STEAL THE BACON

Popularity: (1 star: The game is popular only in some groups or areas / 2 stars: The game is very
popular but nowadays few people play it / 3 stars: The game is famous and much people play it)

Origin:
Unfortunately, we don’t have any
information about the exact date when the
game appeared, but we know for sure from
drawings and images that exist that the
game was played by children aged between
5-10 years old in the 20th century. In the
beginning, it was played mostly in the
squares, streets and yards, but it eventually
became a game played in P.E. classes.
As for the name of the game, throughout
history many causes have been affected
towards the Bacon Rebellion. In 1676, the
Bacon Rebellion took place over the
Europeans’ desire for cheap land stolen
from the Native Americans. This correlates
directly with the game “Steal the Bacon”
since the bacon represented the land which
was the reason for the conflict between
Nathaniel Bacon, the English government,
and the Natives.

How to play:

1. 10 or more children are needed.

2. The children divide into two teams.
3. Each team makes a line and in between these 2 lines they draw a circle and put a
handkerchief in it. Another variation is that the judge holds the handkerchief in the circle.
4. Each child is represented by a number.
5. The judge shouts a number and whoever child from each team has this number runs to
catch the handkerchief.
6. The child who is faster and catches the handkerchief first, returns to his/her line and
gives a point to his/her team.
7. This process is repeated with different numbers and the team with the highest number of
points wins.
Presentation:
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1fDrJrVjiJzoOVEz01BKcvPqkDZBgGkoX/edit#slide
=id.gab7bb500ad_0_10
Educational use:
In mathematics: Instead of calling out numbers, the judge could read out loud some
simple equations, and the number that is the solution to this equation is the kid represented
by that number that has to run and grab the handkerchief.