Summary

Game name (and type): 'Pull The Finger' (blindfold game)
Alternative types: guessing game

Handwritten description of the game 'Pull The Finger' written for Dr Dorothy Howard by Yvonne Schere, a student at Coromandel Valley State School, in 1954-1955. Schere describes 'Pull The Finger' as a game which can be played by girls and boys, preferably on soft lawn, all year round. To play, one player stands with their eyes closed and points a finger behind their back. Each time this player's finger is pulled by the other children, they must take three, large steps or twelve 'helicopters'. Schere notes that to execute a 'helicopter', a child must stride and spin concurrently. Eventually, the blindfolded player must try to locate and identify the other children by tickling them. Schere lists other players of 'Pull The Finger': Ann Wescombe, Janice Williams, Dawn Watchman, Meredith Ward, and Christine Wark.

One of a collection of letters describing a children's games written to children's Folklorist Dorothy Howard between 1954 and 1955. Dr Howard came to Australia in 1954-55 as an American Fulbright scholar to study Australian children's folklore. She travelled across Australia for 10 months collecting children's playground rhymes, games, play artefacts, etc. This letter, together with the other original fieldwork collected by Dr Howard during this period, is preserved in the Dorothy Howard Collection manuscript files, part of the Australian Children's Folklore Collection (ACFC), Archive Series 3. The ACFC is an extensive collection documenting children's folklore and related research.

Physical Description

Handwritten game description in blue ink on lined paper. Text written on one side only.

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