I'm Gonna CATCH You! A Fun Version of Tag.

TAG!  You're it!

YAY!  The weather is getting nicer, so it's time for some GAMES!

We LOVE a good game of tag (can you tell??), so we thought we'd share our favorite version of the game with you.  Katie in our office played this version of tag almost every weekend from kindergarten to 8th grade, and still occasionally gets her friends together to play on a sunny day!

This version of tag is best for ages 5 and up, but you can adapt it for younger players by simplifying the rules or being lenient while they learn to play. It's simple and can be played for HOURS!

Playpen Tag

1) Pick a Tag Arena - find your playing space.  If you have a small amount of players, you can play inside in a play room or in a gym.  If you have a large group, a playground, open field, or yard works GREAT.  Be sure you're in a safe, contained spot!

2) Assemble your teams!  You'll want 2 teams of at least 2 players, but you can play with as MANY people as you want (depending on how big your tag arena is).  Katie used to play boys vs. girls or she and her friends would choose captains and pick our teams.

3) Choose a "playpen" - this is where the captured players go when they are caught.  If you're outdoors, a spot between two trees or underneath a jungle gym works great.  If you're playing inside, any small room with at least two exits is good, or just mark off a small area in a playroom.  You can have different playpens per team if you want, or you can use the same one. (If you're playing with younger players, you may want to eliminate the playpen to simpify)

4) Choose a "base" - this is where players can go to be safe from getting tagged.  This should be an object large enough for all players to be touching at once, such as a tree or a small rug.

5) Explain the rules!!

• The goal is for the "it" team to tag everyone on the other team and capture them in the playpen.
• When a person is tagged, he or she must go to the playpen and wait there until one of their team members frees them.  When they are touched by a fellow team member, they are free to run away.
• Each playpen can have one guard (only 1). This person is in charge of making sure the people in the playpen don't get set free.
• A person can only stay on the "base" for 30 seconds.  The other team must stay at least 5 feet (or whatever distance you like!) away from the base so the person on it has a chance to get away.  It may be a good idea to draw a circle around the base with chalk so everyone knows how close they can be.
• Tips: Put on some good running music (see below!), keep lots of water around, make sure there is an adult nearby to help if anyone takes a spill, and have FUN!!!

 

Comments

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bands education! to some extent is good as long as they do not mess a lot of junk infant children in the head, should teach more and while you enjoy!

[Michael Gerber]

I just played Tag with a group of three/four and even a few five year olds and your version of Tag would have been a bit too complex for the younger ones, I think. I simplified the rules to be, one person is it and must count to ten and then finds someon. When that person is tagged, they are ALSO it and must help tag people. This way the IT team could get strong enough to tag the older kids. Simple, effective and fun. We chose who was IT each time and surprisingly, a lot of the kids (big and small) would want to be it. If you couldn't agree, then multiple people could be it at the start. Also if a really young kid wanted to be it, they usually could tag one person and if not could be paired up with someone else that also wanted to be it.