This is very similar to the game ‘NEWS‘ but instead of using compass points it uses parts of the ship. If you want you could draw the outline of a large ship on the floor.
Bow – Front of the ship
Stern – Rear of the ship
Port – Left side of the ship (when facing the bow)
Starboard – Right side of the ship (when facing the bow)
Players stand in the middle of the designated ‘ship’ and run the appropriate area of the hall or drawing when that name is called out. Players are normally eliminated if they make a mistake or are the last one to reach the area.
There’s all sort of commands you can add, but some suggestions are:
Tornado – Spin around on the spot until told to stop or next command given.
Captains coming – stand to attention with a salute.
Climb the rigging – Mime the actions of climbing a rope ladder
Pirates – Everybody has to hide
Another instruction used historically and recorded here for posterity (this is a games archive) is ‘Captains daughter’ – A wolf whistle with the action of wriggling the hips.
See NEWS for a version of this game based on compass points.
