Mother, May I? Game
Teach your kids this retro game. It might even help their manners!
Submitted by
Brea
Brea
Make listening to mommy fun with this retro game! Play it enough and your child may actually develop some really great manners.
- "Mother": This can be mom, dad or even your child.
- "Child": Again, this can be anyone. Your kid will love reversing roles and playing "mommy."
Pick someone to be Mother.
Have the child or children—whoever needs to ask Mother for permission—stand about 10 feet away from dear old mom.
Mother then gives instructions to the child, such as, "Take six large steps forward."
Before following her instructions, the child should ask, "Mother, may I?"
Mother responds with, "Yes, you may" and then the child takes the six steps forward.
Repeat until a child makes it across the room to mom. As the game continues, Mother can go berserk with the commands. "Take four hops forward on your left foot while barking like a dog!" or "Twirl around three times while clapping your hands and singing 'Happy Birthday!'"
The thrill of the game is that the child is inevitably bound to act on Mother's instructions without remembering to ask, "Mother, may I?" Trip the child up by calling out new instructions one after another without pausing.
When the child acts before asking, "Mother, may I?" he is sent back across the room and has to start his approach all over again.
Once the game is finished, start again. Only this time, reverse roles and have the child act as the Mother. (If only you could truly swap roles so your kid could do the carpool run this afternoon!)
- This game is even more fun with groups of kids, so it's a great birthday party activity. Have all the kids line up in a row in front of Mother and let the game begin! The birthday girl can act as Mother. She'll love a legitimate excuse to boss around all her friends—just as long as she doesn't make a habit of it!
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