Games and Play for School Morale Part 11

In no way is the driver permitted to suggest direction except by driving with the reins.

RELAY SPELLING RACE

This game is particularly interesting if the men and women of the party compete. For each team a p.r.o.nouncer is chosen who takes his place directly to the right of the blackboard immediately in front of his team, who are standing in file formation, and at a distance of about fifteen feet from the blackboard.

Each p.r.o.nouncer is supplied with a list of words previously agreed upon between themselves, and consisting of words commonly used but frequently misspelled, as necessary, parallel, embarra.s.s, hara.s.s, etc.

At a given signal the first contestant leaves his place in the file, runs to the board and as the p.r.o.nouncer announces the first word to him, proceeds to write it on the board, quickly, but legibly, turns and runs to the end of the file, tagging as he does so the second player in his file. The second contestant in turn, runs to the board, writes the word p.r.o.nounced to him and in like manner returns to the end of the file, tagging as he does so the third contestant. No contestant except the first leaves his place until tagged by the returning contestant.

With ten contestants to a file, count finis.h.i.+ng first as equal to two misspelled words at first, later to one misspelled word. The side finis.h.i.+ng first is thereafter ent.i.tled to consider 2 (or 1) misspelled words as correctly spelled in the final count.

SUGGESTION FOR CONDUCTING PLAY LEADERS' TRAINING CLa.s.s

MELVIN W. SHEPPARD

Community Service, Inc., One Madison Avenue, New York, N.Y.

THE PURPOSE

The purpose of play leaders' training cla.s.ses is to develop volunteer leaders who will carry on recreational program in various schools, churches and industrial plants, and later on who will organize play groups on vacant lots in home vicinities. This will lead to neighborhood activity. As the schools progress those leaders who display more initiative than the others should be noted as a desirable source from which paid recreational leaders may be drawn by the city recreational commission and other agencies.

PROCEDURE

Before starting the cla.s.s, confer with superintendents of schools, churches, and industrial leaders, and send to all inst.i.tutions in the city, which are likely to be interested, invitations to send delegates to the proposed cla.s.s. After organization of the cla.s.s there should be some cla.s.sification of its members so that the most efficient work may be done.

It is desirable in nearly every case that there be separate cla.s.ses for white leaders and colored leaders in order that there may be the utmost freedom of expression and the least hindrance to the enthusiastic partic.i.p.ation in the games.

THE COURSE

Experience shows that ten lessons of one hour's duration each will be sufficient in which to present a total of thirty games with such directions and general suggestions as will enable the leaders to take the games taught back to their organizations.

During the first few lessons, the time should be taken up entirely with the teaching of games and toward the end of the course train all students to act as leaders in turn. This brings out initiative and enables the instructor to prepare tentative lists of the most efficient leaders. Towards the end of the course, the students should do practically all of the game-leading. By dividing them into groups, each under a leader, the instructor can increase his own efficiency and help more specifically the individual members of the cla.s.s.

RECOGNITION FOR ATTENDANCE

If the instructor deems it advisable, a certificate of attendance testifying to the interest shown by the student may be presented at the end of the course. It should, however, be made plain that this certificate does not indicate that the student is an expert playground director. An expert playground director is one who not only can direct the games on the playground, but also by his influence makes the playground an a.s.set to the neighborhood instead of a liability.

Unless a book on games is provided as a guide to the course, each student should receive at each lesson a mimeographed copy of the direction for the games taught at that cla.s.s, to become a part of his permanent equipment.

Neighborhood organizations, particularly rural schools and vacant lots, can be put in shape for playgrounds through simple and cheap athletic equipment such as volley b.a.l.l.s and net, basket b.a.l.l.s, quoits, playground b.a.l.l.s and bats, medicine b.a.l.l.s, which can be purchased at a very reasonable price and will answer all purposes until more elaborate equipment can be obtained.