10 Filipino Games You Can Teach Your Kids This Summer

Don’t you ever miss playing traditional games as you were growing up? In this age of hand-held gaming consoles and mobile phones, why not break the monotony and teach your child what you played with when you were young?

1. Patintero
Number of players: 3-5 per team

How you play the game: A rectangle is drawn on the street (usually with chalk), about 5-6 meters, with equal partitions. 2 teams are formed, with the same number of members. One team has to guard the area and tag the other team, while avoiding stepping on the lines of the rectangular shape. The other team has to successfully pass through all lines without getting tagged.  

Skills/Abilities your child can learn from this game: Teamwork, agility, and quick thinking 

2. Agawan Base
Number of players: Equal number of players per team.

How you play the game: Two teams have their own “base,” which usually could be 2 walls or posts (even a tree; it could be anything, actually) facing one another. A safety line is drawn to mark the boundaries of each team’s territory. Players have to chase and tag any opposing team members who enter their territory and try to capture their base.

Skills/Abilities your child can learn from this game: Teamwork, agility, and quick thinking

3. Sungka
Number of players: 2

How you play the game: Each player has his own “house” or home cup with an equal number of cowrie shells. The Sungka board has six cups on each side, along with a home cup. Each player must distribute their number of shells along the entire Sungka board and “eat” or get the other person’s cowrie shells.

Skills/Abilities your child can learn from this game: Strategic thinking, patience

4. Tumbang Preso
Number of players: At least 3

How you play the game: First, someone has to be prisoner (preso) or defender of a can. The prisoner must prevent the other players from knocking down the can with their slippers (each player is allowed to have only up to 2 slippers). Each time the can is knocked down, the slipper used cannot be used again the prisoner has to turn the can upright again. The game goes on like this, and when all slippers have been used, the prisoner is free to chase any of the players and tag the next prisoner.

Skills/Abilities your child can learn from this game: Agility, hand-eye coordination

5. Sipa
Number of players: At least 1 player per team

How you play the game: Basically an “it” has to chuck (using the foot or knee) the “sipa,” a washer with bright colored threads, to another player, who must successfully pass the sipa back to the “it,” without the sipa falling to the ground. Once the “it” passes the sipa again, the player has to catch the sipa and pass it on to another player, otherwise, he will become the next “it.” The winner is determined through the player who became “it” the least number of times.  

Skills/Abilities your child can learn from this game: Dexterity, hand-eye coordination

6. Piko
Number of players: Any number of players

How you play the game: This game, a local version of hopscotch, is played on the street. Using chalk, a rectangular diagram with numbers from 1-9, separated by squares, is drawn on the street. A “pamato” or marker, such as a rock, is used to mark at which square or number a player is at. A player tosses the pamato (starting at 1) and skip that number and hopping across the entire diagram and back. The player picks up the pamato, tosses it to the next number, and does the same procedure again, skipping whatever number he’s at.

Skills/Abilities your child can learn from this game: Dexterity, hand-eye coordination 

7. Tagu-taguan
Number of players: 3 or more

How you play the game: Basically hide and seek, where an “it” closes his eyes and recites a chant. At the end of the chant, he counts from 1-10 to warn the other players that they should be in their hiding places already before he hunts them and successfully tags another player to become the next “it.” Once the “it” sees a player, he has to shout “BOOM!” plus the caught player’s name and then he has to run back and touch his “base,” or the place where he chanted and counted. Players must outrun the “it” and touch the base. The last person to touch the base becomes “it.”

Skills/Abilities your child can learn or develop from this game: Agility, stealth, visual acuity

8. Langit Lupa
Number of players: 3 or more

How you play the game: This game can be played indoors or outdoors.   An “it” has to tag other players. Players have the privilege of not being tagged if they step onto something higher, say, stairs, or a chair. The tagged player becomes “it” and the game continues.

Skills/Abilities your child can learn or develop from this game: Agility, stealth, visual acuity

9. Luksong Tinik
Number of players: 2 teams with equal number of players

How you play the game: 2 players sit facing each other with their right feet’s soles touching one another, forming the base. Each team should have a designated “mother” or leader, who should be the highest jumper. Players must jump over the base without touching it as each round becomes more difficult with hands serving as an extension to the base’s height. If a player touches the hand, the mother must successfully jump to save the player. If she fails, the teams switch places and the game starts anew.

Skills/Abilities your child can learn or develop from this game: Agility, vertical leap

10. Sawsaw Suka
Number of players: 2

How you play the game: One player holds a palm facing up while the other player pokes his pointer finger onto the palm while the chanting the “Sawsaw Suka” song. The other player can recite the chant as fast or as slow as he wants. The other player should trap or catch the pointer finger once he says the final syllable of the chant.

Skills/Abilities your child can learn or develop from this game: Hand-eye coordination