The Daring Book for Girls - Andrea J. Buchanan [16]
The word hopscotch comes from hop, of course, meaning to jump, and escocher, an Old French word that means “to cut.” The game as we know it dates back to at least 1801, and now hopscotch is played all over the world. In France, the game is called Marelles. Germans play Templehupfen, and kids in the Netherlands play Hinkelbaan. In Malaysia hopscotch is called Ting-ting or Ketengteng, and in India it’s called Ekaria Dukaria. In Vietnam it’s known as Pico, in Chile it’s Luche, and in Argentina and many Spanish-speaking countries, it’s called Rayuela.
COURTS
Make your own court using chalk on a sidewalk or driveway, or by using masking tape on a floor or carpet indoors.
Traditional American hopscotch courts look something like this:
Super-old-fashioned courts had 6 boxes in a stack from 1 to 6, or 3 sets of 2 boxes:
Fancier versions include the Monte Carlo and the Italian:
Or, you can always make up your own style of hopscotch court!
RULES
Nearly every girl knows the basic rules for hopscotch, but there are some interesting variations to liven things up.
In the most basic game, the first player stands behind the starting line to toss a marker (a rock, a penny, a beanbag, a button) in the first square. The marker must land in the correct square without bouncing out or touching a line. The player should hop over the first square to the second on one foot, then continue hopping all the way to the end of the court. Side-by-side squares can be straddled, with each foot on a square, but single squares must be hopped on with just one foot. A square with a marker in it must be hopped over, and any neutral, or safe, squares may be jumped through in any manner a player wishes.
When a player gets to the end of the court, she turns around and hops back through to the beginning, stopping to pick up her marker on the way back. If she makes it to the end without jumping on a line or putting two feet down in a square, she can continue her turn by throwing the marker into square number 2 and trying again. If a player steps on a line, misses a square, falls, or puts two feet down, her turn is over. When it’s her turn again, she starts where she left off. The winner is the first player to complete one course of hopping up and back for every numbered square.
VARIATIONS
A French version of hopscotch is played on a spiral court and called, because of its shape, Escargot (snail) or La Marelle Ronde (round hopscotch). The court is drawn as a big snail or shell-like spiral and then sectioned into squares, the number of which is limited only by the size of the spiral itself. In this version, each player hops on one foot to the center of the spiral and back out again. When a player is able to complete the full circuit, she can mark one square with her initials, and from then on she is allowed to have two feet in that square. The other players must hop over it. The game is over when all squares are marked (or if no one can reach the center), and the girl who wins is the one who has her initials in the most squares.
Escargot (snail) or La Marelle Ronde (round hopscotch)
Toss-and-Reach Hopscotch
This variation, allowing the player to initial a square, can also be adapted for the traditional version of the game. After a player has completed one hopscotch sequence successfully, jumping all the way up and all the way back, she can throw her marker onto the court, and wherever the marker lands she can place her initials. Then that square is hers, and she is allowed to have two feet in it when hopping, while the other players must hop over it. In this version, each player is only allowed to initial one square per game.
A British variation, which can be used with traditional straight courts as well as with spiral courts, involves the player holding her marker between her feet and hopping from square to square on two feet without letting go of the marker or stepping on the lines.
In Toss-and-Reach Hopscotch, a player throws her marker into the center square,