Halloween evolved from cultural and religious practices. The Ancient Celts believed that when summer turned to winter, or when the days had less daylight, the border between this world and the otherworld became thin, allowing spirits to pass between the world. To stop this from happening, they lit fires and wore costumes and masks for disguise and to ward them off.  This festival was called Samhain, and is derived or from Old Irish and means “Summers End”

Ancient Britons also held a similar festival.

All Saints Day is a Catholic holiday, and was made in part to honour martyrs and the dead in the 7th century. Prior ro All Saints Day, many people used to honour the dead by holding rituals, not too disimilar to the Ancient Celts. This angered the Catholic Church who created All Saints Day to disuade people from practising in what they saw as an unholy ceromony.

In the nineteenth century, the festival had less religious and cultural significance and became more fun, with children taking part in such  past times as trick or treat.

You can find Halloween supplies at the Playgameshavefun store. For USA and Canada please click here

Image: Wikipedia

As Halloween draws near children, it is time for you to venture into the world and do thy’s bidding.  You must knock on the doors of your neighbors houses and ask for treats.  If they do not give you treats, you must carry out tricks.  If you do not carry out tricks, I will work my magic and you will be sorry when I turn you into a teacher or your least favourite Uncle!!!

As I am a generous witch, children, I have some fiendish ideas for tricks should you need some this Halloween.  Ha ha ha cackle cackle!

Spooky Note!

If your neighbours do not give you a treat, then write them a spooky note and post it through their door.  Here are some you can use or perhaps you can use your halloween magic and create one of your own. Ha ha cackle cackle!

“When you read this note, you will feel a funny feeling in your throat, and if you blink your eye, you will take your last sigh!”

“Pumpkins, pomegranates, and tomato soup, as their are no treats you will be covered in soup!”

“A witches cat will sneeze today, and as you gave us no sweets it is coming your way!”

“The hounds are approaching so you better run and hide, the hounds are approaching and they are coming for your hyde!”

“Ha ha cackle cackle! Soon you will be locked in a witches shackle ha ha cackle cackle!” That’s my favourite children.

Sweet Wrappers!

If there are no sweets children, then remind your neighbour that you want one next time by leaving your favourite sweet wrapper on their porch or doorstep! Ha ha Cackle Cackle!

Sing the Spooky Song!

Chant this song children if no sweets turn up. In fact sing it anyway! Ha Ha Cackle Cackle!

“Tonight is the night for ghosts and ghouls

Goblins and Vampires the ones you fear the most!

They come with the werewolves,

They come with teeth

They come to seek out the one

without sweets!

So next year, make sure you have plenty

Make sure you have lots for the many

Halloween children that like to eat

Lots of things that are called sweets!”

Always Remember

To do what your parents or carer tells you to do on Halloween children, and remember that the Playgameshavefun Witch is watching you.  Ha Ha Ha Cackle Cackle.

If you need costumes or face paint, please visit the playgameshavefun store, as it has a dedicated section for Halloween. If you are from the USA or Canada, please click here for the store.

photo credit: gfoster67

Hangman is a word game based on trying to work out a hidden word before the player guessing the word is hung from the gallows!  It is a game for two players.

To play the game you will need

A Pen/Pencil
Paper

The Rules

One player thinks of a word, and writes down dashes to indicate what the word is.  So the word “Computer”, would be _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _.  Note the number of dashes corresponds to the number of letters in the word.

The second player now tries to guess a letter of the word.  So should they guess “O”, the other player than inserts where that letter would go.  _ O _ _ _ _ _ _.  If the player had guessed incorrectly, say “Y”, then the other player would draw the first part of the gallows, and write down the letter “Y”, so the other player knows that is not part of the word.  This continues until either the word is guessed or the other player is hung!

In our example, the word is “Animal”.

Guess 1 “B”

Incorrect, fist line is drawn

Letters guessed B

Guess 2 “F”

Incorrect, second line of the gallows is drawn!

