Games: Ruler of the Squares

Dick Moss, Editor, PE Update.com

Ruler of the Squares develops eye-hand coordination and some of the same basic skills used in volleyball.

Setup
Using cones or floor tape, make a square that's 14 x 14 feet. Divide this area into four smaller squares. One student occupies each square and any extra players line up outside square #1. One playground ball or volleyball is used in each game.

How to Play
One player drops the ball and hits it into another square. The receiving player allows the ball to bounce once, then hits it to another square. One or both hands can be used to hit the ball. A foul
occurs if:

The ball lands outside the playing area.
The ball is returned to the square it came from.
The ball is caught or held.
The ball is hit before bouncing once.
The ball bounces more than once before being hit..

A player who fouls leaves the squares and stands in the waiting line. The remaining players advance one square with the exception of the Ruler, who moves only when s/he fouls. The ultimate goal of all players is to occupy the Ruler's Square as long as possible.

Scoring
If you wish to score the game (it's not necessary), the player who stays in the Ruler's Square the longest can be declared the winner. Alternatively, the winner can be the player with the fewest total fouls.

References:
1. Marilee Gustafson, Sue Wolfe & Cheryl King, Great Games for Young People, Human Kinetics Publishers, 1991.
2. Ted Vickey, 101 Fitness Games for Kids at Camp, Healthy Learning, 2008.

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