Counting-out game
A counting-out game is a simple game intended to select a person to be "it", often for the purpose of playing another game. These games usually require no materials, and are played with spoken words or hand gestures.
Many such games involve one person pointing at each participant in a circle of players while reciting a rhyme. A new person is pointed at as each word is said. The player who is selected at the conclusion of the rhyme is "it" or "out". In an alternate version, the circle of players may each put two feet in and at the conclusion of the rhyme, that player removes one foot and the rhyme starts over with the next person. In this case, the first player that has both feet removed is "it" or "out". These are often accepted as random selections because the number of words has not been calculated beforehand, so the result is unknown right up until someone is selected.
A variant of counting-out game, known as Josephus problem, represents a famous theoretical problem in mathematics and computer science.
Counting-out games
Several simple games can be played to select one person from a group, either as a straightforward winner, or as someone who is eliminated. Rock, Paper, Scissors and Odd or Even require no materials and are played using hand gestures, although with the former it is possible for a player to win or lose through skill rather than luck. Coin flipping and drawing straws are fair methods of randomly determining a player. Bizz Buzz is a spoken word game where if a player slips up and speaks a word out of sequence, they are eliminated.
Common rhymes
(These rhymes may have many local or regional variants.)
- Eeny, meeny, miny, moe
- Duck, duck, goose
- Tinker, Tailor - Traditionally played in England
- Ip dip
External links
- Videos of "choosing songs" aka Counting rhymes
- Counting rhymes at the BBC's project h2g2
- Counting rhymes and other songs for counting in traditional music from county of Nice, France.
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