Elbow Tag
- Last edited 3 years ago by Kevin MacDonald
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Requirements
- Age 7+
- Players 4 - 32
- Time 5-10 min rounds
- Location Large clear area or forest
- Energy High, running
- Materials Bands
- Lead by Pathfinder
- Guide 1
Story
This game gets us to Pay Attention in a fast paced game of chase and tag.
Action Call
How fast and agile are you? Can you control yourself on any terrain without slipping? Can you play hard without running into your fellow Trackers?
Game
Safety
- Scout playing area for hazards: tripping objects, stinging insects, trash, and much more.
- Avoid collisions. Emphasize that participants must maintain control at all times.
Mission
Establish a playing area. Each player pairs up with one other player by linking elbows (another option is have the elbows out with one hand of space from each other). Pairs spread themselves out randomly in the playing area. Pairs can walk around the playing area during the game—they don't have to stay in one place.
Ask one or two of the pairs to split up. One person from each pair is a “predator” and the other is “prey.” Give each predator a soft object to hold (a Trackers Band works) that identifies them as such.
When the Pathfinder says "go," any predator can chase any prey. Prey can weave in and out of the pairs of people to evade capture. At any time, prey can join an existing couple by linking elbows with one of the people in the pair. Immediately, the person on the other side detaches and is now prey.
When a predator tags a prey, their roles switch. To symbolize the switch, the predator drops the Band they're carrying on the ground. The former prey (now turned predator) picks up the Band before they can chase any prey.
Modify
Breakup Play for 4 or 5 minutes, then pause the game. The Pathfinder announces that during the next round they may unpredictably "break up" more pairs of people, handing one a band to become a predator. Having three, four, five, or even more predators and prey active makes the game extra lively. The bigger the size, the more predators and prey you can have.