Games around the world!

Playing is fundamental during infancy because it's one of the expressive languages of the human being. It provides communication, discovery of the world, socialization and integral development.

According to Adriana Friedmann, "playing" is made of various elements: a structure (beginning, middle and end), means (how to play), purpose (why play), content (playing themes), rules, space, time, toys, partners and a ludic behaviour (actions and reactions of those who play). Historically, man always has played, but over time, the ways of playing, spaces and times to play, the playing objects and the players gradually transformed. 

Since I moved to Amsterdam, I observe different games and ways of playing of the kids. By living in a country with many cultures, you have to consider that new games will appear and they will merge with those we brazilians know. New rules and new contexts, but always keeing in mind how important this moment is for development of the children.

I talked to some kids and their parents and they told me about some typical games in their respective countries. For Example, in Germany, a very popular game among german children is very similar to or own "hide-and-seek", only that it's reversed. In this game, only one child hides, and all the others seek it. The one who finds it stays with it in the hideout, which fills up until only one child is left, which will be the next to hide. 

In Italy, a very common game is two people hiding their hands behind their backs, standing in front of each other. They choose how many fingers they'll show, and try to guess how much the sum of both player's fingers will be. They then quickly reveal their fingers at the same time, shouting out the figure they guessed would be the sum. The one who gets it right wins.

In the Netherlands, “Spijkerpoep” is a game played by kids at festivities as well as by adults at bachelor parties. The game is old and requires good coordination and concentration. You'll need a cord, a nail or pen and a bottle. The nail or pen is attached to the cord, which is attached to the rear part of the player's trousers. The idea is to get the pen or nail into the bottle by moving but the hips and legs.

Feel free to share a game, whether it's from your native country or from a country you lived in!

See you next time,

Laura 

*Author, The Art Of Playing (Vozes, 2004), Child Development Through Playing (Moderna, 2006), among others.