Elbow Tag

Description of Activity

This game is ideal for a large group of participants (10+).The playing space should be clearly marked with cones or boundary markers. Before you start the game, go over safe tagging which is a light tag as opposed to a hard contact that could cause someone to fall to the floor.

Gameplay begins with identifying one participant who is "it" and another who is a "runner". All other participants must pair up, spread out throughout the space, and the pairs must link one arm with one another. The free "runner" is the only person running away, attempting to elude the person who is it. Everyone else is standing with their partners throughout the court. In order for the free "runner" to be safe, they must find a pair and link arms with one of them at the elbow- making three people linked together. The person who was not linked in the original pair must then release and is now the free "runner" who is attempting to elude the person who is "it". This runner must then find another pair without being tagged and so on. If the runner is tagged, they are now the person who is "it". If the person who is “it” is struggling with tagging someone, the leader of the game can say "switch" and the free "runner" becomes "it". This game can be adapted to playing space but is ideally implemented in a gymnasium or large open space.

Potential Modifications

Due to only two people running at one time with everyone else resting, this activity should be conducive to all abilities and levels of fitness. In the event of early onset fatigue say "switch" and have the person who is "it" become the free "runner" so that they can link up with a pair and rest.