Letters guessed B,F

Guess 3 “A”

Correct, the letters “A” are inserted into the word.

Letters guessed B,F

Guess 4 “E”

Incorrect, the roof on the gallows is drawn.

Letters guessed B,F,E

Guess 5 “M”

Correct, a good guess

Letters guessed B,F,E,

Guess 6 “C”,

Incorrect

Letters guessed B,F,E,C,

Guess 7 “D”

Incorrect

Letters guessed B,F,E,C,D

Guess 8 “I”

Correct

Letters guessed B,F,E,C,D

Guess 9 “G” Guess 10 “Z”

Incorrect

Letters guessed B,F,E,C,D,G,Z

Guess 10 “P”

Incorrect

Letters guessed B,F,E,C,D,G,Z,P,

Guess 11 “K”

Incorrect

Letters guessed B,F,E,C,D,G,Z,P,K

Guess 12 “L”

Correct, maybe they wont be executed!  Just one letter to get.

Letters guessed B,F,E,C,D,G,Z,P,K

Guess 13 “Q”

Incorrect, oh no, one more wrong guess and it is curtains!

Letters guessed B,F,E,C,D,G,Z,P,K,Q

Guess 14 “Y”

Incorrect, oh no they have been hung!

Letters guessed B,F,E,C,D,G,Z,P,K,Q,Y

As the guessing player did not discover the hidden word, he or she has been hung and subsequently lost the game, had the player discovered the word before the last line was drawn they would have won.

Tactics

The most commonly used letters that comprise words in the English language are, e-t-a-o-i-n-s-h-r-d-l-u.  If you are the guessing player try guessing these letters first.  If you are thinking of the word, then try and use words that do not use them too much, or try a very short word that uses unusual letters, such as “Jazz”.

Hangman, the other meaning!

A Hangman was an executioner appointed by The State, (The leader of a country) to carry out executions on its behalf.  Mostly, the executions were performed as a  punishment for a crime, but it has also been used in other ways too  None of which were very nice.  Execution is still performed in some countries.

You can find plenty of arts and crafts and games at the Playgameshavefun Store

The game of tic-tac-toe is a game for two people, and is a game you play with your mind!

What you will need.

Pen/Pencil
Paper

A 3 x 3 grid is drawn as shown . As you can see the grid forms nine boxes. Providing there are nine boxes you will be able to play, so don’t worry if it the lines are not perfectly straight.

Each player decides whether they are a O or an X.

Taking turns each player puts an O or an X in each box. When one player has three in a row, either vertically, horizontally, or diagionally, then they are the winner.

Winning lines.

It doesn’t matter if your vertical winning line is in the 1st, 2nd or 3rd column.  It all counts as a win.  Vertically speaking, top,

middle, or bottom, three in a row counts a win.

Tactics

Many players start from the middle. Try starting from a corner and put your next two turns in a corner as well, and see what happens.

If you feel defeat is imminent, maybe use distraction to try and avoid losing the game. The following suggestions may prove useful.

Earthquake. Shake the table(not too hard as you don’t want to get in trouble with parents or carers). And say, “Quick! Earthquake! Under the table”. Wait for a few minutes and then say, “My mistake”, and suggest an alternative game. If you are lucky, your opponent will forget about the game.

Hungry. Just before the last turn that confirms your defeat, say “I feel hungry, would you like something to eat?”. Go and bring some food and suggest you eat it away from where you are playing. If you are lucky, they will forget about the game.

Be on the look out. You may find yourself on the verge of winning when an earthquake occurs or you are suddenly given some food…

You can buy arts and craft supplies, not to mention toys and games at our store

Paper airplanes are really gliders that glide on air.  There shape is aerodynamic, which means it allows air to pass around it easily.  The more air that can pass around your shape, the faster your shape will travel.

Did you know that in some countries, airplane is spelt aeroplane?

