Who Stole the Bone Game

Have a fibul-ous time playing this bluffing game!

Submitted by
Kayla Chong

Get a head start on reading your kid's poker face with this bluffing game. Learning how to identify her "tells" will come in handy when she's in high school and sneaking over to boys' houses while claiming to be at her best gal pal's pad. (But you don't have to think about that ... yet.)

Bone:
Anything small enough to be hidden in your hand or behind your back. Good choices include a set of keys, a tiny ball a little toy or stuffed animal.
Doggies:
You and your children. You'll need at least three little doggies (including Mom or Dad) to play this game.
Play area:
You can play inside or outside on a blanket. You just need space to form a comfortable circle.

Everyone sits in a circle.
Get your kids to pick out the bone.
Place the bone in the middle of the circle.
Have one child volunteer to be the first doggy.
Have him shut his eyes.
While his eyes are closed (no peeking!) one of the other players grabs the bone and hides it behind his back.
Everyone else puts their hands behind their backs as well so when the doggy opens his eyes, he can't tell who has the bone.
Once the bone is safely hidden, everyone chants, "Doggy, doggy, where's your bone? Somebody stole it from your home! Guess who! Maybe you. Maybe the monkeys from the zoo. Wake up doggy, find your bone!"
The doggy opens his eyes and tries to read the players' faces to figure out who has the bone. If you have a large group, he gets three guesses. If your group is small, (i.e., Mom, Dad and kid), he gets one. (Aw, just give him three.) Obviously the more players you have, the more challenging and fun the game. So bust this one out the next time you host playgroup!
When he guesses correctly, you can all sing a victory song as the doggy takes a bow-wow-wow. "Who Let the Dogs Out?" might be an appropriate choice.
Play the game again with the hider as doggy.