How to Play Hopscotch

Do you remember playing outdoor games as a kid? Everyone should have a chance to learn how to play Hopscotch. Children ages 3 and up can get involved in drawing the design and learning the "hops." Grown-ups can test their balance and have fun too.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Chalk
• Small stone

Prepare to Play

1. Choose a flat space to play with enough room for 7 large hops.

2. Draw the design using single boxes and side-by-side boxes a little bigger than your feet.

3. Draw 3 single boxes on top of one another and number them 1, 2 and 3, with 1 closest to the start/ finish line.

4. Above square 3, draw two boxes side by side, numbered 4 and 5.

5. Draw a single box, 6. And above that, draw side-by-side boxes 7 and 8. Draw a semicircle on top, labeled "Home."

Hopscotch Rules

6. Toss a stone on square 1 from the start/finish line. You will hop over the stone on your way toward Home and pick it up on your way back. Don't step on a square with a stone. If you miss your toss, you lose your turn to the next player.

7. Hop to the first empty Hopscotch square. Use one foot to reach a single box or both feet to arrive in side-by-side boxes. Don't put two feet in a single box or step outside the lines.

8. Hop toward Home (you may use both feet at Home to turn around). Hop back, pausing at the square before your stone. Bend over and pick up the stone without moving your feet. Hop into that square and on toward the start/finish line.

9. Play until you are "out." If you lose your balance or put your foot in the wrong place, you lose your turn to the next player.

10. Continue Hopscotch play by tossing the stone in the next numbered box and repeating the steps.

Tips & Warnings

• You can play Hopscotch outdoors with a chalk design on a sidewalk, or indoors using a purchased, pre-drawn mat (these designs may vary).
• If you play outside, choose a day when the pavement is dry.
• If you are teaching a young child, hold his or her hand for balance. Like training wheels on a bike, holding hands is only necessary until the correct balance is learned.
• The most common mishap in Hopscotch is turning an ankle.

Resources

• Buy a reusable Hopscotch mat from Amazon