Summary

Game name (and type): 'Giant's Treasure', 'Creepings Up' (creeping games)
Alternative types: stepping games

Handwritten description of the two creeping games 'Giant's Treasure' and 'Creepings Up' composed for Dr Dorothy Howard by Carol Taggart, an eleven year old student at East Camberwell Girls Secondary School, in 1954-1955. Taggart describes 'Giant's Treasure' and 'Creepings Up' as games suitable for children aged between five and twelve years, which are played all year round in backyards, school grounds and indoors. To play 'Giant's Treasure', she writes that a child is nominated as the 'giant', who must guard a treasure comprising a ball or stone. Taggart explains that the 'giant' stands with their treasure at their feet and their back to the approaching players, who must stand still each time the 'giant' turns around. The objective of the approaching players to steal the treasure from the 'giant' and returning to the starting line without being caught. Similarly, 'Creepings Up' involves players slowly approaching 'he' in an attempt to touch this player. Taggart states that if 'he' sees a player move, they must return to the starting line. She lists other players of 'Giant's Treasure' and 'Creepings Up' including Denise, Wendy, Judith, Lorraine, and Elaine.

One of a collection of letters describing a children's game 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 pencil and black ink on paper. Comprises three sheets. First page features a letterhead printed in black ink; second and third pages feature borders ruled in red pencil.

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