Today, whilst on an excursion to the zoo, we stumbled upon a beautiful bit of outdoor space in our search for a spot to sit for lunch. A patch of grass, dappled shade, trees, shrubs - just perfect for a game of 'What's the time Mr Wolf".
My Preschooler had a turn at being the Wolf first. Counting is a really big 'thing' right now. 13 was the call - so she only had a couple of calls before I was right upon her. When I was close enough, I snatched the hat and ran back to base (which was the stroller). Not bad since I had my toddler in my arms.
When it was my turn (with the toddler still in my arms) I included my toddler into the game by holding up his fingers to represent the time ie. number of steps to be taken. Since the numbers we chose were small, we had several calls to make. At the call of lunchtime, we chased the Preschooler back to base - safe to play another time.
It does not take long for the enthusiastic to learn the strategy and rules of the game. The wolf lures the participants close enough to him so that he can call out 'lunchtime' and catch someone. The participants tries to get as close to the wolf as possible to steal his 'treasure' (in my case, it was the hat - but a ball or scarf tucked into the pants would be safer) and return to the safety of the 'base' - usually a line (or in my case, the stroller).
Lots of fun.
This game is so perfect for Preschoolers as it involves few rules, counting, singing, estimating space, strategic thinking, anticipation, developing reaction time, agility - gleefulness. Having a turn at being the Wolf also builds self esteem.
I usually play this game with larger groups but as I found out today, it worked with just the three of us.
And now, it is bed time.
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