Four corners is a children's game, often played in
elementary schools
A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ed ...
. The object of the game is for players to choose corners of the room and not get caught by the designated "It" player until they are the last remaining participant.
Gameplay
To begin, four corners (or general areas) of the room are marked from the numbers one to four. One player is designated to be "It," or the "counter." This player sits in the middle of the room and closes their eyes, or exits the room, and counts to ten. The remaining players choose any one of the corners and quietly go and stand in that area. When the "It" player has finished counting, they call out one of the numbers. All players who had chosen that corner or area are out of the game, and they sit down. Then, "It" counts again, and the remaining players move to a different corner, unless the corner is out.
The last person to still be in the game wins, and usually becomes the new "It."
If "It" calls out a corner containing no players, they either call out another number right away or the players rotate to a new corner, according to different versions of gameplay.
Canadian game
A different 5-player children's game is played in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
under the name "four corners" (also known as "king's court"). It is played on a large square drawn in
chalk
Chalk is a soft, white, porous, sedimentary carbonate rock. It is a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite and originally formed deep under the sea by the compression of microscopic plankton that had settled to the sea floor. Chalk ...
, usually in a schoolyard or other similar area. Four of the children stand on one of the corners of the square, while the fifth player is designated "it" and stands in the middle of the square. The four corner players then attempt to trade places without being tagged by the player who is "it", or without vacating a corner long enough for the player who is "it" being able to stand in the vacant corner. If a corner player is tagged or stranded without a free corner to stand in, they become "it". A common strategy is to try to swap corners while the player who is "it" is chasing other players who are trying to swap corners.
French game
The rules are the same as in the Canadian game, but the fifth player is designated the ''"
chamber pot
A chamber pot is a portable toilet, meant for nocturnal use in the bedroom. It was common in many cultures before the advent of indoor plumbing and flushing toilets.
Names and etymology
"Chamber" is an older term for bedroom. The chamber pot ...
"''. In ''L'Enfant'', French author
Jules Vallès
Jules Vallès (11 June 1832 – 14 February 1885) was a French journalist, author, and left-wing political activist.
Early life
Vallès was born in Le Puy-en-Velay, Haute-Loire. His father was a supervisor of studies (''pion''), later a teac ...
calls "it" just the "pot".
Indian game
In some parts of India, a game similar to the Canadian game is played called "Nalugu Stambalata" (Four-poles game). Each corner of the square has a pole/pillar which the players attempt to touch.
See also
*
Puss in the corner (children's game)
Puss in the corner is a children's game for five players.
Description
A yard, court, room, or other square area with four corners, posts, or trees equidistant
A point is said to be equidistant from a set of objects if the distances betwe ...
References
{{Outdoor games
Children's games
Tag variants