Reterdeen Staff
In the world we currently live in, growing up is no longer as fun as it used to be. This is due to the fact that world has greatly advanced technologically. We are now in a state of global digitization. Children nowadays do not have the time to play outdoors, all their fun is now derived online. Sometimes, I just look at my nieces and nephews and sigh; they can never know how much they are missing. During our time back in the day, after school and rest came time for outdoor games. Saturdays and Sundays were epic as playing outside with friends were a given.
And the beauty of these games is that some of them were played by children regardless of their location. But now, it’s no longer so. Between the love of surfing the net or social media and the shows or cartoons on TV, children have no time to play outdoors anymore. Slowly, several of the exciting and interactive outdoor games we used to have are dying a slow painful death.
So I wrote this article to remind us of some of the outdoor games Nigerian children no longer play.
- Hide and Seek
This game used to go by many names, depending on where you grew up. ‘Catcher’, ‘Police and Thief’, ‘Run Run’, etc., the game was one our number one outdoor activities to do. It involved at least two players where one goes to hide and the other(s) go in search of the hiding player.
- Suwe
Played by two or more players, this game involves drawing a couple of squares on the ground and playing to lay claim on each square. It was one of the best strategy building games.
- War of the Rubber Bands
It was not unusual back in the day to see a child walking down the street with rubber band son his arm up to his elbow. He had probably won it while playing ‘Rubber’. The game was played by a group of people where you are allowed to win other children’s rubber bands by throwing yours on them.
- Last Man
Well, this one was just a repackaged marathon race. To play, one child would scream “the last person to get somewhere (it could be anywhere) is a fool!” and nobody wants to be a fool so cue the mindless running. It used to be so much fun.
- Game Box
I still have no idea why this game was called ‘game box’ where I stayed but what I’m sure of is that it was fun. It is played by a group of children where every player has his identity. If a particular player is called upon, that player has to get to and touch the nearest wall as quick as possible or get a group whipping from the other players. Yeah, it was another game that had a lot of mindless running!
So those are the top 5 outdoor games I played while growing up. Please do feel free to tell me yours in the comment section below.
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