Danish Clapping Game
Source: Copenhagen Game Collective
Best played with 2 players to begin with, though you can work up to more
Players stand facing each other. Play progresses rhythmically:
- Both players clap their thighs
- Both players pick a direction (left, right, up) and move their hands in that direction
- Both players clap their thighs
- If both players moved their hands in the same direction the last time, they must now high five each other with both hands. If a player fails to high five their partner, they are out of the game and the other player wins. Otherwise play continues, repeating the above steps.
Generally play starts slow, and ramps up in tempo until one player fails to high five when they should have done.
If playing with more than 2 players, the rules are the same but you now have to pay attention to more people. e.g. in a 3 player game players stand in a triangle, and when 2 people move their hands to the same point of the triangle those 2 players high five. When all 3 people move their hands up, all 3 players have to high five (left hand with the player on your left, right hand with the player on your right).
Variants:
Scottish Posing Game
Source: Clare Brennan
Clare's niece and her friends play a version of this game where, instead of moving hands in one of 3 directions, they strike poses they've created to represent their friends. Otherwise the same rules apply.