Garden Club - Fast Steps, Small Steps and Counting Steps

I hear some of you are bored going outside and you have done all the chore type activities outside. So here are some games to play.

These three games all have the same theme: ‘Red Light, Green Light’, ‘Grandma Steps’ and ‘What’s the time Mr Wolf?’, they are ideal to be played in your garden.

Red Light, Green Light

A game to play if you have a big garden and lots of space to move around in. This version is best played with older brothers and sisters and players of about the same age and ability. If you have very small / young siblings play Grandmother Steps instead.

Decide who will be the traffic lights.

1. If you are the traffic light you get to stand out up front with you back to the other players.

2. The rest of the players will line up some distance away about 10 meters / 30 feet.

3. With your back to the other players you call out Green Light and all the players behind you must move as quickly as possible before you call out “Red Light.”

4. When you call out “Red Light” you turn around as quick as possible to catch anyone moving.

5. The rest of the players must stop as soon as you say “Red Light.”

6. If you spot anyone moving, even just a little bit, they must return to the starting line.

7. The game continues with you turning around and calling out “Green Light” and then “Red Light” shortly afterwards.

8. The first person to reach you wins and becomes the stoplight in the next round.

Grandmother Steps

This is similar to the Red Light, Green Light but can be played in a smaller space and at a much slower pace. So, chose this version if you are playing with much younger brothers and sister who might get pushed over in the race to get to the front first. This is a much calmer race to the front because of the way you move. You start on the right foot and bring your left foot so the heal touches the right toes, and the right foot than comes forward and the right heal touches the toes of the left foot.

Decide who will be the Grandma.

1. If you are the Grandma you get to stand out up front with you back to the other players.

2. The rest of the players will line up some distance away about 5 meters / 15 feet.

3. With your back to the other players you call out “Go” and all the players behind you must move towards you by moving one foot in front of the other with the heal touching the toes of the foot, before you call out “Stop.”

4. When you call out “Stop” you turn around as quick as possible to catch anyone moving.

5. The rest of the players must stop as soon as you say “Stop.”

6. If you spot anyone moving, even just a little bit, they must return to the starting line.

7. The game continues with you turning around and calling out “Go” and then “Stop” shortly afterwards and turning around to catch anyone moving .

8. The first person to reach you wins becomes Grandma in the next round.

What’s the Time Mr Wolf

Finally, this is a great game to play if you are learning to count or telling the time. The wolf doesn’t turn around in this game, they must judge how close everyone is getting to them. It doesn’t matter how big or small your steps are, obviously if you want a go at being the wolf you will take larger steps and if you don’t want to be caught or if you want to make it harder for the wolf to catch you - take smaller steps.

Decide who will be the Wolf.

1. If you are the Wolf, you get to stand out up front with you back to the other players.

2. The rest of the players line up some distance away.

3. The wolf stands with their back to the other players and the players call out “What’s the time Mr Wolf?”

4. The wolf replies a time – “5 o’clock”, for example, and all the players must take a number of steps that correspond to the time – so here they would take five steps towards the wolf.

5. The game continues with the wolf calling out a different time each time and the players taking that number steps closer.

6. The players keep asking the time getting closer and closer. The wolf doesn’t turn around, they must judge how close everyone is without looking.

7. Once the players are close, the wolf replies “Dinner time!” and chases the players.

8. The rest of the players must run away, when the wolf calls “Dinner time!”.

9. Whoever the wolf catches become the wolf.