Child development opportunities
* To talk about and be physically involved with squares and other shapes.
* To pick up a new rhyme.
* To control body movements and especially feet movements.
* To discuss the role of 'an inspector'.
How to play
* Draw a rough circle of squares with chalk on the floor and ask children to stand in a square.
* Introduce this rhyme and ask children to move from square to square clockwise as they say the rhyme.
Stepping into squares Watch me go, No feet on the lines We all know.
* Select 'an inspector' who watches for any feet stepping on one of the four lines of a square.
* Anyone caught stepping on a line as they step or jump from square to square is out.
* When only a few children remain, speed up the game by saying the rhyme more quickly.
* The winner of the game can select the next 'inspector' for the next round.
Tips
* Start the game saying only the first two lines of the rhyme together.
* Take the role of 'the inspector' yourself until the children know the rhyme well and move quite happily around the squares.
* Later, play the game substituting squares with circles or triangles.
* The winner can select the next 'inspector'.
For more games, see Acker Backa BOO! - Games to Say and Play From Around the World by Opal Dunn (Frances Lincoln, 10.99). Copyright Opal Dunn. The author disclaims responsibility for any adverse effects resulting directly or indirectly from the game outlined.
