One game. One country.

Games kids play around the world

Real games from real childhoods, explained so clearly you can start in two minutes. Most need nothing but paper, a few coins, or your own two feet.

We check each game against several sources and tell you where our home version is a simple adaptation.

📄 Ddakji (Korea)🦶 Ampe (Ghana)⭐ Mū tōrere (New Zealand)
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Tap a game to read the rules. New games are added here regularly.

📄

Ddakji

Say it: DAHK-jee
Korea 🇰🇷
FLIP!
Players: 2 or moreAges: 6+Where: A hard floor (tiles or wood). Carpet doesn't work.⏱️ 15 min🔊 Loud-ish🧹 None🧰 Zero prep
ℹ️ Good to know

Ddakji (딱지) is a traditional Korean children's game played with folded paper tiles. Kids in Korea often fold their tiles in a special way. This card uses a simple fold, so you can start right now. Some families let the winner keep the flipped tile, and others keep both.

🧰 What you need

2 sheets of paper for each player. Thick paper is best (cereal box cardboard, old magazine pages, or old homework).

💡 The idea

Each player makes a thick, flat paper square. You take turns throwing your square down hard to flip your friend's square over. If you flip it, you win it!

🚦 Get ready

Make your squares.

  1. Fold a sheet of paper in half.
  2. Fold it in half again.
  3. Keep folding until it's a thick, flat square about the size of your palm.
  4. Make a second one.

(The squares in Korea are folded a special way, but this simple way works great.)

👣 How to play
  1. Decide who goes first. Play rock, paper, scissors!
  2. Player 1 puts one square flat on the floor.
  3. Player 2 is the thrower. Hold your square high. Throw it down hard onto the floor, right next to Player 1's square.
  4. Look at Player 1's square.
    • Did it flip over? You win it! Keep it.
    • Did it stay put? No luck. Now it's your friend's turn.
  5. When you miss, your square stays on the floor. Now your friend throws their square at yours.
  6. Keep taking turns.
👣 Rules
  • No touching or blowing on the other square.
  • Throw from standing height. No dropping from the floor.
💬 Example round

Leo puts his square on the floor. Ava throws hers down next to it. Leo's square flips over! Ava wins Leo's square. Now Leo puts down another square and Ava throws again.

🏆 How do you win?

Play for 10 minutes. The player with the most squares wins. If you run out of squares, make a new one and keep playing!

🚀 Make it harder

Make squares in different sizes. Which size flips the best?

💛 Mom note

It's a little loud, because of the slapping sound on the floor. Perfect for kids who love to throw things.

🦶

Ampe

Say it: AHM-pay
Ghana 🇬🇭
Players: 2 or moreAges: 5+Where: Any open spot⏱️ 10 min🔊 Medium🧹 None🧰 Zero prep
ℹ️ Good to know

Ampe is a children's game that began in Ghana and is also played in nearby countries. In the classic version, a leader jumps against one player and scores when the feet match. Our Twins and Opposites version lets both players score, and the Ghana school-yard way is at the bottom of the card.

🧰 What you need

Nothing!

💡 The idea

You and a friend jump at the same time. Each of you sticks one foot out in front. Then you look at your feet. Did you pick the same foot, or different feet? That decides who gets the point.

🚦 Get ready

Each player picks a job.

  • One of you is TWINS. You want your feet to match.
  • The other is OPPOSITES. You want your feet to be different.

Stand facing each other, about two big steps apart.

👣 How to play
  1. Clap your hands.
  2. Jump.
  3. Clap again.
  4. Jump again. This time, land with one foot stuck out in front of you. Pick left or right fast. Don't think about it!
  5. Look at both of your feet.
    • Both left or both right? That's a match. TWINS gets 1 point.
    • One left and one right? That's different. OPPOSITES gets 1 point.
  6. Go again.
Important

It only matters which foot, left or right. It doesn't matter where the foot ends up. If you both stuck out your right foot, that's a match, even though your feet are on different sides of the room.

💬 Example round

Mia is TWINS. Sam is OPPOSITES. They clap, jump, clap, jump. Mia sticks out her right foot. Sam sticks out his left foot. That's different, so Sam gets 1 point.

🏆 How do you win?

Play 5 rounds. Then switch jobs and play 5 more. Add up your points. The player with the most points wins. If it's a tie, play one more round!

Playing with 3 or more kids (the Ghana school-yard way)

One kid is the Leader and the others stand in a line or a half circle. The Leader jumps against one kid at a time.

  • Same foot? The Leader gets a point and moves on to the next kid in line.
  • Different feet? That kid becomes the new Leader!
🚀 Make it harder

Jump faster. Try to trick your friend by sticking your foot out at the very last second.

💛 Mom note

It looks like a dance and it gets silly fast. Great for burning energy before dinner.

⭐

Mū Tōrere

Say it: moo TOH-reh-reh
New Zealand 🇳🇿
Players: 2Ages: 8+Where: A table⏱️ 15 min🔊 Quiet🧹 None🧰 Easy setup
ℹ️ Good to know

Mū tōrere is a two-player board game played by Māori in Aotearoa New Zealand. Historians still debate exactly how old it is, but it was popular among Māori from the early years of European contact. It was first described in print in 1917.

🧰 What you need

A sheet of paper, a pencil, 4 coins, and 4 buttons.

💡 The idea

You can't capture anything in this game. You win by trapping your opponent so they have nowhere to move!

🚦 Draw the board
  1. Draw 4 straight lines that all cross at one point in the middle. It looks like a big star or an asterisk.
  2. That makes 8 points around the outside, and 1 point in the center.
  3. Draw a small circle at each of the 8 outer points, and one at the center.
🚦 Get ready
  1. Each player has 4 pieces. (One player uses coins, the other uses buttons.)
  2. Put your 4 pieces on 4 outer points that are side by side. Your opponent's 4 pieces go on the other 4 outer points.
  3. The center is empty.
👣 How to play
  1. Take turns. Move one piece each turn.
  2. A piece can move to an empty outer point right next to it, going around the edge of the star.
  3. A piece can move into the empty center, but only if it's right next to at least one of your opponent's pieces.
  4. A piece in the center can move back out to any empty outer point.
  5. You can't jump over other pieces.
Your first move

The only move possible at the start is one of the two pieces at the ends of your row, moving into the center.

🏆 How do you win?

You win when your opponent can't make a move.

💬 Example round

Mia's pieces are on points 1 to 4. Sam's are on points 5 to 8. Mia moves her piece from point 4 into the center. Now point 4 is empty. Sam can slide his piece from point 5 into point 4. The game is on!

👣 Rules differ from place to place.

This is one common way to play.

🌱 Make it easier

Play it a few times just to see how the pieces get stuck, before you try to trap anyone on purpose.

💛 Mom note

It looks simple but it's tricky. Don't be surprised when your child beats you.

Collect a stamp for every country

In The Fun Mom Playbook, every world game has its own page in the Play Passport, so kids can collect countries like real travelers.

Get the Playbook · $14.99
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Questions

Are these the real traditional rules?

We follow the traditional core of each game and tell you where our version is simpler. Rules often differ from place to place and even from playground to playground, so treat each card as one good way to play.

Do we have to say the names perfectly?

A try is plenty. Each game shows a simple sound-it-out guide.

What ages are these for?

Ages 5 and up, depending on the game. The ages are shown on every card, and you can filter by age at the top of the page.

Can I print a game?

Yes. Tap "Print this game" at the bottom of any card.

Where we learned about these games

Rules often differ from place to place. We note where our version is a simple adaptation.