9 children's yard games that were loved in the USSR

1. Cossacks-robbers

The game has been known for more than 200 years. It was originally called differently, but its essence did not change much: it’s based on hide-and-seek. Players (note: it is better when there are many!) are divided into two teams: robbers, who run away and hide, and Cossacks, who look for them, catch up with them and take them prisoner. The robbers leave correct and false clues for the Cossacks, while the Cossacks try to navigate by them. The Cossacks can take the bandits captive and even “torture” them – by giving them different tasks for physical endurance – in order to find out their password. The robbers hold out to the last and can also free their captured comrades. In general, it is more fun to play with a large number of people and on a large territory.

2. Knives

Nowadays, knives are not toys for children, but in the 20th century, a folding penknife in the pocket of a school-age child was not uncommon: to cut and sharpen a stick, to cut rope or fishing line or even to play a game of knives.

To play, you need a bare, compacted surface of the ground. A circle is drawn on it, which is divided into sectors by the number of participants. The first player throws their knife into the neighboring “enemy” sector. If the knife sticks into the ground, the player can cut off a part of the neighbor's sector. If not, the turn passes to the next player.

Sometimes, the rules are provided for how to throw the knife, including dropping it from the shoulder, with a flip, from the nose, from the head and so on.

The winner was the one who conquered the whole circle as a result.

3. The sea is worried once

The host reads a counting rhyme:

“The sea waves once,

The sea waves two,

The sea waves three,

The sea figure freezes on the spot!”

After saying these words, the players freeze in the pose of some figure. It can be a sea figure or any other. As agreed at the beginning. The host must guess which figure the player has portrayed. The rules for who will be the next host also vary. Sometimes, it is the one who pulls off the most successful, funny or unusual figure. And, sometimes, it’s the player whose figure the presenter did not recognize.

4. Stander-stop (Hali-holo)

The leader stands in the center of the circle formed by other players and tosses a ball up, calling the name of any participant. That person must catch the ball. The other players scatter in different directions. If a player succeeds in catching the ball, he becomes the new leader. Having caught the ball, the new leader shouts: “Stander!” or “Stop!” The runners freeze in place and the leader tries to hit one of them with the ball. The one at whom the ball is thrown can try to dodge it. If the leader hits the player, that player gets a penalty point. As a result, the one with the fewest penalties wins.

5. "I was born a gardener"

A host “gardener” assigns the participants of the game different flowers – a rose, a peony, a daisy or a bell. Then, the host says a counting rhyme:

“I was born a gardener,

I was born a gardener, 

I got angry,

I'm sick of all flowers, except…”

and says the name of a flower. The flower must immediately respond, then the dialog follows:

Player: Oops!

Gardener: What's wrong with you?

Player: In love.

Gardener: In love with whom?

Player: In… (name of a flower).

The player names any plant involved in the game or the gardener themselves. The one who does not respond in time to their plant name, confuses the name of the flower or calls a flower that does not participate in the game – has to give a forfeit (any personal item).

At the end of the game, the gardener thinks up how the participants will work back their forfeits (recite a poem, jump, sing, etc.).

6. Ring

One of the oldest children's Christmas games, which, as it often happens, has lost its original magical meaning associated with fortune telling about the betrothed and has been reduced to the level of children's entertainment to train attentiveness and reaction speed. A leader is chosen, the rest of the participants sit in a row in front of them. Everyone folds their palms in the shape of a boat. The leader, in turn, puts their palms into the palms of the players, saying: “I wear, I wear a ring and I will give it to someone.” They will then put a “ring” – a small object (a pebble, a button, a folded wrapper) – into the palm of one of the players. The idea is that the leader should do it unnoticed by the other participants and the player who receives the “ring” should not give anything away. When the leader says: “Ring-ring, come out on the porch,” the owner of the ring should quickly jump out to the leader, while the other players try to hold them. If the “ringed” one succeeds, they then become the leader. If not – the leader remains the same.

7. Elastic band

Despite the 100% availability of the equipment – all you need is an ordinary elastic skipping rope, about three meters long, tied into a ring – in any yard in the warm season and at any school break, the game attracted a huge number of girls and even some boys.

The skipping rope is tied around two tree trunks, chair backs or held by children waiting for their turn to play. Six levels of jumping difficulty were distinguished: at ankle, knee, hip, waist, chest and neck level. In addition to the height of the skipping rope, there were different ways in which the skipping rope had to be jumped over. The participant or the team that finished the round the fastest (from the first level to the sixth) won.

8. Lapta

There are various yard and sport (more complicated) versions, so, let's turn to the simpler one, especially since it only requires three players. Two lines are drawn on a flat area on the ground at a distance of about 15-20 meters from each other. One separates the ‘CITY’, the other separates the ‘HOUSE’. One player stands outside the “city” line, tosses a tennis ball and hits it with a bat towards the “house”. Players standing in the “house” area must catch the ball before it touches the ground. If successful, the one who caught the ball switches places with the batter. If not, the swing is repeated.

9. Boyare

This is one of the oldest yard games, combining features of even older rural youth games. It requires at least six players, preferably more. Players are divided equally into two teams and line up in two rows opposite each other, holding hands. The game is built as a song dialogue of two families: one family is matchmaking the bride, while the second keeps finding reasons to refuse. The team sings each line in chorus. While singing, it first takes a few steps towards the other team and then the same number of steps back. The lines are sung by the teams in turn. You can listen to the text in Russian here.

After the singing is over, the “bride” runs up and tries to break through the clasped hands of the opponents. If successful, the player returns to their team, taking one player away from the opposing team. If not, they join the other team. A team with one player left at the end of several rounds is considered the loser.