Paper airplanes are easy to build and easy to fly!  The Harrier, holds the record for flying the farthest.

The Harrier.

The Harrier, as you can see is a sleeking looking paper airplane, and is considered to be very good for stunts.  By bending the wings in certain ways, will make the plane spin and loop.  When planes do this in the sky it is called areobatics.

How to make the Harrier

To make the Harrier

Take a piece of rectangular paper and fold it in half length ways

Unfold the piece of paper, and you will see you have a fold, like a line right down the middle.  Taking one of the top corners, and fold it so that it meets the fold in the middle.  This should make a triangle shape.

Once this is done, do the same with the other side so that it looks like the picture below.  As you can see, it looks like a house.

Fold the point at the top so that it looks like an envelope.

Then fold the corners so that they meet in the middle, and do the same for both sides.  You should have a small triangle- a flap, at the bottom.

Now fold that small triangle upwards.

Turn the plane over, and fold the plane in half.

Then carefully fold down the wings from the front of the plane as shown.  Don’t forget to do both of them, and match the wings to give you an even shape.  This is more important than having a straight edge.

Your Harrier is ready to fly!

If this is hard to follow, try watching the video.

How far can The Harrier travel?  What happens if you bend the left wing?

Now you can make The Harrier, why not try and make The Bulldog Dart? Which one is best.

You can buy supplies and books to make The Harrier at our Playgameshavefun Store

Paper airplanes are really gliders that glide on air.  There shape is aerodynamic, which means it allows air to pass around it easily.  The more air that can pass around your shape, the faster your shape will travel.

Did you know that in some countries, airplane is spelt aeroplane?

Paper airplanes are easy to build and easy to fly!  Here is a famous model:

The Bulldog Dart.

How to make the Bulldog Dart

Take a piece of rectangular shaped paper, and fold it in half length ways

Unfold the piece of paper, and you will see you have a fold, like a line right down the middle.  Taking one of the top corners, and fold it so that it meets the fold in the middle.  This should make a triangle shape.

.

Once this is done, do the same with the other side so that it looks like the picture below.  As you can see, it looks like a house.

.

Turn the piece of paper over, so that you can’t see the flaps.

Carefully fold the piece of paper from the top and the right hand edge so that it meets in the middle.  It should look like this.

Do the same for the left.

Now, fold the point at the top, so that it touches the paper, not too much, about halfway between where the paper meets.  See below

Fold the plane in half length ways, and then rotate it so that it is on its side

.

Take care when doing this next part as it is very easy to make a mistake.  Take the top of the wing, and fold it in half so that it meets the bottom corner.  Make sure you smooth out any creases, and you keep a careful eye on where it is folding at the front of the plane.

Turn the plane over, and do the same for the next wing.

Now straighten the wings, and your Bulldog dart is ready for a test flight.  How does it fly?

How far can you fly your plane?

Have you tried to fly it from the top of the stairs?

Were these instructions easy to follow?  How can they be improved?

Watch the video of how to make The Bulldog dart.

Why not make The Harrier paper airplane? See which one is best.

If you are after making a toy you can take into the bath, or want one to float on a pond or in a paddling pool, then making a paper boat could be a good option if you haven’t got time to go to a toy shop.

Paper boats are made the same way we made the paper hat, but have a few extra steps involved.  Some of them can be a little tricky, so do not be afraid to ask for help if you need it.  As with the hat, any kind of rectangular shaped paper will work, but plain white paper can be decorated to look like your favourite ships.

Step 1 Take a piece of rectangular paper.  Uncreased works best, less confusing.

Step 2 Fold the paper from the top edge so that it meets the bottom edge, match opposite corners.

Step 3 Fold the paper in half length ways, and then unfold it again.  It should look like a book

Step 4 Fold the top corners so that they meet in the middle.  This is exactly the same as when making a paper aeroplane, and they should meet at the centre line.  See below.

