Question 1

How do you play Chinese jump rope?

Accepted Answer

In Chinese it is 跳皮筋 (tiào píjīn), jumping the elastic, played with a long loop of 橡皮筋 (xiàngpíjīn), rubber bands, tied together. Two players stand inside the loop to stretch it round their ankles; the third jumps a pattern, in, out, landing on the elastic and twisting it, while chanting a rhyme. Finish it and the loop goes up, to the knees, the thighs, the waist and higher; miss a step and you swap with a holder.

Question 2

What rhyme do children chant for Chinese jump rope?

Accepted Answer

The best known counts to thirty-one: 小皮球，香蕉梨，马兰开花二十一，二五六，二五七，二八二九三十一 (xiǎo píqiú, xiāngjiāo lí, mǎlán kāihuā èrshíyī, èr wǔ liù, èr wǔ qī, èr bā èr jiǔ sānshíyī): “little ball, banana, pear, the iris blooms, twenty-one; two five six, two five seven, two eight, two nine, thirty-one.” It makes no sense, and that is the fun: the beat tells you when to jump.

Question 3

What is a Chinese yo-yo?

Accepted Answer

空竹 (kōngzhú), hollow bamboo: a diabolo, two hollow wheels on an axle, spun on a string tied between two sticks. Holes in the wheels make it hum as it spins. Playing it is 抖空竹 (dǒu kōngzhú), to shake the diabolo, and in Chinese parks early in the morning you will see retired people tossing it high and catching it behind their backs.

Question 4

How do you say rock paper scissors in Chinese?

Accepted Answer

石头剪刀布 (shítou jiǎndāo bù), rock, scissors, cloth, said together as you throw; some places say 剪刀石头布 (jiǎndāo shítou bù). Rock is 石头 (shítou), scissors 剪刀 (jiǎndāo), and paper is 布 (bù), cloth.

Question 5

What games do Chinese children play?

Accepted Answer

In the playground: hide-and-seek, 捉迷藏 (zhuōmícáng), eagle and chicks, drop the handkerchief, statues, hopscotch, 跳房子 (tiàofángzi), skipping, 跳绳 (tiàoshéng), marbles, 弹珠 (dànzhū), and tug-of-war, 拔河 (báhé). A game is a 游戏 (yóuxì), and to play is 玩 (wán).

Question 6

What are traditional Chinese board games?

Accepted Answer

Chinese chess, 象棋 (xiàngqí), and go, 围棋 (wéiqí), are the classics; five in a row, 五子棋 (wǔzǐqí), is played on a go board. At family gatherings it is mahjong, 麻将 (májiàng), or the card game 斗地主 (dòu dìzhǔ), fight the landlord. Chinese checkers, 跳棋 (tiàoqí), is a surprise: it was invented in Germany and named “Chinese” in America to sell it, though it is now played all over China.

Question 7

Can’t hear it?

Accepted Answer

Play uses your device’s Mandarin voice. Edge, Chrome and Safari have one; a browser with none plays each character in our recorded voice instead.

	In Chinese	How it is played
Chinese jump rope	跳皮筋 tiào píjīn	Two players hold a long loop of elastic round their ankles; the third jumps in, out and onto it in a set pattern, chanting, and the loop goes higher each round
Shuttlecock kicking	踢毽子 tī jiànzi	Keep a feathered shuttlecock in the air with your feet, alone or in a circle, counting the kicks
Chinese yo-yo	抖空竹 dǒu kōngzhú	Spin a diabolo along a string between two sticks, then toss it high and catch it; it hums as it spins
Spinning top	抽陀螺 chōu tuóluó	Whip a wooden top to keep it spinning on the ground
Kite flying	放风筝 fàng fēngzheng	Flown in spring, in shapes from swallows to long centipede dragons
Eagle and chicks	老鹰捉小鸡 lǎoyīng zhuō xiǎojī	The “chicks” line up holding on behind the “hen”, who spreads her arms to keep the “eagle” from catching the last one
Drop the handkerchief	丢手绢 diū shǒujuàn	Children sit in a circle and sing while one runs round and drops a handkerchief behind someone, who must catch them
Statues	一二三木头人 yī èr sān mùtourén	“One, two, three, wooden people!”: everyone freezes when the caller turns round, like red light, green light
Rock paper scissors	石头剪刀布 shítou jiǎndāo bù	Said as you throw, to decide who goes first

Chinese traditional games