Similar to the game Ladders, but needs a bit (or a lot!) of preparation in advance depending on how good you are at creating stories.
The game needs a fair amount of space to play so good for playing in large rooms or halls, and as there is a risk (depending on how skilful the players are) of accidentally treading on legs of somebody it’s a good idea if those playing don’t wear shoes.
Players pair up and sit down facing each other in two lines with legs together, outstretched and feet touching so that the legs of each pair form the rung of a ladder on the ground. Instead of each pair being given a number, they are given a word they have to listen out for in a story that is narrated to them. Every time the narrator mentions their word, that’s the cue for that pair to get up and to run the circuit of running up the ladder from their sitting positions, jumping over every set of legs on the way, at the top running around the outside of the ladder on their side back down to the bottom of the ladder and then back up through the middle of the ladder, jumping all the legs to their starting positions.
Fun game for themed events/parties, or creating a shopping trip themed story where if you want you can take advantage of homophones where two words sound the same. If you had done a story where pairs are given numbers, they have to listen out for their number or the homophone in the story e.g. “…went to (2) the…” or “once (1) there….” Very good at seeing who is alert.