Step 5 Fold the flap up so that it covers the triangles you have just made.  Top layer only.

Step 6 Turn the boat over, and you will see two triangular flaps.  Fold them down.

Step 7 Fold up the second large flap as you did in step 5, and then tuck in the triangular flaps as you did in step 6 From this point you can see you have made a paper hat.  Well done.  Why not put it on your head!  To make the boat, read on…

Step 8 Push the hat together to form a square.

Step 9 If you look carefully you will discover two triangular shaped flaps, fold one down as shown below.

Step 10 Do the same with the remaining flap.  You should now have a triangle shape.

Step 11 You will see that you have made a miniature version of the paper hat.  Put it on your favourite toy!

Step 12 Push the flaps together to form a diamond shape.

Step 13 If you look carefully you can see and one corner there are two flaps.  You can unfold these flaps which is what you must do to make the boat.

Step 14 With some shaping, you have a paper boat.  Well done!

Show Mum, show Dad!

Go and see if it floats!

If that seems a little tricky, this video may help.

Have fun with your boat.

Need art and craft supplies? Visit the store

The game of noughts and crosses is a game for two people, and is a game you play with your mind!

What you will need.

Pen/Pencil
Paper

A 3 x 3 grid is drawn as shown . As you can see the grid forms nine boxes. Providing there are nine boxes you will be able to play, so don’t worry if it the lines are not perfectly straight.

Each player decides whether they are a nought (O) or a cross (X).

Taking turns each player puts a nought or cross in each box. When one player has three in a row, either vertically, horizontally, or diagionally, then they are the winner.

Winning lines.

It doesn’t matter if your vertical winning line is in the 1st, 2nd or 3rd column.  It all counts as a win.  Vertically speaking, top,

middle, or bottom, three in a row counts a win.

Tactics

Many players start from the middle. Try starting from a corner and put your next two turns in a corner as well, and see what happens.

If you feel defeat is imminent, maybe use distraction to try and avoid losing the game. The following suggestions may prove useful.

Earthquake. Shake the table(not too hard as you don’t want to get in trouble with parents or carers). And say, “Quick! Earthquake! Under the table”. Wait for a few minutes and then say, “My mistake”, and suggest an alternative game. If you are lucky, your opponent will forget about the game.

Hungry. Just before the last turn that confirms your defeat, say “I feel hungry, would you like something to eat?”. Go and bring some food and suggest you eat it away from where you are playing. If you are lucky, they will forget about the game.

Be on the look out. You may find yourself on the verge of winning when an earthquake occurs or you are suddenly given some food…

Water fights are brilliant! The only downside is that they can get out of hand and lead to arguments, and they can become a bit boring after a while when the novelty wares off.

Wet people too, make a mess when they come back into the house. This can be negotiated by a good use of towels and a possible outside drying off-changing area, such as a garage.

To keep a water fight alive, here are a few ideas / rules to make a water fight more fun.

The Duel

This is ideal for two players with similar high powered water pistols. Two people stand back to back and walk twelve paces, away from each other. Once they have taken their paces, one of them counts to three. On the count of three, both players spin round and unleash their weapon’s payload at the other. The winner is the one that is covered with the least amount of water. If their are three people one can act as a judge and count to three at the beginning of the duel.   In fact a duel can be played by three players, by either playing a winner stays on scenario, or all players walk away in a triangle shape, and then everybody shoots at each other.  This can become messy.

Should twelve paces prove difficult for your weapons, then try six or even three.

Water Tag!

Just like normal Tag, where someone is “it” until they tag someone else, the game is the same just people are tagged by being squirted rather than tagged.  The last person to be squirted, is “it”!

Total Anarchy!

The traditional water fight where everyone goes a little crazy and makes everyone as wet as possible. Great stuff!

Try including areas which are safe where people can’t be squirted.  To make it really interesting, why not incorporate a time limit as to how long a person can stay in this area.
Try playing in teams.

