground Equipment, please visit www.swingset.com.
Playing Darts is all about fun. You will have to contain a sharp target and the same time an eye for the middle point of the board. Apart from being a tool for game itself, it is a great accessory of any game room or home bar where there are other games equipment too.
A single dartboard can introduce a feel of pub room into the game room even if it is situated at your home. In this context, variable dartboards are available at different places.
Apart from the traditional types of dartboards, there are also electronic boards available that make the game more thrilling and entertaining. A dartboard into your pub room certainly increases your standard and class. However, selecting from that wide range of options is however a bit difficult.
For example, you can easily opt an electronic one or a traditional wooden dartboard. Both of them have some privileges and drawbacks. In this case, you should go through a detailed study of the patterns and styles available in the market.
While there are ample pieces of sets available in the market, if you go through the quality of the Classic Bristle Dart Board – Game Room Dart Set, you will find it better than the others will. They are absolutely perfect for setting at home, as they come in the wooden cabinets.
Besides, not only the darts fit into the cabinet that comes along with the board, but along with it, also fits the darts, chalks and an eraser for erasing the score. The dartboard contains a high quality finish that keeps the board covered and clean. Besides, this polished look brings a professional look and pattern.
Apart from these, the board is quite long lasting as they are made of quality wood. The Classic Bristle Dart Board – Game Room Dart Set contain standard wire spider similar to the pubs and at the same time six brass tournament darts come along with this Classic Bristle Dart Board.
The construction of the board makes it strong and lasting long. In addition to this, the dartboard contains a staple-free bull’s eye that is an indispensable quality of a good dartboard. The tipped darts that come along with the dartboard are made of brass.
Most of the Classic Bristle Dart Board – Game Room Dart Sets are made of African sisal fibers. This particular feature makes it possible to hide the holes created by the darts and make the holes almost invisible. This particular self-heal technique is absent in most of the dartboards available in the market.
The wire numbers of these dart boards are also rotating that generates a longer life to the dartboard. Apart from the darts made of brass, these darts are also available in steel. More than this, the dartboards of this particular brand are uniquely designed to match with the environment of both home and a pub.
Including one dartboard is to enhance the quality of your game room. You can install them easily and at the same time they are absolutely space saving.
OK, Monopoly may have more versions than players but I have noticed other editions of Risk (Star Wars & Middle-earth), Clue and Chutes & Ladders. If you were going to buy one for the weekend with for family get together, would you go for the classic edition or spring for the commercial/branded edition?
I’ve searched online but have been unable to find any links to anything for a classic board game (60’s, maybe?) called Voodoo, where there was a plastic base with a bottom that would depress when pins were stuck into it, and when a pin would hit a metal peg, a witch doctor would come flying out of a little hut and scare you. Anyone have any ideas as to where this might be found? I don’t remember who made and I’ve only seen it once.