#4 KB FavoriteGame: Stealing Sticks

How much fun can you have with 12 sticks you find on the ground? A lot more than you originally would have after you read this post!

Stealing sticks was originally a game thought up by Native Americans. They would hide sticks in trees, and all over the woods, and this game could go on for days. Fortunately for you, KB has a shorter version.

Setting Up the Game: This is a game for a larger group of kids, 8 and up about. Split them into two even teams. Tell the teams to each find 6 sticks, bigger than twigs, but make sure they’re not bringing back tree branches, either! Designate the boundaries, with a mid-field line. The bigger the field, the more difficult. This game is great to play at a park that has varied terrain. Tell each team to lay their 6 sticks in a strategic position on their side of the field

Playing the Game: This game is a lot like capture the flag. There’s a jail, and guards. The guards (pick 2 to start out, but determine how many you need based on the size of the field and the number of players) will keep watch over their sticks, and try to tag anyone that tries to steal them. If tagged, the player must return the stick to the appropriate side and then go to the designated jail area. That player can old be freed if a member of their team tags them. The game will continue on until one side has all twelve sticks. So, even if the “red” team has 8 sticks and the “blue” team has 4, the “blue” team can still come back, unlike capture the flag, where the game ends when one team gets the opponents one and only flag.

Additions to the game: If you want, you can add “safe zones”, designated by a hula hoop or cones (or a tree) on the playing field if too many kids are being tagged before they can reach their side.

Now, don’t you see how fun 12 sticks can be!