Choose your weapon!

The best water pistols are ones that shoot a powerful blast of water, and can hold a lot of water so reloading is kept to a minimum.  Some water pistols have tanks which strap over your back, so you can hold more water.

Remember the following:

Animals should not be targeted.   This may scare the animal and that is not a nice thing to do.

Never have a water fight inside the house.

Washing is not to get wet.

Never use delicate objects in a water fight, such as anything made from glass.

Only ever squirt water

Never hurt anyone during the water fight

Try and avoid roads when having a water fight,  and never shoot a water pistol at a moving car

If you are playing at a friends house, it maybe a good idea to take a change of clothes and a towel with you

The world’s biggest water fight!

The world’s biggest water fight is in Thailand, which is used to celebrate new year.  It is not unknown for elephants

to get involved.  Could you win a water fight with an elephant?

photo credit: me and the sysop

photo credit: Creative Tools

Easter is a Christian festival to celebrate the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  Many countries around the world celebrate Easter, and every country has its own ways of doing it.  To find out more about Easter, and how it began, click here.

In Great Britain, American, Australia, Canada, and countries where English is the most common language spoken, Easter is celebrated by giving Easter eggs to friends and family, decorating eggs, rolling eggs down hills, and being visited by the Easter bunny.

America has another tradition of Egg knocking.  People play the game in pairs, and each pair knocks the tips of their eggs together.  The tip that breaks off first loses, and the loser has to give that egg to the winner.  This is played with lots of people, until two people, or one pair is left.  Imagine how many eggs one person could win!

In Bermuda, kites are flown!  Everyone in Bermuda even if they are as old as your Dad or Granny makes kites and flies them at Easter.  This represents the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

In the Netherlands, Belgium, and France, church bells are silent until Easter Morning, when easter eggs appear.  The bells are silent as they are “flying to Rome”, which represents Jesus Christ’s execution at the hands of the Roman Empire.  They return on Easter day bring Easter eggs, which represents his resurrection.

Also in the Netherlands and Northern Germany, Easter fires are lit on Easter Day.

In Norway, as well as decorating eggs, many people stay in mountain cabins and go cross country skiing.   They also celebrate Easter by watching detective television programmes, and magazines print detective stories where the reader can guess who the murderer was.  Milk cartons show a new detective story every year.  A detective story is a story that is about the police investigating a crime.  Every Easter, all the shops close for five days, except shops that sell food which open for one day.

In Finland, Sweden, and Denmark, many children dress as witches and knock on neighbours houses collecting chocolate.  This is not for free however, as the children have to give decorated pussy willows.  This tradition is a mixture of two traditions.  Children also decorate eggs.

Food is a big part of Easter in Finland, Sweden, and Denmark, as normally a Smorgasbord, which is a meal which is made of lots of food is served.  This is often made from herrings, salmon, potatoes and egg.  Would you like a Smorgasbord?

In the Ukraine, Belarus, Hungary, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Albania, Macedonia, Slovenia and Slovakia also decorate eggs for Easter.  A few Eastern European countries also have other traditions too.  Such as:

Being smacked!  With a whip!  In the Czech Republic and Slovakia, the men often smack the women with a whip or pour cold water over them.  They do not hurt the woman, but instead it makes her laugh.  This is said to keep the woman looking beautiful and healthy.

Sometimes, the man does it to show he likes the woman, and in return the woman gives the man a chocolate egg.   In some parts of Slovakia, a woman can get her own back by pouring a bucket of cold water on any man she man wants to.

In Croatia and Slovenia, a basket of food is brought to the church to be blessed.

In Hungary, Transylvania, Slovakia, Kárpátalja, and Northern Serbia – Vojvodina, perfumed water is sprinkled in exchange for chocolate eggs the day after Easter.

How do you celebrate Easter?

photo credit: futureatlas.com