How to Pencil Fight

Pencil fighting is a competition that came out of schoolroom boredom in the '80s. In a pencil fight, the object is to break your opponent's pencil with your pencil.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

1. Hold the pencil in both hands if your opponent is striking first. Clench your hands in a fist with your thumbs on the sides of your index fingers. Hold the ends of the pencil between your thumbs and index fingers. Keep the pencil waist high and horizontal.
2. Keep the pencil steady as your opponent strikes. If your pencil doesn't break in two, take aim at your opponent's pencil.
3. Wait as your opponent sets his pencil. Then, strike his pencil with yours. The most conventional method is to hold your pencil vertically by the tip end with one hand. Pull back on the eraser end with your other hand. Let go of the eraser end and let it chop down on the middle of your opponent's pencil.
4. Continue alternating turns striking each other's pencils. The player who first breaks her opponent's pencil completely in two is the winner.

Tips & Warnings

• Unless you decide to set rules stating otherwise, anything goes as long as only your pencil comes in contact with your opponent's pencil and you strike it from above and not below. Put your body into your hits and try different hand positions to get more power.