Children's Games in Street and Playground
by Iona Opie, Peter Opie
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In the 1960s, Iona and Peter Opie observed that although many books had been written about how children should play, none had been written about how they actually played. To fill the gap they carried out an exhaustive survey, through the decade, of the games that children 'in fact play' when aged roughly between six and twelve years of age, and when outdoors -- and usually when out of sight. The result was their classic workChildren's Games in Street and Playground. It records games played show more in streets, parks, playgrounds and wastelands by more than 10,000 children across the UK from the Shetland Isles to the Channel Islands, although the majority of the information comes from children living in big cities such as London, Liverpool, Bristol and Glasgow. In all, around 125 games are described in detail, including the rhymes and sayings children repeat while playing them, together with the different names they are called. Brief historical notes are also included where relevant. There are important lessons to be learned from this book about giving children the time and physical space to be themselves with other children. Previously published asChildren's Games in Street and Playground, Volume 1 andVolume 2. show lessTags
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Games recorded from children during ten years.
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45+ Works 7,068 Members
Iona Margaret Opie was born on October 13, 1923. During World War II, she made meteorological maps in the Women's Auxiliary Air Force. She married Peter Opie in 1943. Together they collected children's rhymes, riddles, and street culture. Their books included I Saw Esau, The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes, The Oxford Nursery Rhyme Book, The show more Lore and Language of Schoolchildren, Children's Games in Street and Playground, and The Classic Fairy Tales. After her husband's death in 1982, she continued the work alone. Her books included The People in the Playground, Tail Feathers from Mother Goose, Here Comes Mother Goose, A Dictionary of Superstitions, and Children's Games with Things. Her son Robert collaborated with her on The Treasures of Childhood. She was made CBE in 1999. She died on October 23, 2017 at the age of 94. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
17+ Works 4,439 Members
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Common Knowledge
- Original title
- Children's Games in Street and Playground
- Original publication date
- 1969; 1984 (Oxford paperback with addition to the preface) (Oxford paperback with addition to the preface)
- People/Characters
- Charley Ecko; Eggy Peggy; French Jackie; Jimmy Knacker; Mother Giddy; Old Mother Hubbard (show all 8); Tom Tiddler; Willie Wastell
- First words
- Preface
During the past fifty years shelf-loads of books have been written instructing children in the games they ought to play, and some even instructing adults adults on how to instruct children in the games they ought t... (show all)o play, but few attempts have been made to record the games children in fact play. - Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)At this point, it seems, we reach the boundary of juvenile invention.
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- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper
- ISBNs
- 3
- ASINs
- 5
