The James T. Callow Folklore Archive

Slide

This is a hand clapping game that was played
usually on the playground after lunch during grade
school. This game can only be played with two
people. To begin, the two players stand facing
each other. Both people hold their hands out and
place them so that both right hands are in the middle
and the left hands are on the outside (make sure that
the hands are vertical with the thumbs up as if
shaking hands.). All you say to begin is the word
"slide"; when you say, "Slide" both people
slide their hands toward themselves.
The next step is to clap their own hands together.
Then they clap each other's right hands together.
They clap their own hands together again. Then the
left hands meet. Then they clap their own hands
once more. Now, with fingertips down both people
touch the backs of their hands together at the same
time. The back of your left hand should touch the
back of the other person's right and vice versa.
Then, while the back of the hands are still touching,
begin to roll the hands up so that the palms are
beginning to face each other. Then clap your left
palm to their right palm while clapping your right
palm to their left palm. Then each person claps
their own hands together and the process begins all
over again from the first right meeting right. The
game however, goes in rounds, and this begins the second
round. The second round is a repeat of the first, but
but you repeat the part with the back of
the hands up to the end two times before
going to the beginning. And in the third round it's
repeated three times before starting over. The
object of the game is to see how many rounds you and
your partner can go up to without making a mistake.
Once a mistake is made you have start over from the
beginning.

Where learned: MICHIGAN ; DETROIT

Date learned: 00001970S